Save the world

Before you can save others, you have to save yourself. You have to be “selfish” at first. First you have to flower, you have to become fully conscious, aware, alert. You have to blossom first. Is the rose selfish when it blossoms?

While asleep, your urge to save the world is just a product of your ego that wants to be “better” than the others, an ego that searches recognition, respect, followers and worship.

First you save yourself, first you blossom, and your perfume will wake up the rest and they will blossom too. That’s all you have to do to save the word: blossom.

Empty Boat

If a man is crossing a river

And an empty boat collides with his own skiff,

Even though he be a bad-tempered man

He will not become very angry. 

But if he sees a man in the boat,

He will shout to him to steer clear.

And if the shout is not heard, he will shout

Again, and yet again, and begin cursing —

And all because there is somebody in that boat.

Yet if the boat were empty, he would not be shouting,

And he would not be angry. 

If you can empty your own boat

Crossing the river of the world,

No one will oppose you,

No one will seek to harm you. 

Who can free himself of achievement and fame

Then descend and be lost

Amidst the masses of men? 

He will flow unseen…

He will go about like life itself,

With no name and no home.

Simple is he, without distinction.

To all appearances he is a fool.

His steps leave no trace. 

He has no power.

He achieves nothing,

He has no reputation. 

Since he judges no one,

No one judges him. 

Such is the perfect man —

His boat is empty.

—- a Chuang Tzu story

Walls are not meaningful

You live in a house, and your concept of the house is the walls. But walls are not the house, how can you live in the walls? You live in the emptiness, not in the walls. The hollowness - that is the real house. If you look at the real house, then there is no difference between a hut and a palace, since all hollownesses are the same; but there are rich walls and poor walls.

When you look at a person do you look at the body? Then you are looking at the walls. That is not the real person - the real person is the inner hollowness. Look at the inner, don’t look at the outer. All ego is just on the surface. The inner is pure.

All achievements are of the ego

Once it happened: a saint knocked at the doors of Heaven, and at the same time, just by his side, a sinner knocked too. And the saint knew the sinner very well. He had lived in his neighborhood, in the same town, and they had died on the same day.

The doors opened. The gatekeeper, St. Peter, didn’t give even a look to the saint. He welcomed the sinner. The saint was offended. This was not expected, that a sinner should be welcomed. He asked St. Peter, ”What is the matter? You offend me. You insult me. Why am I not received when the sinner has been received with such welcome?”

Said St. Peter, ”That’s why. You expect. He does not expect. He simply feels grateful that he has come to Heaven. You feel that you have earned it. He feels the grace of God; you think it is because of your efforts that you have achieved it. It is an achievement to you, and all achievements are of the ego. He is humble. He cannot believe that he has come to heaven.”

Laughter drops your ego

Laughter brings you to the earth, brings you down from your stupid ideas of being holier-than-thou.