the bottom line as I see it

[roger]

I've found that there's no shortcut to salvation. I heard a Tom Petty song tonight that had the line, "There's no easy way out." You just have to do your best. You have to keep "chipping away at the stone."

 

The most comforting thought for me is that everything is happening as it should. God, the Self, or however you want to put it, is in control. Keeping this in mind can make the journey easier, but still, "There's no easy way out."

 

The thing that's so important, the factor that determines success, is living wisely. A life lived wisely will bear fruit eventually.

 

Love is wisdom.

 

Every choice is born either of love, or fear. Choose love. It's of utmost importance to do that, both for oneself and for the world.

 

Part of the problem is that the humility it requires to live a very loving life is absolutely extreme. You see, we give in to pride. The many times I've failed were usually times in which I've given in to pride. Don't trust yourself when you're feeling that way. You're not thinking clearly. You don't have to "swallow your pride." It's absolutely essential to let it go however. It can take great courage to do that.

 

Also, honesty is the key to finding wisdom imo. We tend to "see what we want to see." Be willing to see the truth, be honest with yourself. There's no other way to find truth.

 

Finally, be strong. Be a real man, or woman. You can handle suffering, even a lot of it. No guts, no glory.

[johndoe2012]

Thanks, nice post.

[s1va]

Thanks for sharing.  I can relate to every word and sentence.

[Prasanna]

Roger, very interesting topic and a beautiful explanation of the topic by you in your first comment. My Guru says that it does not matter as to what stage of life one is, but it matters as to what is one aspiring for at present. For you it is very clear that you are working for salvation, the ultimate of ideals that humans can aspire for. For an individual to be successful in life, the first and foremost necessity is the ideal and you have set the supreme most of supreme ideal. The more lofty the ideals, it is easy for us to achieve real success. Selfish people live selfishly and die with selfishness. Being humans, it is our prerogative to think, to think for the welfare and benefit of human society. When we turn to spiritual pursuits, we know that we have to give up our wrong desires, selfishness and egoism. We also know that we have to seek the supreme Self  or God within us to become one with it one day. This spiritual ideal of seeking the supreme Self is the highest of selflessness. Thereafter a sincere seeker should never have result orientation about the final salvation. My Guru says there is one sure way for salvation: "Kaaryam Karma Karothi yah, Sa sanyasi cha Yogi cha". This quote for Srimad Bhagavad Gita simply means that "the One who keeps performing duties and selfless service, he is a sanyasi (true renunciate) and he alone is a Yogi (Man of perfection)". Here selfless service and performance of duties implies that they need to be devoid of result orientation. For sincere and dedicated seekers of truth, having set the ideal of Self Realization is as good as achieving Self Realization rather than wasting time on worries and anxieties about the actual Self Realization.