Think once; reflect three times.
Evil does not exist, but evil actions do.
Call action for many good
Call action for one evil
Other people are not evil
Evil lies within oneself
This world is the ultimate reality
It exists just as it is this moment.
Be rid of trivial attachments
Fix your eyes on the whole
Not knowing the future, we live in darkness
Yet should we know it, we would surely lose our way
Fewer words hold deeper meaning
For words alone, a recording will do
We must see the essential nature of things;
And avoid being misled by false states.
Human nature does not change in a day
We must return to the highest principles
Even a single roadside weed must at all costs be left unharmed and allowed to grow.
All things should be allowed to fully realize their mission in life.
[It is best if we can respect each other’s individuality, while living together in harmony.]
The universe consists of rhythm. All things in this world, should they fall out of sync with this rhythm, will experience suffering, anguish, and ruin.
Each individual has his own unique inborn rhythm as well. Those who manage to maintain this rhythm throughout their lives, will know true success.
The pinnacle of science will be reached when the rhythms of all things are clearly understood.
Each and every thing in this world has it own innate cyclical nature.
When the cycles of all things are fully ascertained, the mission of science will be complete.
“Getting into the swing of things”, is simply the moment when the rhythm of one’s spirit becomes attuned to the rhythm of the work one is doing.
The times when our spirit falls into step with the rhythms of our surroundings, are when we know true happiness.
The human spirit is like wind or water, always tending to adapt to the conditions of its environment. At the same time, each of us is endowed with our own individual spiritual nature, and we are constantly working to adapt our environment to ourselves.
It does not matter whether we adapt ourselves to our surroundings or adapt our surroundings to ourselves, if we can achieve a rhythm of accord between the two then we will know utter happiness for the first time.
Naturally, it requires great effort to synchronize the rhythms of self and environment.
On a larger scale, the universe itself is still undergoing this process. In other words, the ideal is the rhythm of God, and the reality is the present rhythm of the universe. All of the modern world’s suffering springs from the current disharmony between these two rhythms.
However, this must be resolved before long, and reality and the ideal must come into accord with each other.
Souls who display the same rhythm of temperament, belong to the same type, and souls who belong to the same type, share the same joys and sorrows.
When two people, upon only meeting once, feel a natural affinity as though they had been friends for many years, it is because their spiritual types are similar.
Though I have said that human spirit has an inclination to adapt itself to its environment, by no means does it abandon the rhythm it is originally endowed with.
Whether you plant mugwort seeds in a field of flax, or on the side of the road, nothing will ever grow from them but mugwort.
To spend time with a person whose spiritual rhythm is at odds with one’s own is nothing but misery, while to be with another of similar nature is pure joy.
Once, the members of a family were expected to be intimate friends. In today’s confused world, this is no longer the case. Now, in many families the members can barely stand to look at each other each morning.
If a man suddenly takes an interest in something that previously did not interest him, in many cases it is not because of a basic change in his own spirit but because some other spirit has come to influence him.
Once let in, fear knows no bounds
Not knowing allows for nonchalance.
At every instant limitless paths open before us
From that one to this one
We hop, leap, and stumble.
The path I must follow is straight ahead
Sunset comes while we wander at a loss.
If you come to a dead end, turn back
If you come to a river, look for a bridge
If there’s no bridge, look for a boat
If there’s no boat, look for a ford
If there’s no ford, swim for it.
If the river is wide and swift
Ask around if there’s a ferry.
At a time of unusually bad flooding
Best to find lodging and wait it out.
On reflection, this world’s not such a difficult place
Living, dying—nothing could be simpler.
The power to bind and the power to release;
There are two powers in this world.
Binding, releasing
Releasing, binding
The new becomes old,
The old becomes new.
Limitlessly gathering and limitlessly scattering
Old and new run together endlessly.
This world’s an interesting place.
