I ran across an excerpt today (in English translation) of some dialogue/narration from the modern popular writer, Paulo Coelho in his book: Aleph.(Note: bracketed text is mine.)... 'I spoke to three scholars,' [the character says 'at last.'] ...two of them said that, after death, the [sic (misprint, fault of the publisher)] just go to Paradise. The third one, though, told me to consult some verses from the Koran. [end quote]' ...I can see that he's excited. [narrator]' ...Now I have many positive things to say about Coelho: He is respectable, inspiring as a man, a truth-seeker, and an appealing writer; but one should hesitate to call him a 'literary' writer based on this quote. A 'literary' author knows that a character's excitement should be 'shown' in his or her dialogue and not in the narrator's commentary on it. Advice for Coelho: Remove the 'I can see that he's excited' sentence and show his excitement in the phrasing of his quote.(Now, in defense of Coelho, I am firmly of the opinion, having myself written plenty of prose that is flawed, that a novelist should be forgiven for slipping here and there.)Lastly, it appears that a belief in reincarnation is of great interest to Mr. Coelho ... Just think! He is a man who has achieved, (as Leonard Cohen would call it), 'a remote human possibility.' He has won lots of fame and tons of money. And yet, how his preoccupation with reincarnation—none other than an interest in being born again as somebody else—suggests that he is not happy!

Glory of the world makes life meaningless. Glory of God fulfills it.

life love truth inspirational knowledge philosophy happiness wisdom fame faith hope pride joy god beauty religion self self-respect adoration spirituality conceit humility recognition motivational meaning-of-life writing ego self-love worship vanity happy-life education honor admiration wonder glory nobility blessing phenomenon modesty selfishness reputation greatness humble elegance grandeur praise popularity arrogance celebrate gentle self-importance self-righteous egocentrism narcissism self-worship joy-of-life tame delight acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable bless boast commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-man glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-of-the-world glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god how-to-fulfill-life hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness joyful-living kudos lamblike life-fulfillment lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meaningful-life meaningless-life meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable ultimate-purpose-of-life unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory

... so this is for us.This is for us who sing, write, dance, act, study, run and loveand this is for doing it even if no one will ever knowbecause the beauty is in the act of doing it.Not what it can lead to.This is for the times I lose myself while writing, singing, playingand no one is around and they will never knowbut I will forever rememberand that shines brighter than any praise or fame or glory I will ever have,and this is for you who write or play or read or singby yourself with the light off and door closedwhen the world is asleep and the stars are alignedand maybe no one will ever hear itor read your wordsor know your thoughtsbut it doesn’t make it less glorious.It makes it ethereal. Mysterious.Infinite.For it belongs to you and whatever God or spirit you believe inand only you can decide how much it meantand meansand will forever meanand other people will experience it toothrough you.Through your spirit. Through the way you talk.Through the way you walk and love and laugh and careand I never meant to write this longbut what I want to say is:Don’t try to present your art by making other people read or hear or see or touch it; make them feel it. Wear your art like your heart on your sleeve and keep it alive by making people feel a little better. Feel a little lighter. Create art in order for yourself to become yourselfand let your very existence be your song, your poem, your story.Let your very identity be your book.Let the way people say your name sound like the sweetest melody.So go create. Take photographs in the wood, run alone in the rain and sing your heart out high up on a mountainwhere no one will ever hearand your very existence will be the most hypnotising scar.Make your life be your artand you will never be forgotten.

Beware ! Discipline goes to two different directions : success and self glory. Self glory is the biggest failure of life.

fame pride beauty self-respect adoration conceit humility discipline success recognition ego self-love worship vanity honor admiration wonder glory nobility blessing phenomenon modesty selfishness reputation greatness success-quotes humble temptation elegance grandeur praise popularity arrogance celebrate gentle self-importance self-righteous egocentrism narcissism self-worship tame delight acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable bless boast commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness kudos lamblike lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory discipline-quotes direction-of-discipline temptation-of-succes temptation-quotes

From birth to death and further onAs we were born and introduced into this world,We had a gift hard to express by wordAnd somewhere in our continuous road,It kind of lost it sense and turned.There was that time we sure remember,When everything was now and 'till foreverChildren with no worries and no regrets,The only goal was making a few friends.But later on everything has changed,By minds that had it all arrangedTo bring the people into stress,Into creating their own mess.We have been slaved by our own mind,Turned into something out of our kindSlowly faded away from the present time,Forced to believe in lies, in fights and crime.They made it clearly a fight of the ego,A never ending war that won't just goThey made it a competitive game,To seek selfish materialistic fame.They turned us one against eachother,Man against man, brother against brotherDividing us by religion and skin color,Making us fight to death over a dollar.Making us lose ourselves in sadly thoughts,Wasting our days by living in the pastDepressed and haunted by the memories,And yet still hoping to fly in our dreams.Some of us tried learning how to dance,Step after step, giving our soul a new chanceSome of us left our ego vanish into sounds,Thus being aware of our natural bounce.Some tried expressing in their rhymes,The voice of a generation which never diesThey reached eternity through poetryLeaving the teachings that shall fulfill the prophecyOthers have found their way through spirituality,Becoming conscious of the human dualitySeeking the spiritual enlightenment,Of escaping an ego-oriented fightingScience, philosophy, religion,Try to explain the human origin.Maybe changes are yet to come,And it shall be better for someDeath's for the spirit not an end,But a relieving of the embodimentSo I believe that furthermore,We'll understand the power of our soulBut leaving behind all we know,And all that we might not yet knowIt all resumes to that certain truth,That we all seek to once conclude.

