Religious Leaders

"(Last words) My children, be courageous and grow strong in the law, for by it you will gain honour."

"At the same time he killed the king’s officer who was forcing them to sacrifice, and he tore down the altar. Thus he burned with zeal for the law, just as Phinehas did against Zimri son of Salu."

"Whosoever is zealous of the law, and maintaineth the covenant, let him follow me!"

"Now therefore, my sons, be ye zealous for the law, and give your lives for the covenant of your fathers. Call to remembrance what acts our fathers did in their time; so shall ye receive great honour and an everlasting name. Was not Abraham found faithful in temptation, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness? Joseph in the time of his distress kept the commandment, and was made lord of Egypt. Phinees our father in being zealous and fervent obtained the covenant of an everlasting priesthood. Jesus for fulfilling the word was made a judge in Israel. Caleb for bearing witness before the congregation received the heritage of the land. David for being merciful possessed the throne of an everlasting kingdom. Elias for being zealous and fervent for the law was taken up into heaven. Ananias, Azarias, and Misael, by believing were saved out of the flame. Daniel for his innocency was delivered from the mouth of lions. And thus consider ye throughout all ages, that none that put their trust in him shall be overcome. Fear not then the words of a sinful man: for his glory shall be dung and worms. To day he shall be lifted up, and to morrow he shall not be found, because he is returned into his dust, and his thought is come to nothing. Wherefore, ye my sons, be valiant, and shew yourselves men in the behalf of the law; for by it shall ye obtain glory."

"Woe is me! wherefore was I born to see this misery of my people, and of the holy city, and to dwell there, when it was delivered into the hand of the enemy, and the sanctuary into the hand of strangers? Her temple is become as a man without glory. Her glorious vessels are carried away into captivity, her infants are slain in the streets, her young men with the sword of the enemy. 10 What nation hath not had a part in her kingdom, and gotten of her spoils? All her ornaments are taken away; of a free woman she is become a bondslave. And, behold, our sanctuary, even our beauty and our glory, is laid waste, and the Gentiles have profaned it. To what end therefore shall we live any longer?"

"Though all the nations that are under the king's dominion obey him, and fall away every one from the religion of their fathers, and give consent to his commandments: Yet will I and my sons and my brethren walk in the covenant of our fathers. God forbid that we should forsake the law and the ordinances. We will not harken to the king's words, to go from our religion, either on the right hand, or on the left."

"Khiljis, Tughlaqs, Lodhis, Saiyads, Suris and then Moghuls established their rules forcibly. They massacred people, covered the earth with cut heads. The land appeared to wear the veil of the blood of innocents. Mosques were constructed on the birthplace of Rama and Krishna. The Shivalinga of Kashi entered a well. Temples have been destroyed, Murtis broken. What will happen tomorrow now -- who knows. Oh Lord, when will you come to protect the weak?"

"There will be more work than chanting if you keep the knowledge that God exists in all situations and do all the work with the wisdom of serving God. If you can hold this spiritual wisdom."

"He does not work inside, nor does he look at praise or criticism. Do your duty without looking at criticism or praise or judging what others say or not"

"Bonding in the mind is freedom in the mind. There is no bond in the world. The sense of self in wife, son, wealth and people is the bond. Otherwise release"

"Philosophy of fault is the greatest fault. At the sight of evil, the mind is immediately polluted."

"The joys and sorrows of the body happen to everyone, it is wise to bear them with patience. Being detached from it and having the patience to do one's duty, one will know that ultimate peace is near."

"May God bless you. Do din karola — anand hai behind. Everyone has to suffer. If you enjoy it for two days (initially) - you will get pleasure (grace) afterwards"

"The sorrow that arises from the displeasure of relatives is from disillusionment. It will be avoided by men with threats. The sorrow caused by slander and contempt of others is the root of one's own pride. No harm is done by actual blasphemy. Because there is no one who gives different results. And the sorrow that is due to the contempt of others, about the encounter, suppresses one's own arrogance and benefits. By keeping such thoughts in your mind, you will adopt peace."

