Golden Steps To Salvation

Author(s): Padmasagarsuri
Publisher: Arunoday Foundation

Page 55

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was extremely pitiable. He shot himself. Before breathing his last, he said to his faithful servant, "After I die pour petrol over my body and burn it." The man who wanted to conquer the whole world died in this horrible manner.
Pride puts a full stop to life because it checks progress. Pride checks progress and causes a spiritual disaster to man. A tall plant can stand only until a whirlwind appears.
The English word "I" is the synonym of the Sanskrit word ag. The word, "I", wherever it occurs in a sentence, is written as a capital letter. In the same manner, a haughty man wherever he may be, keeps his head cocked up. He thinks, "I am huge and the road is narrow. I am great; the world is petty, I am tali; and all the others are short and tiny."
Once a peculiar incident took place. The various organs of the body grew proud of themselves and each began to assert that it was superior to the others.
The legs said, "We walk; we run; we play football and we are the supporting pillars to the entire body; so we are superior to all other organs."
The stomach said, "I digest food and give nourishment to all the organs of the body. People work hard only for my sake. If I did not exist people would be lazy."
The hands said, "We do all the work. Without us, a man cannot embrace his friends. Even the namaskar (the salute) is performed with our help. Therefore no other organ is superior to us."
The mouth said, "I perform two great tasks; one is eating and drinking and the other is speaking. Moreover, the tongue enjoys the taste of various fruits and sweets. The teeth chew food and protect the tongue. I can mesmerise people by my powers of speaking and singing."
The nose said, "I give beauty to the face. If I did not exist people would be dumb. It is only with my help that men can experience fragrance or foul smell. If I stop breathing the body would become a carcase.
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