LIGHT ON THE PATH - 87 : Desire power ardently. - 5

🌹 LIGHT ON THE PATH - 87 🌹

🍀 For those WHO DESIRE TO ENTER WITHIN - For DISCIPLES 🍀

✍️. ANNIE BESANT and LEADBEATER
📚. Prasad Bharadwaj

CHAPTER 7 - THE 13th RULE

🌻 13. Desire power ardently. - 5 🌻


344. In all matters of principle we must take a firm stand. For example, strict vegetarianism is with us a principle, because we believe it to be best in every way, not only for ourselves but for all the world around us.

It is a little inconvenient when we go out to dinner or when we are travelling, but we let such trifling inconveniences pass, and keep to our own point of view. But in a vast number of other things, which really do not matter, it saves trouble to yield to the ordinary customs of the time.

As regards our dress – to take another instance. The dress of modern man is peculiarly ugly, uncomfortable and unhealthy, but it saves trouble to adopt it. If we set ourselves against it, however much more rational, aesthetic and beautiful our costume might be, we should attract unwelcome attention, and should probably be regarded as more or less insane.

It is not worth while. It is better not to make ourselves unduly conspicuous by opposing things which do not matter. But when a principle is involved we must hold steadily to what we think is right.


345. If we could get into an absolutely impersonal attitude about all work it would help us very much. Ruskin speaks of that with regard to art; he says that while self-praise and conceit are vulgar beyond words, undue self-depreciation is only another form of vulgarity.

We should aim at the condition of mind in which we are able to view the work from the outside, and to say: “Be it mine or yours, or whose else it may, this also is well.”

We must be able to praise a good piece of work when we see it, not because it is ours or our friends ‘, or because it bears a great name, but just because it is good, putting aside absolutely the question of who did it. I am afraid we do not always do this. Our reason for quoting something is not always because it is fine and beautiful, but because Madame Blavatsky said it or Dr. Besant wrote it.

Continues...

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26 Jan 2021