"Praise is a powerful instrument. It attracts God’s presence. If you have been struggling with a problem, try praise. It can change your life because as you praise God, the earth releases her increase and you will be blessed."

"If you buy a car with money you didn’t earn lawfully, you’ll be riding in a moving coffin."

"Don’t marry a girl who is lazy! Don’t marry a girl who cannot cook, she needs to know how to do chores and cook because you cannot afford to be eating out all the time."

"Nothing happens except God allows it. Nobody comes to government except God allows it, even if the election is rigged."

"Hinduism stands like a huge banian tree spreading its far reaching branches over hundreds of sects, creed and denomination and covering with innumerable leaves, all forms of worship, the dualistic, the qualified non-dualistic and monistic worship of the one Supreme God, the worship, of the Incarnation of God and also hero worship, saint worship, ancestor worship and the worship of the departed spirit. It is based on the grand idea of universal receptivity. It receives everything."

"If any Islamic country or its ulema (clergy) announce jihad, it is obligatory for each and every Muslim in the world to support it morally and express it openly."

"Our battle is not against . . . symptoms of sins such as poverty and disease. It is directed against Lucifer and innumerable demons which fight day and night in order to drag the human souls into an eternity without Christ... Viewing the effects of pagan religions on India, I realised that the masses of India are starving because they are slaves to sin. The battle against hunger and poverty is really a spiritual battle, not a physical or social one as secularists would have us believe. The only weapon that will ever effectively win the war against disease, hunger, injustice and poverty in Asia is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The key factor—and the most neglected—in understanding India’s hunger problem is the Hindu belief system and its effect on food production. Most people know of the ‘sacred cows’ that roam free, eating tons of grain while nearby people starve. But a lesser-known and more sinister culprit is another animal protected by religious belief – the rat . . . The devastating effects of the rat in India should make it an object of scorn. Instead, because of the spiritual blindness of the people, the rat is protected. Mature Christians realize the Bible teaches there are only two religions in the world. There is the worship of the one true God, and there is a false system of demonic alternative invented in ancient Iran. From there, Persian armies and priests spread their faith to India, where it took root. Hindu missionaries, in turn, spread it throughout the rest of Asia. Animism, Buddhism and all other Asian religions have common heritage in this one religious system."

"I bow down to and go for refuge in the glorious sublime master and all the glorious accomplished ones. Please accept us with your great love at all times. I bow down to the dharmadhātu, the ground which is devoid of all relative conceptual labeling, which is the ultimate, the thoroughly established1. I bow down to the ground which is free from all kinds of thought, the unconditioned self-arisen wisdom."

"Dolpopa Sherab Gyeltsen was born in 1292, in the Dolpo region of present-day Nepal. He took ordination as a novice monk in 1304 and spent the following years studying the tantras of the Nyingma tradition. In 1309 he traveled to Mustang to study the treatises on the vehicle of the perfections, epistemology, and abhidharma... In the year 1321, when he was twenty-nine years old, Dolpopa ascended to the monastic seat (gdan sa) of Sakya Monastery... The Karmapa significantly prophesied that Dolpopa would quickly become even more expert in the view and practice... Yonten Gyatso convinced Dolpopa to teach in the assembly at Jonang, and also taught him many more systems of esoteric knowledge, such as Lamdre, the Five Stages (rim lnga) of the Guhyasamāja and the Cakrasaṃvara, Zhije and Chod... [After he passed, his] ...body was placed in a wooden casket anointed with perfume and adorned with silk and precious ornaments, and put inside the crematorium...When the cremation began, the smoke rose only a few feet and then streaked to the stupa, circled it many times, and finally disappeared to the west. The men and women practitioners offered butter lamps on the roofs of their individual meditation huts, so that the entire valley sparkled... each of them made prayers with tears flowing down their faces."