Yesterday i was clever so i took the glory for me. Today HE makes me wise so i give the glory to HIM.

fame pride god beauty self self-respect adoration conceit humility recognition ego self-love worship vanity honor admiration wonder glory nobility blessing phenomenon modesty selfishness wise reputation greatness today humble yesterday elegance grandeur praise popularity arrogance clever celebrate gentle self-importance self-righteous egocentrism narcissism self-worship tame delight acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable bless boast commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-man glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-of-the-world glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness kudos lamblike lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory

Big things in the glory of the world mean nothing. Small things in glory of God mean everything. Truly..., size doesn't matter in this world or in the world to come.

fame pride god beauty self self-respect adoration conceit humility recognition ego self-love worship vanity honor admiration wonder glory nobility blessing phenomenon modesty selfishness reputation greatness humble nothing elegance grandeur praise popularity arrogance celebrate gentle self-importance self-righteous egocentrism narcissism self-worship tame delight everything acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable bless boast commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-man glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-of-the-world glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness kudos lamblike lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory truly small-things this-world big-things size-doesn-t-matter size-matter world-to-come

Sweet wine makes drunk, sour wine (insult) is "tetelestai". Life is not about what we have done and become, but how God to be fully glorified.

life fame pride god beauty self self-respect adoration conceit humility recognition ego self-love worship vanity drunk honor admiration wonder glory nobility blessing phenomenon modesty selfishness reputation greatness humble elegance grandeur praise insult popularity arrogance celebrate gentle self-importance self-righteous egocentrism narcissism self-worship tame delight acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable bless boast commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-man glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-of-the-world glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness kudos lamblike lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory fully-paid it-is-finished last-words-of-jesus saying-of-jesus-on-cross sour-wine sweet-wine tetelestai

Whatever we have in the glory of man is "away". Those are just not enough before we go "home" to the glory of God.

fame pride home god beauty self self-respect adoration conceit humility recognition lost ego self-love worship vanity honor admiration wonder glory nobility blessing phenomenon modesty selfishness reputation greatness humble away enough elegance grandeur praise popularity arrogance celebrate gentle self-importance found self-righteous egocentrism narcissism self-worship sufficient tame delight acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable bless boast commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-man glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-of-the-world glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness kudos lamblike lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory complete not-enough

If we glorify God (not self) in everything we do then everything on earth will glorify God.

fame pride beauty self-respect adoration conceit humility recognition ego self-love worship vanity honor wonder glory nobility phenomenon modesty selfishness reputation greatness humble elegance grandeur praise popularity arrogance celebrate gentle self-importance self-righteous egocentrism narcissism tame delight acclaim acquiescent applaud biddable commend compliant conceitedness deferential diffident distinction docile egotism eminence eulogize exaltation exaltation-of-god extol extolment glorify-god glorify-god-in-everything glorify-self-vs-glorify-god glorifying-god glorifying-god-quotes glory-of-god glory-of-life glory-of-me glory-of-one glory-of-self glory-of-self-vs-glory-of-god glory-to-god glory-to-self god-s-exaltation god-s-glorification god-s-glory god-s-grandeur god-s-greatness god-s-honor god-s-magnificence god-s-majesty god-s-praise grandeur-of-god greatness-of-god honor-of-god hubris humbleness immodesty imperiousness kudos lamblike lionize magnificence magnificence-of-god magnify majesty majesty-of-god marvel meek mild modest obedient opulence pay-tribute-to pomposity pompousness praise-of-god prestige quotes-that-glorify-god rave renown resplendence self-admiration self-adoration self-centeredness self-conceit self-effacing self-exaltation self-extolment self-glorification self-glorifying self-glory self-glory-vs-god-s-glory self-honor self-magnification self-magnifying self-opinion self-praise self-pride self-regard self-satisfaction smugness splendor submissive superiority tractable unassuming unprotesting unresisting vainglory everything-on-earth-glorify-god

