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VIRTUOUS LIVING - FOR THAT SPRING OF LIFE
about that is that although it yells from pain, its pride is not lessened, but goes on increasing, and the cords of passion and desire cut deeper and deeper into its “flesh'. Hundreds and thousands of beings suffer from this condition, never caring to know the reason why of their excruciating pain; and yet the cure is simple enough the moment the diagnosis is made. The cords cut deep into the 'skin' of the soul because it is inflated from within. The cause of this is ahamkāra. Take off a little of the air from the ahamkāra, and relief will come instantaneously. Remove ahamkāra completely, and the pain is gone.
Jesus was one of the meekest of the men of his age. He used to squat down on the ground, eat with his hands, and dress just as the poor people do, but many a preacher of his gospel now looks down upon this simple mode of life, and consider those who live in the way the great Master did as socially and mentally inferior to himself. The difference is that the former preached the Gospel of the Kingdom of Heaven; the latter preaches that of culture and power, though there is a mechanical repetition of the great sayings of the Master in his speech. The moral standpoint comes in view only when it does not clash with the point of view of the world around.
Truthfulness and honesty are two virtues essential for peace and harmony, from within and with outside. Speaking what is not commendable is falsehood. What is not commendable? That which causes pain and suffering to the living is not commendable. Falsehood directly produces impurity of the heart, perverts and deadens the finer instincts, converts the noble emotion of love into that of hatred. It makes the intellect cloudy, and replaces the serenity of mind with worry and anxiety. The liar wants to be happy, but does the very thing which directly gives birth to unhappiness! Spiritual progress is impossible without peace of
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