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  • The song of the bird

    The disciples were full of questions about God. Said the Master, “God is Unknown, the Unknowable. Every statement about him, every answer to your questions, is a distortion of the truth.” The…

  • Vigilance

    Is there anything I can do to make myself Enlightened? As little as you can do to make the sun rise in the morning. Then of what use are the spiritual exercises…

  • Laughing at yourself

    There was nothing pompous about the Master. Wild, hilarious laughter prevailed each time he spoke, to the dismay of those who were solemn about their spirituality, and themselves. Said one disillusioned visitor, “The…

  • The eye to see

    A writer arrived at a monastery to write a book about the Master.  “People say you are a genius. Are you?” he asked. “You might say so,” said the Master with a smile. “And…

  • Who is greater?

    Two disciples in an ashram started arguing on who is the greatest of the two. To put an end to the discussion, which was going on and on, then went to the…

  • Not a minute to lose

    When the Master heard that a neighbouring forest had been devastated by fire, he mobilised all his disciples. “We must replant the cedars,” he said. “The cedars?” exclaimed an incredulous disciple. “But…

  • Dependence

    To a disciple who depended overmuch on books, the Master said: “A man came to the market with a shopping list and lost it. When to his great joy he found it…

  • Thought

    “Why are you so wary of thought?” the philosopher asked the Master. “Thought is the one tool we have for organising the world.” “True. But thought can organise the world so well…

  • Universality

    The Master ordinarily dissuaded people from living in a monastery. “To profit from books you don’t have to live in a library,” he would say. Or, even more forcefully, “You can read…