Philosophia Perennis Quotes

“He sees the truth as with a jolt. There it is, within his own being, lying deep down but still in his own self. There never was any need to travel anywhere to find it; no need to visit anyone who was supposed to have it already, and sit at his feet; not even to read any book, however sacred or inspired. Nor could another person, place, or writing give it to him--he would have to unveil it for himself in himself. The others could direct him to look inwards, thus saving all the effort of looking elsewhere. But he himself would have to give the needful attention to himself. The discovery must be his own, made within the still centre of his being.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“Religion represents the outer form of spirituality, but Sanatana Dharma represents the more important inner heart of all spirituality. (p. 17)”
― Sri Dharma Pravartaka Acharya, Sanatana Dharma: The Eternal Natural Way

“Towards Human Unity

A spiritual religion of humanity is the hope of the future. By this is not meant what is ordinarily called a universal religion, a system, a thing of creed and intellectual belief and dogma and outward rite. A religion of humanity means the growing realisation that there is a secret Spirit, a divine Reality, in which we are all one, that humanity is its highest present vehicle on earth, that the human race and the human being are the means by which it will progressively reveal itself here. It implies a growing attempt to live out this knowledge and bring about a kingdom of this divine Spirit upon earth. (The Ideal of Human Unity, Collected Works 25, p. 577)”
― Sri Aurobindo, The Ideal of Human Unity

“Die Frage nach dem Grund, nach dem Sinn für die Erschaffung der Welt taucht im Geist jedes aufmerksamen Menschen auf. Die Antwort ist, um die Monotonie zu durchbrechen. Nenne es Gott, nenne das Einzige Sein, nenne es Quelle und Ziel von allem; da das einzige Wesen allein war, wünschte es, dass es da etwas zu erkennen geben möge. Die Hindus bezeichnen die Schöpfung als Brahmas Traum. Man mag es Traum nennen, aber es ist die grundlegende Absicht. Die Sufis erklären es folgendermaßen: Gott, das Liebende wollte Seine eigene Natur erkennen; daher wurde durch die Schöpfung das Geliebte ins Leben gerufen, damit die Liebe sich offenbaren möge. Wenn wir es in diesem Lichte betrachten, dann ist alles was wir sehen, das Geliebte. Wie Rumi, der größte Schriftsteller Persiens sagt:

„Der Geliebte ist alles in Allem, der Liebende aber verschleiert Ihn; der Geliebte ist alles was lebt, der Liebende ist ein totes Ding.“ Sufis nennen daher Gott den Geliebten. Sie erkennen das Geliebte in allen Wesen. Sie denken sich Gott nicht im Himmel, getrennt, von allen Wesen entfernt. In Allem, in allen Formen sehen sie die Schönheit Gottes. Mit dieser Erkenntnis wird der zentrale und grundlegende Sinn des Lebens erfüllt.”
― Hazrat Inayat Khan, Meisterschaft: Spirituelle Verwirklichung in dieser Welt

“Betrachten wir das Leben aus dem Blickwinkel des Philosophen, so erkennen wir, dass jeder Mensch in dieser Symphonie des Lebens wie eine Note ist; dass wir alle dieser Symphonie des Lebens erschaffen, indem jeder die Musik beiträgt, die in dieser Symphonie gebraucht wird. Aber wenn wir unseren eigenen Anteil an der Symphonie des Lebens nicht kennen, dann ist es, als ob eine der vier Saiten einer Violine nicht gestimmt ist, und wenn sie nicht gestimmt ist, kann sie nicht den Ton spielen, den sie spielen sollte. So muss jede/r von uns den Anteil einbringen, für den sie oder er geboren wurde. Wenn wir nicht wie vorgesehen unseren Anteil einbringen, dann befinden wir uns nicht im Einklang mit unserem Schicksal. Nur indem wir die zu uns gehörende, besondere Rolle spielen, erlangen wir Zufriedenheit. (S. 89)”
― Hazrat Inayat Khan, Meisterschaft: Spirituelle Verwirklichung in dieser Welt

