There are already enough names

Once the whole is divided, the parts need names.

There are already enough names;

Know when to stop.

From 32nd verse of Tao te ching.

Wayne Dyer in "Change your thoughts change your life" page 156

Can we stop war by praying for peace?

Question: Can we stop war by praying for peace? Krishnamurti: I do not think that war can be stopped by prayer. Isn't praying for peace merely a particular form of emotional release? We think that we are incapable of preventing war and so we find in prayer a release from this horror. Do you think that by merely praying for peace you are going to stop violence in the world? Prayer only becomes an escape from actuality. That emotional state which results in prayer can also be worked upon by propagandists for the purposes of war, hatred. As one eagerly prays for peace, so, equally enthusiastically, one is persuaded about the beauties of nationalism and the necessity of war. Prayer for peace is utterly useless. The causes of war are manufactured by man, and it is of no value to appeal to some outside force for peace. War exists because of psychological and economic reasons. Until those causes are fundamentally altered, war will exist, and praying for peace is of no value.

Ojai 8th Talk in the Oak Grove 24th May, 193

Words

People feed on words,

live by words, would fall apart without them.

Anthony de Mello in "The Prayer of the frog" page 81

True forgiveness

True forgiveness is a willingness to change your mind about your Self.

Robert Holden

Explanations

As humans, we wish to find an explanation for every occurrence that transpires in the world around us. All of these conclusions, however, are simply rationalizations of the thinking mind. Therefore, they are influenced by the science and accepted knowledge of the present time.

Scott Shaw in "Zen O'clock" page 49

Concentration

You know what concentration is - from childhood, we are trained to concentrate. Concentration is the narrowing down all our energy to a particular point, and holding to that point. A boy in school looks out of the window at the birds and the trees, at the movement of the leaves, or at the squirrel climbing the tree. And the teacher says: "You are not paying attention, concentrate on the book", or "Listen to  what I am saying." This is to give far more importance to concentration than to attention. If I were the teacher I would help him to watch; I would help him to watch that squirrel completely; watch the movement of the tail, how its claws act, everything. Then if he learns to watch that attentively, he will pay attention to the book.

Krishnamurti in "Questions and Answers" p 43

The greatest gift

Yesterday's entry on my Brahma Kumaris calendar...

Self-transformation is the greatest gift you can give the world.