Fish on friday.

Greetings, blessings and love to you all, from me here in Luton England. I hope and pray that this blog finds you in good spirits and of sober countenance.

Here for you my beloved viewers are shots from paintings created today by yours truly. Accompanied as its Friday, by quotes for us to either, ponder and take into our consciousness, or ignore. Obvious to most of you what I will do.  

  Jesus was born two thousand years ago in Judea and even in his youthful years astonished many scholars and holy men with his understanding and discourse upon religious matters.

  It was only when in his thirties that Jesus began a period of teaching upon which the various forms of Christianity are based.

  After Jesus' death several disciples made written records based upon his life and teachings and continued to spread the faith that they had been taught by Jesus. These written records, and also later documents such as Epistles or letters written by these disciples to faith communities they were attempting to nurture, are contained in the New Testament of the Holy Bible. The New Testament is divided up into several books amongst which are the Gospels of St. Matthew, St. Mark, St. Luke, and St. John, and also the Epistles of St. Paul, St John, and St. James.

  Alongside a number of selections from the New Testament that are about to be presented are several quotations from the - Of the Imitation of Christ - the second most widely read Christian publication after the Bible itself.

You can access on this blog quotations and quotes about spirituality that seem to recognise a pronounced emphasis on such aspects of spiritual truth as a Disdain for Materialism, a Distrust of the Intellect, a Preference for Divine Inspiration, Charity, Purity of Heart, Humility and Meekness from each of several major World Religions as we continue on journey through our present incarnations.

Please be prepared for some "soul-force" that might be held to reside within many of these quotations!!!

Communion with God

 Thou hast acquired this human frame,
This is thy opportunity to be one with God;
All other labours are unprofitable.
Seek the company of the holy and glorify His Name.
Strenuously prepare to cross this terrible ocean.
Thy life is being wasted
In love of the world's illusions.

From Sodar-Rehiras ~ an evening prayer
This section of which is attributed to Guru Arjan

 All men cry 'Lord, Lord'.
But by vain repetition one is not made one with the Lord.
It is only when, by the grace of the Guru, God in the heart indwelleth,
That human effort bears fruit.
He who loveth the Lord from his heart's core
Shall never forget him, but from his heart and soul
Shall ever repeat the Lord's Name.

Rag Gujri, 491

Disdain for material things

 Some have Me in their mouths, but little in their hearts.
 There are others who, being enlightened in their understanding and purified in their affection, always breathe after things eternal, are unwilling to hear of earthly things, and grieve to be subject to the necessities of nature; and such as these perceive what the Spirit of Truth speaketh in them.
 For it teacheth them to despise the things of the earth and to love heavenly things; to disregard the world, and all the day and night to aspire after heaven.

Thomas a Kempis
Of the Imitation of Christ Bk. 3 Ch. 4 v. 4

Distrust of Intellect

 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.

St. Paul
Colossians 2:8

 

 If thou reliest more upon thine own reason or industry than upon the virtue that subjects to Jesus Christ, thou wilt seldom and hardly become an enlightened man; for God wishes us to be perfectly subject to Himself, and to transcend all reason by inflamed love.

Thomas a Kempis
Of the Imitation of Christ Bk. 1 Ch. 4 v. 13

   

Yearning for Divine Edification

  Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory. But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

St. Paul
1 Corinthians 2: 6-14

Charity

 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

St. John
1 John 4:7-8

   

Purity of heart

 Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure. Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke ...

St. Paul
Philippians 2: 12-15

   

Humility

 Neither be ye called masters: for one is your Master, even Christ. But he that is greatest among you shall be your servant. And whomsoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

Jesus
Matthew 23: 10 -12

   

Meekness

 Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God.

St. James
Epistle of James 1: 19 -20

Communion with God

 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou has sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

Jesus
John 17: 21 -23

Disdain for Material Things

 Though the outer wall of thy palace be made of pearls,
Though it be studded with gems,
Though the inner walls be smeared with musk,
And fragrant with sandal and agar wood,
Commingling with sweet saffron's smell;
If these thy mind bewitch,
Beware, Man, lest thou forget
And remember not the name of God.
God unremembered, life runs to waste;
I have asked my Guru
And he has convinced me
There is no other place but God.

Sri Rag
page 14

Distrust of Intellect

 It is not through thought that He is to be comprehended
Though we strive to grasp Him a hundred thousand times;
Nor by outer silence and long deep meditation
Can the inner silence be reached;
Nor is man's hunger for God appeasable
By piling up world-loads of wealth.
All the innumerable devices of worldly wisdom
Leave a man disappointed; not one avails.

How then shall we know the Truth?
How shall we rend the veils of untruth away?
Abide thou by His Will, and make thine own,
His will, O Nanak, that is written in thy heart.

From Japji
A hymn attributed to Guru Nanak which appears early
in the Sikh Holy Book ~ (and is recited every morning).

Yearning for Divine Edification

 Knowledge of the Transcendent is not to be obtained,
Though outward religious observances, without knowledge,
Doubt and delusion will not depart;
No amount of outward observances
The mind is filthy with ignorance,
How can it be made clean?
Wash thy mind, O man, in the light of the Word,
And fix thy heart and thy soul upon the Lord.
Saith Nanak: It is by the grace of the Guru
That knowledge of the Transcendent is obtained.
In this way only will doubt and delusion depart.

From The Anand Sahib
A hymn attributed to Guru Amar Das

Blessings love and peace to you and all beings. I am sorry for all the wrongs I have done you and others, especially the Lord of light and love; Jesus Christ.

I ask your forgiveness and favour in your blessings and prayers for me to become a better father, son, brother, friend and helper to those in need.                In the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

 Lord, I am Thy child, and know nothing of Thy Greatness.
I am ignorant and a fool. Lord, have mercy,
Bless me with Thy High Wisdom: change a silly child to a sage.
My indolent mind has nodded and fallen to slumber.
By the grace of God I met the Guru!
By whom my spirit was illumined.

From ~ Jaitsiri ~ a hymn attributed to Guru Ram Das
Son-in-law to Guru Amar Das and founder of the city of Amritsar

 

Charity

And my soul is absorbed
In the Love of My Lord.
Bow humbly to the saint
That is a pious act.
Bow to the ground before him
That is devotion, indeed.

The faithless know not,
The joy of the love of the Lord;

From Sohila-Arti ~ a bed-time prayer
This section of which is attributed to Guru Ram Das

 Without the Guru's help we cannot burn
To nothingness the ashes of self-love;
For the Guru kindles in the human hearts
The fire of the love of God.
Through the Guru's Word alone
There comes the moment of knowing:
'My Self is that Self.'
Through faith in the Guru the True Self is known.
What else do we need to know?

Sri Rag
page 59

Purity of Heart

  Of all Religions this is the best Religion,
To utter the Holy Name with adoration, and to do good deeds:
Of all rites the holiest rite
Is to cleanse one's soul in the company of saints:
Of all strivings the best striving
To meditate on the Name and praise it forever;
Of all speeches, the ambrosial speech is
To utter aloud, having hearkened to it, God's glory;
Of all shrines, the most sacred shrine,
Nanak, is the heart in which the Lord indwelleth!

Astapadi, 3; Pauri, 8
Hymn selection attributed to Guru Arjan Dev
son of Guru Ram Das and builder of the Golden Temple at Amritsar

Thats all folks. Have a good weekend and know that you are loved. Your brother Peter.