Some inspirational ideas and quotes from the great Seer Poets can become like mantras. They invoke and explain powerful ideas with a poetic flow that touches the soul. These are a few quotes and ideas that have frequently inspired me. If you have any to share, kindly leave in comments.
Humility
This famous monologue from Shakespeare’s ‘As You Like it’ eludes to the importance of humility. We may be proud of our current situation, but we can never take our fate for granted. It also infers the underlying oneness of experience. ‘We play many parts’ reminds us that we can experience life from any perspective. It is a reminder of the golden rule to love thy neighbour as thyself. As a part we play today, maybe very different tomorrow. It also makes me think of Mother Teresa’s quote:
‘In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.’
– Whatever our current ‘part’ maybe, the important thing is we do our part with love.
Love vs Power
(Photo: Unmesh)
The nature of the mind is to wish to exercise power. But, when we strive for power, peace disappears. If we replace the love of power, with the power of love, the world will be changed. It is our heart power that can bring peace and not the battle for supremacy.
 The Nature of Love
In human love there is often attachment and desire. We love, but there is a partial desire to benefit ourselves. The real divine love is unconditional. We love for love’s sake and are not influenced by outer circumstances. In real love, forgiveness comes spontaneously. There is no sense of sacrifice, only love.
The Nature of Self
Walt Whitman’s classic opening from ‘Song of Myself’ is a joyful reminder of our highest self – our real self. It is a reminder of the underlying oneness we have with creation. The Vedic Seers wrote many centuries ago that our inner nature is delight. This is an inspiration for us to grow from the little ‘I’ (ego) to the bigger I
Beauty
It feel superfluous to add to this momentous line from John Keats. An invocation of beauty and joy.
Heaven on Earth
Another epic of English poetry. A reminder heaven is in the eye of the beholder. If we can be aware and grateful of nature, we can see miracles everyday.
Perfection
(photo: Unmesh)
In the outer life, we see teeming imperfection. The human mind is apt to criticise and condemn. But, from a different consciousness and a different perspective we see the spirit behind the material world.
God is Love
(photo Unmesh)
When the Buddha attained enlightenment, he did not talk of God. He felt, the consciousness of Nirvana was too impenetrable to describe to the human mind, but he did talk of light, peace and love. What is God if not these qualities of infinite peace, light and love? God can be described in many ways, but the greatest is love. Sri Aurobindo, from his epic Savitri, epitomizes the essence of God who loves without condition.
Love is long suffering,
love is kind,
it is not jealous,
love does not boast,
it is not inflated.
Change
Everybody want to change the world, but who wants to love the world? We can love the world, by first loving ourselves in a divine way.
Hope
(photo: Pavitrata)
Hope is essential in human life.
Love v Hate
Inner Peace
(photo: Unmesh)
We can buy many things in this world, but inner peace can never be bought – only cultivated by our inner attitude. But, if we have inner peace, we have everything. – Seven Steps to Inner Peace
There is no ‘right way’
” I am proud to belong to a religion which has taught the world both tolerance and universal acceptance. We believe not only in universal toleration, but we accept all religions as true…… ‘As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so, O Lord, the different paths which men take through different tendencies, various though they appear, crooked or straight, all lead to Thee.'”
– Swami Vivekananda, Address to the World Parliament of Religions September 11th, 1893
For much of human existence we have been arguing and fighting for the ‘best way’Â ‘the one true religion’. The problem is that we always feel it is our religion that is right, or perhaps it is our country / race that is ‘right’. At some extremes religion claims that all other paths are invalid. Unless you worship in the ‘right’ way you are doomed. This attitude of exclusivity breeds pride and conflict. If only our way is the right way, we end up fighting for it. But, what if there isn’t a chosen people or ‘the one true religion’. If we can accept that all paths are valid, we lose that exclusivity and conflict. We not only tolerate other paths and approaches but celebrate them for being valid paths on the road of life.
Related
- Short Poems.org – more selected poems
- Writes Spirit Blog
(photo by Tejvan, unless stated)
It’s amazing the depth of insight that so many poets have had throughout history… if only more people would access it more often.
Thank you. Very nice selections of poems and photos. Your comments add to the depth of each inspiration.
Beautiful.. Good selection of epic, very useful in our daily life, Thank you!