The thought of today can well become
the lumber of your life tomorrow.
While an artisan is skilled in his craft,
and whether it be of clay or with chisel,
or in the use of brush and paint,
Yet man, as an artisan of his life
knows little or nothing of his skill,
And in the acceptance of life,
becomes less than that of the beggar’s bowl
which is filled with all the trash thrown his way.
Let us not beggars be in life
and take that which is of another man’s
choosing or giving,
But let us find the rich rewards of our
own seeking!
The victory of conquest is not found in
climbing high mountains
or conquering kingdoms,
But is the victory one attains over himself!
Neither shall he find the fruit of joy
in bending others to his will
or showing them the righteousness of his way,
But only that he becomes righteous
in his own heart—
Remembering always that this righteousness
is not dimmed by others’ troubles,
nor of the ways of the world,
But adds only luster and brightness
to all things.
It is written that in the Garden of Allah
there are many kinds of fruits,
nor are they hidden to those who seek,
Yet with all this that is to be seen,
the brightest and sweetest fruits
are often the most poisonous.
Yet the virtue of each fruit must, by necessity,
be found through the eating,
For the poison is found only in its right season
and in the way in which it is eaten.
And as it is thus consumed, each man finds,
in his own way, its own antidote.
For it is also written that of Allah
and all his gifts to man,
that none becomes less nor more
than the other.
India is a land of many kinds of people,
both Buddhist and Mohammedan,
So why should a man be confined,
except for the sake of his own beliefs
to one or the other?
But if he reads and listens,
he learns much of all things
whether they are Buddhist or Mohammedan,
For in the eye of the Creator all things
are equally important.
Whether they have different kinds of spires
or steeples on their temples,
or in the manner in which they stand
before their altars,
It makes no difference to the one God.
—Lao Tse