Lao Tzu's first paragraph in the book "Tao Te Ching" is that the Tao that can be told is not the absolute Tao.Lao Tzu has his own logic, the logic of paradoxes, the logic of life.To understand Tao, you will have to create eyes.Lao Tzu believes in the unity of opposites, because that is how life is.The Tao can be communicated, but it can only be communicated from heart to heart, from being to being, from love to love, from silence to silence.Truth is always realized in silence. In silence, the truth is realized.You reach to truth through silence.All spiritual books tries to say something that can not be said in the hope that a thirst, a longing, is created in your heart to know the truth.Tao is totality. Life exists through the tension of the opposites, the meeting of the opposites.Lao Tzu says that the opposite poles of life are not really opposites, but complementaries.Thinking is always of opposites. Lao Tzu says: drop the split attitude. Be simple.And when you are simple, you do not choose. Lao Tzu says: be choiceless, let life flow.Enjoy both poles in life, and then your life becomes a symphony of opposites.How to drop the mind: do not choose. If you do not choose, the mind drops.Live life as it comes - float. Float with life. Enjoy the moment in its totality,It is to live as part of the whole, to live as part of existence.If you become silent and empty, everything will come on it's own accord.When you live without any desire for power, position, fame or success, the whole existence pours down into your emptiness.

Fifteen years ago, a business manager from the United States came to Plum Village to visit me. His conscience was troubled because he was the head of a firm that designed atomic bombs. I listened as he expressed his concerns. I knew if I advised him to quit his job, another person would only replace him. If he were to quit, he might help himself, but he would not help his company, society, or country. I urged him to remain the director of his firm, to bring mindfulness into his daily work, and to use his position to communicate his concerns and doubts about the production of atomic bombs.In the Sutra on Happiness, the Buddha says it is great fortune to have an occupation that allows us to be happy, to help others, and to generate compassion and understanding in this world. Those in the helping professions have occupations that give them this wonderful opportunity. Yet many social workers, physicians, and therapists work in a way that does not cultivate their compassion, instead doing their job only to earn money. If the bomb designer practises and does his work with mindfulness, his job can still nourish his compassion and in some way allow him to help others. He can still influence his government and fellow citizens by bringing greater awareness to the situation. He can give the whole nation an opportunity to question the necessity of bomb production.Many people who are wealthy, powerful, and important in business, politics, and entertainment are not happy. They are seeking empty things - wealth, fame, power, sex - and in the process they are destroying themselves and those around them. In Plum Village, we have organised retreats for businesspeople. We see that they have many problems and suffer just as others do, sometimes even more. We see that their wealth allows them to live in comfortable conditions, yet they still suffer a great deal.Some businesspeople, even those who have persuaded themselves that their work is very important, feel empty in their occupation. They provide employment to many people in their factories, newspapers, insurance firms, and supermarket chains, yet their financial success is an empty happiness because it is not motivated by understanding or compassion. Caught up in their small world of profit and loss, they are unaware of the suffering and poverty in the world. When we are not int ouch with this larger reality, we will lack the compassion we need to nourish and guide us to happiness.Once you begin to realise your interconnectedness with others, your interbeing, you begin to see how your actions affect you and all other life. You begin to question your way of living, to look with new eyes at the quality of your relationships and the way you work. You begin to see, 'I have to earn a living, yes, but I want to earn a living mindfully. I want to try to select a vocation not harmful to others and to the natural world, one that does not misuse resources.'Entire companies can also adopt this way of thinking. Companies have the right to pursue economic growth, but not at the expense of other life. They should respect the life and integrity of people, animals, plants and minerals. Do not invest your time or money in companies that deprive others of their lives, that operate in a way that exploits people or animals, and destroys nature.Businesspeople who visit Plum Village often find that getting in touch with the suffering of others and cultivating understanding brings them happiness. They practise like Anathapindika, a successful businessman who lived at the time of the Buddha, who with the practise of mindfulness throughout his life did everything he could to help the poor and sick people in his homeland.

Meditation is the way to be with ourselves and to learn to accept our own aloneness. In aloneness, I experiment with being consciously alone as a door to be egoless. In conscious aloneness, the ego can not function. In aloneness, you are not. I have always been comfortable with my own aloneness as an inner source of love, joy, truth, silence and wholeness. When we depend on other people, it becomes a bondage - instead of a freedom. I took this sunday as a meditation to be consciously alone, and to accept all feelings of pain, of not being loved and the fear of being nobody that would come up during the meditation. This meditation goes up and down during the day: at certain moments, I can totally accept my aloneness. It feels fine to accept that I am alone and that I am nobody. At other moments, I feel the pain of not being loved, when the meditation brings up how dependence on other people is a barrier to totally accept my aloneness. I take a coffee at a restaurant. I am the only person that sits alone in the restaurant, while the other guests are couples and families eating sunday dinner. It brings up painful feelings of not being loved and wanting to be needed by other people, when I see how much people cling to each other in the couples and the families. Escaping your aloneness through relationships and needing other people's attention through being a teacher, a politician or by being rich or famous, are ways of escaping the pain of aloneness. But then the relationships are not really love. Only when you are capable of being alone, you can really love. When we can be alone, we discover the inner source of love, which is our true nature. When we can be alone, it open the door to be one with the Whole.