Lǎozǐ says...

Kindness in words creates confidence,

kindness in thinking creates profoundness,

kindness in feeling creates love.

Certainly he speaks from experience; his legacy lives on even to this day. They say truth lasts for eternity; surely they know.

Guidance

Nature

Nature speaks eloquently to those who listen; to others, she barely shows herself.

The quote above has been shared from the book "Eat Sleep Sit" by Kaoru Nonomura. In the book, the author describes his experience of living a year at Japan's most rigorous Zen temple Eiheiji. In some way, which I cannot seem to put a finger on now, the book profoundly touched my heart. In order to make an attempt at expressing this intense feeling, allow me to say that reading the book revealed a certain inescapable truth expressed in meek human nature.

Puzzles

Darkness covers refined and common words

Brightness distinguishes clear and murky phrases

The above two lines have been taken from the "Harmony of Difference and Equality" Zen Sutra (like poetry). The entire Sutra has about 30 paragraphs which at first read, or even the first few reads, seem puzzling. But when read over a long period of time (weeks or months), it's fascinating how the meanings start unraveling themselves little by little, and finally we are gifted with this beautifully interwoven, meaningful selection of words.

It stands to testify how every word in the Sutra embodies life.

Ratatouille

Django: This is the way things are. You can't change nature.
Remy: Change is nature, Dad. The part that we can influence. And it starts when we decide.

The Power of One

We cannot hope to build a better world without improving the individual. Toward this end, each of us must work for his own highest development, accepting at the same time his share of responsibility in the general life of humanity—our particular duty being to aid those to whom we think we can be most useful.

- Madame Curie

Authentic Practice

Authentic Practice

The reason the blog-post ( link ) has been shared above is not to advocate a certain form of spiritual practice, but to bring home the point, minus labels, that realizing self happens with shedding away, and actualizing self happens with building up. It is a process of becoming by acting counter to the voices echoed by the will most times. Is it easy? No. Is it strengthening? Yes.