“Betrachten wir das Leben aus dem Blickwinkel des Philosophen, so erkennen wir, dass jeder Mensch in dieser Symphonie des Lebens wie eine Note ist; dass wir alle diese Symphonie des Lebens erschaffen, indem jeder die Musik beiträgt, die in dieser Symphonie gebraucht wird. Aber wenn wir unseren eigenen Anteil an der Symphonie des Lebens nicht kennen, dann ist es, als ob eine der vier Saiten einer Violine nicht gestimmt ist, und wenn sie nicht gestimmt ist, kann sie nicht den Ton spielen, den sie spielen sollte. So muss jede/r von uns den Anteil einbringen, für den sie oder er geboren wurde. Wenn wir nicht wie vorgesehen unseren Anteil einbringen, dann befinden wir uns nicht im Einklang mit unserem Schicksal. Nur indem wir die zu uns gehörende, besondere Rolle spielen, erlangen wir Zufriedenheit.”
― Hazrat Inayat Khan, Meisterschaft: Spirituelle Verwirklichung in dieser Welt

“Believe implicitly that the divinity is within you, a knowing divinity, and--if you will harmonize yourself with it intuitively--a guiding divinity. As a Far Eastern poet has put it: "Your rice has been cooked from the very beginning.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“The practice of extending love towards all living creatures brings on ecstatic states of cosmic joy. In this intently concentrated state he (the meditator) has the power to send beneficent thoughts over land or sea to a distant person and let them penetrate his mind.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“We enter into paradise when, in contemplation, we enter into awareness of the Overself.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“If we search into the innermost part of our self, we come in the end to an utter void where nothing from the outside world can reflect itself, to a divine stillness where no image and no form can be active. This is the essence of our being. This is the true Spirit.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“When the mind enters into this imageless and thoughtless state, there is nothing in it to resist the union with divine consciousness.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“Be still, and know that I am God," sings the Biblical Psalmist. This simply means that the movement of thoughts and emotions is to be brought to an end by entering the deepest degree of contemplation. The same teaching is given in the Bhagavad Gita. "As the wick of an oil lamp placed in a wind-free spot is flickerless, so is the yogi of mastered mind who practises union with the God-Self.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“Experience shows that if a sufficiently deep level--not necessarily the deepest level but one that corresponds to what the yogis call savikalpa samadhi, which is not as deep as nirvikalpa--if that can be attained and then prolonged sufficiently in time, an artist or a writer can draw from the experience creative power for his work.”
― Paul Brunton, Advanced Contemplation: The Peace Within You

“The purpose of the Sufi Movement is to work towards unity. Its main object is to bring humanity, divided as it is into so many different sections, closer together in the deeper understanding of life. It is a preparation for a world service, chiefly in three ways. One way is the philosophical understanding of life; another is bringing about brotherhood among races, nations, and creeds; and the third way is the meeting of the world’s greatest need, which is the religion of the day. Its work is to bring to the world that natural religion which has always been the religion of humanity: to respect one another’s belief, scripture, and teacher. The Sufi Message is the echo of the same divine message which has always come and will always come to enlighten humanity. It is not a new religion; it is the same message which is being given to humanity. It is the continuation of the same ancient religion which has always existed and will always exist, a religion which belongs to all teachers and all the scriptures. It is the continuation of all the great religions which have come at various times; and it is a unification of them all, which was the desire of all the prophets.”
― Hazrat Inayat Khan, The Heart of Sufism: Essential Writings of Hazrat Inayat Khan

“Life remains what it is--deathless and unbound. We shall all meet again. Know what you are, and be free. The best counsel today is, keep calm, aware. Don't let the pressure of mental environment break into what you know and what is real and ultimately true. This is your magic talisman to safeguard you; cling to it. The last word is--Patience! The night is darkest before dawn. But dawn comes.”
― Paul Brunton, Perspectives, Vol. 1: The Notebooks of Paul Brunton- A Survey of Categories 1-28

“What we were in the past is not important. What we are now is important. What we intend to make of ourselves in the future is vitally important. The unity between our character and our destiny is inseparable; the connection between our way of thinking and the course of events is unerring.”
― Paul Brunton, Perspectives, Vol. 1: The Notebooks of Paul Brunton- A Survey of Categories 1-28

“When God had completed the creation of the world as a sacred temple of his glory and wisdom, he conceived a desire for one last being whose relation to the whole and to the divine Author would be different from that of every other creature. At this ultimate moment God considered the creation of the human being, who he hoped would come to know and love the beauty, intelligence, and grandeur of the divine work.”
― Richard Tarnas, Cultural Crisis and Transformation: Exploring Archetypal Patterns in World News and Culture

“When God had completed the creation of the world as a sacred temple of his glory and wisdom, he conceived a desire for one last being whose relation to the whole and to the divine Author would be different from that of every other creature. At this ultimate moment God considered the creation of the human being, who he hoped would come to know and love the beauty, intelligence, and grandeur of the divine work...”
― Richard Tarnas, Cosmos and Psyche: Intimations of a New World View