RELIGION AND GOD- Available on Amazon

RELIGION AND GOD There are believers, non-believers and agnostics among the human species. However, when the chips are down and misadventures confront us, humans seek sanctuary in a superior power. Men have found refuge in organised religions like Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism and Native Religions among others. The texts, preaching, sayings and quotes act as a tonic to the faithful and make them an inspired lot to become achievers and not quitters. HINDUISM “All differences in this world are of degree, and not of kind, because oneness is the secret of everything.” -Swami Vivekananda “One should strive and employ oneself to uplift oneself. One should never dishonour oneself. The self is one’s friend as well as one’s enemy.” —The Bhagavad Gita “Just as the track of birds that cleave the air is not discovered, nor yet the path of fish that skim the water, so the course of those who do good actions is not always seen.” -The Mahabharata “Lust is only one manifestation of the vital force; to try to destroy this force is futile. To condemn it as evil is absurd. It should be redirected towards God.” “When a person is devoted to something with complete faith, I unify his faith in that. Then, when his faith his completely unified, he gains the object of his devotion.” —The Bhagavad Gita “Especially in the midst of battle, when it would be easy to release the arrow that takes a life. That's when you have to be absolutely sure!” ― Vijay Singh Sodhi, ‘The Rise of Rama’ “Meditating upon God is like adjusting a right frequency on the radio.” -P H Vaishnav “Knowledge of the Divine dissolves all bonds, and gives freedom from every kind of misery including birth and death.” –Upanishads “You are what your deep, driving desire is As your desire is, so is your will As your will is, so is your deed As your deed is, so is your destiny.” -Upanishads “The man of self control, roaming among material objects with subjugated senses and devoid of attraction and repulsion, attains an unshakeable inner calmness.” -The Bhagwad Gita CHRISTIANITY “Fear can keep us up all night long but faith makes one fine pillow. -Matthew 21:21 “There is reward for kindness to every living thing.” – The Bible “Unconditional love is an illogical notion, but such a great and powerful one.” – A Christian Saying True faith means holding nothing back. It means putting every hope in God's fidelity to His Promises.” ― Francis Chan “Faith does not eliminate questions. But faith knows where to take them.” ― Elisabeth Elliot “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” -Jeremiah 29:11 “When you through deep waters I will be with you.” -Isaiaih 43:2 “Talk to God for everything. There is nothing he can’t handle. Go to him.” Epheseians 3;12 “Faith is not knowing what the future hold, but knowing who holds the future.” ISLAM “Ink of the scholar is holier than the blood of the martyr.” -Prophet Mohammed “The greatest of richness is the richness of the soul.” -Prophet Muhammad “The greatest jihad (struggle/striving) is to battle your own soul, to fight the evil within yourself.” -Prophet Muhammad “Riches are not from an abundance of worldly good but from a contented mind.” “Do not waste water even if you were at a running stream.” -Prophet Muhammad “When a thing disturbs the peace of your heart give it up.” -Prophet Muhammad “What has reached you was never meant to miss you, and what has missed you was never meant to reach you.” -Prophet Muhammad “If you want to focus more on Allah in your prayers, focus more on Him outside your prayers.” -Yasmin Mogahed “The capacity to learn is a gift; the ability to learn is a skill; the willingness to learn is a choice.” “The Prophet said: “It is also charity to utter a good word.”” “Doctors can treat you but Allah can heal you.” - The Deenshah “I said to Allah, “I hate life.” He replied, “Who asked you to love life? Just love me and life will beautiful.” - The Deenshah ZOROASTRIANISM “With an open mind, seek and listen to all the highest ideals. Consider the most enlightened thoughts. Then choose your path, person by person, each for oneself.” “Taking the first footstep with a good thought, the second with a good word, and the third with a good deed, I entered paradise. When we are in doubt whether an action is good or bad, abstain from it.” “A knife of the keenest steel requires the whetstone, and the wisest man needs advice.” “Always meet petulance with gentleness and perverseness with kindness. A gentle hand can lead even en elephant by a hair. Reply to thine enemy with gentleness.” JUDAISM “With the wisdom of retrospective insight I have countless times learned to acknowledge that coincidence is but God’s way of choosing to remain anonymous.” -Rabbi Benjamin Blech “If you don't know what you're living for, you haven't yet lived.” -Rabbi Noah Weinberg “People often avoid making decisions out of fear of making a mistake. Actually the failure to make decisions is one of life's biggest mistakes.” -Rabbi Noah Weinberg “If you are not a better person tomorrow than you are today, what need have you for a tomorrow?” -Rebbe Nachman of Breslov NATIVE RELIGIONS “In our every deliberation, we must consider the impact of our decisions on the next seven generations.” -Iroquois Maxim “When all the trees have been cut down, when all the animals have been hunted, when all the waters are polluted, when all the air is unsafe to breathe, only then will you discover you cannot eat money.” -Cree Prophecy “It does not require many words to speak the truth.” -Chief Joseph, Nez Perce SIKHISM “I seldom end up where I wanted to go, but almost always end up where I need to be.” – Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji “True wealth does not burn; it cannot be stolen by a thief.” – Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji “According to the karma of past actions, one’s destiny unfolds, even though everyone wants to be so lucky.” – Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji “By perfect good fortune, one meets the True Guru, when one’s destiny is awakened.” – Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji “You may act in secrecy, but God is still with you; you can only deceive other people.” – Sri Guru Granth Sahib Ji JAINISM – Teachings of Mahavira “Kill not, cause no pain. Nonviolence is the greatest religion.” “If you want to cultivate a habit, do it without any reservation, till it is firmly established. Until it is so confirmed, until it becomes a part of your character, let there be no exception, no relaxation of effort.” “Start the practice of self-control with some penance; begin with fasting.” BUDDHISM – Teachings of Gautama Buddha “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.” “In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.” “It is better to travel well than to arrive.” “Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good.” “Unity can only be manifested by the Binary. Unity itself and the idea of Unity are already two.” “An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.” “Learn this from water: loud splashes the brook but the oceans depth are calm.” “The past is already gone; the future is not yet here. There’s only one moment for you to live.” “Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.” ZEN QOUTES “The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows.” “There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that disintegrates friendships and breaks up pleasant relations. It is a thorn that irritates and hurts; it is a sword that kills.” “Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.” “When you do something, you should burn yourself up completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself.” -Shunryu Suzuki PHILOSOPHERS AND SPIRITUAL MASTERS Through the ages there have been philosophers and masters who through their conduct, ability to grasp the nuances and fragilities of the human mind, their teachings, sayings, writings and charisma have swayed their followers and metamorphosed the thought process. The minds of legions have been tuned and conditioned to take the plunge into the unknown consequently breaking glass ceilings and transmogrifying their lives. Swami Vivekananda “Arise, awake, and stop not until the goal is achieved.” “Talk to yourself once in a day, otherwise, you may miss meeting an excellent person in this world.” “If I love myself despite my infinite faults, how can I hate anyone at the glimpse of a few faults?” “Take risks in your life. If you win, you can lead, if you lose, you can guide.” “Be a hero. Always say, I have no fear.” “The reason for every misunderstanding is that we see the people as we are but not as they are.” “Never think yourself weak.” “You have to grow from the inside out.” “All the negative thoughts and ideas that are in the world have proceeded from this evil spirit of fear.” “Have faith enough and you will be free in a minute.” “Everything that is excellent will come when this sleeping soul is aroused to self-conscious activity.” “Do one thing at a time, and while doing it put your whole soul into it to the exclusion of all else.” “What I want is muscles of iron and nerves of steel, inside which dwells a mind of the same material as that of which the thunderbolt is made.”