1,001 Pearls of Spiritual Wisdom
By Kim Lim
()
About this ebook
1,001 Pearls of Spiritual Wisdom collects the most comforting and thought-provoking thoughts ever spoken and written. Not bound by any particular religion or ideology, the quotes inside reflect humanity’s most profound thoughts on the body, the soul, and how spirituality has provided us with the power and opportunity to live satisfying and enriching lives.
Categorized by some of the most foundational spiritual themes, 1,001 Pearls of Spiritual Wisdom provides you with introspections for any situation or state of mind. Here are ideas to further your education into spirituality, to help you find success and fulfillment in your life and in the lives of those around you. Just a few examples you’ll find inside are:
Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” Buddha
I know God will not give me anything I can’t handle. I just wish he didn’t trust me so much.” Mother Teresa
My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.” Albert Einstein
Related to 1,001 Pearls of Spiritual Wisdom
Related ebooks
1,001 Pearls of Life-Changing Wisdom: Insight on Identity, Truth, and Success Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSelected Poetry Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lotus and the Lily: Access the Wisdom of Buddha and Jesus to Nourish Your Beautiful, Abundant Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Zen Quote A Day: 365 Existential Zen Quotes For A Zensational Year Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5365 Days of Richer Living: Daily Inspirations Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Seeker, the Search, the Sacred: Journey to the Greatness Within Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Natural Abundance: Ralph Waldo Emerson's Guide to Prosperity Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fasting the Mind: Spiritual Exercises for Psychic Detox Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5God Is . . .Selected Writings of Sri Chinmoy Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Little Book of Light: One Hundred Eleven Ways to Bring Light into Your Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Mystics, Masters, Saints, and Sages: Stories of Enlightenment Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5366 Days of Excellence: Daily Reflections Along The Road of Individual and Team Achievement Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSecond Innocence: Rediscovering Joy and Wonder; A Guide to Renewal in Work Relations and Daily Life Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Prayers for Healing: 365 Blessings, Poems, & Meditations from Around the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Art of Being Yourself: Or... <Br>How to Overcome What You've Become Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsPath to Enlightenment Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Laws of Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDivine Audacity: Dare to Be the Light of the World Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5365 Taoism Quotes: Daily Taoism Quotes to Become More Congruent, Peaceful and Thankful Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Spiritual Lessons from Nature Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsKahlil Gibran's Little Book of Wisdom Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Mooji - Collection of beautiful messages Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMind of God Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe New Master Key System (Library of Hidden Knowledge) Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Rumi and Islam: Selections from His Stories, Poems and Discourses—Annotated & Explained Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Silent Teaching Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsSilence Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Essential Laws of Fearless Living: Find the Power to Never Feel Powerless Again Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Personal Growth For You
Think and Grow Rich (Illustrated Edition): With linked Table of Contents Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Talk to Anyone: 92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Book of 30-Day Challenges: 60 Habit-Forming Programs to Live an Infinitely Better Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Four Loves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Present Over Perfect: Leaving Behind Frantic for a Simpler, More Soulful Way of Living Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 5AM Club: Own Your Morning. Elevate Your Life. Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Girl, Wash Your Face: Stop Believing the Lies About Who You Are so You Can Become Who You Were Meant to Be Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5Changes That Heal: Four Practical Steps to a Happier, Healthier You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mastery of Self: A Toltec Guide to Personal Freedom Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Feeling Good: The New Mood Therapy Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alchemist: A Graphic Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Road Less Traveled: A New Psychology of Love, Traditional Values and Spiritual Growth Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High, Second Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Unfuck Your Brain: Using Science to Get Over Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Freak-outs, and Triggers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Courage to Be Happy: Discover the Power of Positive Psychology and Choose Happiness Every Day Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Codependence and the Power of Detachment: How to Set Boundaries and Make Your Life Your Own Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Personal Workbook Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Self-Care for People with ADHD: 100+ Ways to Recharge, De-Stress, and Prioritize You! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Girl, Stop Apologizing: A Shame-Free Plan for Embracing and Achieving Your Goals Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5
Reviews for 1,001 Pearls of Spiritual Wisdom
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
1,001 Pearls of Spiritual Wisdom - Kim Lim
Copyright © 2014 by Skyhorse Publishing
All Rights Reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018.
Skyhorse Publishing books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications. For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Skyhorse Publishing, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or info@skyhorsepublishing.com.
Skyhorse® and Skyhorse Publishing® are registered trademarks of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc.®, a Delaware corporation.
www.skyhorsepublishing.com
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available on file.
ISBN: 978-1-62873-624-3
Printed in China
Contents
Introduction
To Begin
The Spiritual in the Material
Faith and Doubt
Religion Vs. Spirituality
The Quest to Know
God and Us
Devotion, Prayer, Meditation
The Mystical
Realizing the Self
Healing the World
Love
Art
Laughter and Tears
Afterlife
Index
INTRODUCTION
Ironically, to begin an introduction to a quote book on spirituality, I am tempted to use a quote.