"Alas, my share of good fortune may be inferior, but I think a discovery such as this is good fortune... My intelligence has not been refined in three-fold knowledge, but I think the raising of Mount Meru has caused the ocean to gush forth. I bow in homage to the masters, buddhas, and kalkis, by whose kindness the essential points, difficult for even exalted beings to realize, are precisely realized, and to their great stupa."

"Auspicious – what dwells in the heart of all sentient beings, The selfness of all, the highest lord of all lineages, The producer of sentient beings without exception, great bliss, In that way, may auspiciousness bring peace to you today! Auspicious – what in the triple world is pure form, Formless, good form, and form free of subtle particles, Indivisible with all living beings, Buddha Nature good in that way, May its auspiciousness bring peace to you today! Auspicious – what takes form resembling eight prognostic images, Form that is indestructible like space, free of beginning, end and middle, Referenced as shunyata, Buddha Nature good in that way, May its auspiciousness bring peace to you today!"

"The hardest thing for people to see is themselves (p. 34)"

"In handling matters, let your mind influence your heart. In dealing with people, let your heart influence your mind. (p. 44)"

"Life is a journey; we board an express train at birth and head for the unavoidable destination of death. The scenery drifts by, and the only meaningful thing we can do is to be good and kind to our fellow passengers. (p. 13)"

"A happy person creates a happy home, and from that is able to contribute to his country and finally the world. (p. 18)"

"We are all human beings, the best of us a saint, but never a god. We can follow a saint's conduct and imitate his behavior, but it is unnecessary to worship him. (p. 7)"

"Love and Mercy transcends races, nationalities and geographical distance. (p. vi)"

"To study Buddhism under me is to adopt a new way of life. (p. 20)"

"All lives deserve to be respected, and all beings need to be loved. It ought to be easy for us to feel the pain experienced by the bodies other than our own and grant happiness to those who are but strangers. (p. 3)"

"Look at adversity as a stepping stone, not a hindrance in life. (p. 108)"

"The reason that people cannot be humble is because they cling to their past achievements (p. 24)"

"Affliction is like a poisonous snake that sleeps in the mind; the moment it is disturbed, it will bite you. (p. 176)"

"It is never too late for a deep-rooted affinity to blossom. Do not worry over a distant journey as long as we find the way. (p. 194)"

"Unconditional giving is not a privilege of the rich but an utmost sincere love. (p. 250)"

"We win over ‘negative’ with ‘positive’. (Quote Number: #707)"

"Any good thing will be ruined by talking negatively about it; similarly, bad thing will improve by speaking positive about it. (Quote Number: #231)"

"Comfortable (favorable) circumstance ‘polishes’ one and uncomfortable (unfavorable) circumstances ‘moulds’ one. What problem do we have with either of the two? (Quote Number: #138)"

"Antray (obstacles) are created by speaking completely negatively; and 'positive' does not create obstacles. (Quote Number: #892)"

"One becomes bad himself when he sees or calls others bad. When others appear good to him, he will become good himself. (Quote Number: #1220)"

"Whether you practice craftiness in your business, you will have profit and if you do not practice craftiness, then also you will have [same] profit. Craftiness creates a liability for the next life. So, God had said not to do craftiness. There is no benefit in it and there is infinite suffering."

"There are only two things, ‘positive’ and ‘negative’. If you remain negative, whom would nature help? We should not have ‘negative’ in our dictionary. (Quote Number: #706)"

"If worldly life were a fruit [result] of labor, then the wealthy businessmen would not be eating, only the laborers would be eating!"

"Obliging each other, that is the only enjoyment to be derived from having a human life. (Quote Number: #794)"

"You get good meals to eat, you wear beautiful jewellery, and yet you quarrel. You quarrel because you do not know how to live life; you do not know the art of living. This is what causes quarrels."

"The husband starts complaining about a meal that is not to his liking. Developed people would set aside what they do not like, and eat the rest. Can this not be done? That is a family life."

"What does “my family” mean? It should mean, “We do not have any conflicts.” You should adjust. You should know how to adjust within your family. Adjust everywhere."