The Divine Foolishness of Diogenes
When someone was asked what sort of man Diogenes was, his reply was, “A Socrates gone mad.” … More The Divine Foolishness of Diogenes
When someone was asked what sort of man Diogenes was, his reply was, “A Socrates gone mad.” … More The Divine Foolishness of Diogenes
Subway ride from Brooklyn to Manhattan on a March day near sunset…. Accompanied by a raga in C on the banjo … More Ceaseless Pilgrimage
All is secret
Hidden and concealed beneath the disguise of form … More The Secret of Secrets
The ancients imagined that the universe was hatched from a primordial egg. The egg has captivated humans and it has become a symbol of life, fertility, generation and re-generation. To the Alchemists it was analoguous to the Macrocosm, the universe. This embryo of the universe has been called the world egg, cosmic egg or mundane … More The Cosmic Egg
Man must carve himself from the rock which he is made of, and of the very same rock in which he is bound.
… More Man Carving His Own Destiny
The paradox that is the law of life That to live we must die That to be, we must be not That to attain immortality we must pass through death That to be everything, we must be nothing That to have we must let go That to receive we must give That to keep we … More Paradox is the Law of Life
When asked as to the source of his knowledge he always referred to as “The Book” or ” The Book of Books’; a well worn tome resting upon a pedestal in the center of his room. … More The Book of Books
One evening Ryōkan returned back his simple little hut at the base of the mountain after a walk through the woods to find that his home had been forcibly broken into and his only possessions stolen. His calligraphy pen, begging bowl, and one blanket he used to sleep with were all stolen. Ryōkan sat down … More Forgetting the Moon: The Poetry of Ryōkan
The science, which teaches arts and handicrafts Is merely science for the gaining of a living; But the science which teaches deliverance from worldly existence, Is not that the true science? Prajñadanda (The Staff of Wisdom) attributed to Nagarjuna There is nothing more difficult to find than ones own self The Supreme Science is the … More The Supreme Science
Far away in the heavenly abode of the great god Indra, there is a wonderful net which has been hung by some cunning artificer in such a manner that it stretches out infinitely in all directions. In accordance with the extravagant tastes of deities, the artificer has hung a single glittering jewel in each … More Indra’s Net of Gems
No one spoke. The host, The guest, Nor the white chrysanthemum. — Oshima Ryota (1718-1787)
On the difference between fact & Truth.
That which is transient, pertaining to form is a fact.
That which is eternally true, that which is representative of reality – is Truth … More Fact & Truth: The Fundemental Difference
The ultimate gamble is to seek God
To risk it all for all
The supreme daredevil is the mystic, the truly religious man
For it is the adventure into the complete unknown, the utter mystery. … More The Gambler
Ariadne’s thread is the thread of the divine present in all things. If one could find the beginning of the thread within, they could then unravel it and discover, or rather uncover, their source.
In Greek mythology, the Labyrinth at Knossos was built by the craftsman and artisan Daedalus for King Minos of Crete. It held the Minotaur, which Theseus killed as he navigated the Labyrinth. Theseus only escaped because of the skein of thread given to him by Ariadne, whose name in Greek means most holy. The skein … More The Labyrinth of Life
In nova fert animus mutatas dicere formas corpora; di, coeptis (nam vos mutastis et illas) adspirate meis primaque ab origine mundi ad mea perpetuum deducite tempora carmen! I intend to speak of forms mutated into new beings Ye Gods, (from whom these miracles spring,) inspire me now, change me, let me glimpse the secret … More Metamorphosis