The reason is simple—spiritual things are beyond the body, and therefore beyond the grasp of language, which comes from the body. And yet, mankind has attempted throughout history to tie the soaring spirit down with words. We struggle to contain it within the confines of language, we dance with it in song, we force it into novels, wrestle it into poetry, and posit it in essays. As I gathered quotes for this book, I noticed that when fewer words were used to express the spirit, its meaning became more poignant. This makes sense. After all, how much more effective is a three-hundred page novel compared to a single line of poetry if both come to the same, inevitable conclusion that the spirit will always escape language? Perhaps the quote is the best medium to communicate spiritual wisdoms, epiphanies, and experiences.
It is astonishing to see the spectrum of people who supply the spiritual wisdoms in this little book. Not even half of the quotes here are attributed to religious leaders. I have quoted from eminent physicists, Hollywood heartthrobs, science-fiction authors, disgruntled philosophers, hard rockers, converted sportsmen, martyred politicians, hit TV shows, and church signboards. I quote from antiquity to modern day, from the Dalai Lama to Jesus Christ, from Sappho to Lauryn Hill. In our contemporary enlightened mindset, where science is regarded as incompatible with spirituality, we often forget that spirituality cannot be restricted to black and whites or human decision. The spirit exists in the infinite form of a god, in a blade of grass, in the geometry of equations, within oneself, and even, or perhaps especially, among a people. To deny spirituality as wishful thinking is to forget centuries of human engagement with the world, knowledge, art, love, the self, and the community. Even if you do not believe in the spiritual being, the involuntary human capacity to doubt is revealing in itself.
Some dismiss spiritual fancy as the unnecessary, even unethical, submission of the self to a greater power. Which begs the question: why should we be afraid of throwing ourselves headlong into mystery? As Graham Greene said, it is like falling in love; and who wouldn’t want to be in love?
Kim Lim
TO BEGIN
One must go further, one must go further.
This impulse to go further is an ancient thing in the world.
—Søren Kierkegaard
We have the hunger for eternity in our souls, the thought of eternity in our hearts, the destination for eternity written on our inmost being.
—Alexander Maclaren
What makes the desert beautiful,
said the little prince, is that somewhere it hides a well …
—Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince
The root of spirit
is the Latin spirare, to breathe. Whatever lives on the breath, then, must have its spiritual dimension.
—Jane Hirshfield
It was the movement of the air that provided the image of spirituality, since the spirit borrows its name from the breath of wind…
—Sigmund Freud
The human soul is like a bird that is born in a cage. Nothing can deprive it of its natural longings, or obliterate the mysterious remembrance of its heritage.
—Epes Sargent
I believe the universe created us—we are an audience for miracles.
—Ray Bradbury
It’s a basic fact about being human that sometimes the self seems to just melt away.
—Jonathan Haidt
The created world is but a small parenthesis in eternity.
—Thomas Browne
In the beginning was the myth. God, in his search for self-expression, invested the souls of Hindus, Greeks, and Germans with poetic shapes and continues to invest each child’s soul with poetry every day.
—Herman Hesse
We are all writing God’s poem.
—Anne Sexton
I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth.
—Thích Nhâ’t Hạnh
I’ve caught belief like a disease. I’ve fallen into belief like I fell in love.
—Graham Greene
I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.
—C. S. Lewis
I believe in everything until it’s disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons…. Who’s to say that dreams and nightmares aren’t as real as the here and now?
—John Lennon
God does not die on the day when we cease to believe in a personal deity, but we die on the day when our lives cease to be illumined by the steady radiance, renewed daily, of a wonder, the source of which is beyond all reason.
—Dag Hammarskjöld
A life is either all spiritual or not spiritual at all. No man can serve two masters.
—Thomas Merton
Great men are they who see that spiritual is stronger than any material force—that thoughts rule the world.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
Spirituality is a domain of awareness.
—Deepak Chopra
We don’t have to change what we see. Only the way we see.
—Ann Voskamp
The only true voyage of discovery, the only fountain of Eternal Youth, would be not to visit strange lands but to possess other eyes…
—Marcel Proust
A spiritual man is happy with the whole existence. He says yes
to the whole existence.
—Swami Dhyan Giten
We can no more do without spirituality than we can do without food, shelter, or clothing.
—Ernest Holmes
People know they are lacking something, they are constantly wanting some kind of spiritual guidance.
—Douglas Hurd
There is nothing besides a spiritual world…
—Franz Kafka
Rivers, ponds, lakes and streams—they all have different names, but they all contain water. Just as religions do—they all contain truths.
—Muhammad Ali
We fall from womb to tomb, from one blackness and toward another, remembering little of the one and knowing nothing of the other … except through faith.
—Stephen King, Danse Macabre
The authentic self is the soul made visible.
—Sarah Ban Breathnach
Life—a spiritual pickle preserving the body from decay.
—Ambrose Bierce
Man chooses either life or death, but he chooses; everything he does, from going to the toilet to mathematical speculation, is an act of religious worship, either of God or of himself.
—W. H. Auden
Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth.
—Mahatma Gandhi
If they drive God from the earth, we shall shelter Him underground.
—Fyodor Dostoevsky, The Brothers Karamazov
To believe in a God means to see that the facts of the world are not the end of the matter. To believe in God means to see that life has a meaning.
—Ludwig Wittgenstein
The finest emotion of which we are capable is the mystic