Happy Sunday!
And welcome to today's edition of 'Conscious living with Purnima'.
Today, I share with you excerpts from some of my favourite books. I hope you enjoy reading them.
1.
Excerpt 1 is from my all-time favourite book, 'Three Men in a Boat' by Jerome K Jerome. The book is in the genre of humour, and is my 'pick me up' for gloomy days.
In this particular excerpt, the author draws a parallel between trip up the river in a boat and trip up the river of life. In an otherwise all humourous narration, this particular section of the book stands out for its philosophical narrative.
“With reference to our trip up the river of life - how many people, on that voyage, load up the boat till it is ever in danger of swamping with a store of foolish things which they think essential to the pleasure and comfort of the trip, but which are really only useless lumber. How they pile the poor little craft mast high with fine clothes and big houses; with useless servants, and a host of swell friends that do not care two pence for them, and that they do not care three ha'pence for; with expensive entertainments that nobody enjoys, with formalities and fashion, with pretense and ostentation, and with - oh, heaviest, maddest lumber of all! - the dread of what will my neighbour think, with luxuries that only cloy, with pleasures that bore, with empty show that, like the criminals iron crown of yore, makes to bleed and swoon the aching head that wears it! It is lumber, man - all lumber! Throw it overboard. It makes the boat so heavy to pull, you nearly faint at the oars. It makes it so cumbersome and dangerous to manage, you never know a moment's freedom from anxiety and care, never gain a moment's rest for dreamy laziness - no time to watch the windy shadows skimming lightly o'er the shallows, or the glittering sunbeams flirting in and out among the ripples, or the great trees by the margin looking down at their own image, or the woods all green and golden, or the lilies white and yellow, or the sombre waving rushes, or the sedges, or the orchis, or the blue forget me nots. Throw the lumber over, man! Let your boat of life be light, packed with only what you need - a homely home and simple pleasures, one or two friends, worth the name, someone to love and someone to love you, a cat, a dog, and a pipe or two, enough to eat and enough to wear, and a little more than enough to drink; for thirst is a dangerous thing. You will find the boat easier to pull then, and it will not be so liable to upset, and it will not matter so much if it does upset; good, plain merchandise will stand water. You will have time to think as well as to work.”
2.
Excerpt 2 is from the book, ‘The Little Prince' by Antoine de Saint-Exupery. On the face of it, it appears like a children's book but when you begin reading it, you realise that to comprehend the meaning of what it conveys, requires a lot of maturity. I have enjoyed reading it many times over & treasure it deeply.
“If I have told you these details about the asteroid, and made a note of its number for you, it is on account of the grown-ups and their ways. When you tell them that you have made a new friend, they never ask you any questions about essential matters. They never say to you, “what does his voice sound like? What games does he love best? Does he collect butterflies?” Instead, they demand: “How old is he? How many brothers has he? How much does he weigh? How much money does his father make?” Only from these figures do they think they have learned anything about him. If you were to say to the grown-ups: “I saw a beautiful house made of rosy bricks, with geraniums in the windows and doves on the roof,” they would not be able to get any idea of that house at all. You would have to say to them: “I saw a house that cost $20,000.” Then they would exclaim: “Oh, what a pretty house that is!”
3.
Excerpt 3 is from the book 'Man's search for meaning' by Viktor E. Frankl. A must read, and a must have. Beautifully written, and oh so thought provoking.
“What was really needed was a fundamental change in our attitude towards life. We had to learn ourselves and furthermore, we had to teach the despairing men, that it did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected from us. We needed to stop asking about the meaning of life, and instead to think of ourselves as those being questioned by life - daily and hourly. Our answer must consist, not in talk and meditation, but in right action and in right conduct. Life ultimately means taking the responsibility to find the answer to its problems and to fulfill the tasks which it constantly sets for each individual.”
4.
Excerpt 4 is from the book ‘Siddhartha’ by Hermann Hesse. To be honest, I didn't quite grasp the meaning of many things conveyed in this book, the first time I read it. But in recent years, I have been able to comprehend a lot more.
“Govinda said, ‘It seems to me, Siddhartha, that you still like to jest a little. I believe you and know that you have not followed any teacher, but have you not yourself, if not a doctrine, certain thoughts? Have you not discovered a certain knowledge yourself that has helped you to live? It would give me great pleasure if you would tell me something about this.”
Siddhartha said: ‘Yes, I have had thoughts and knowledge here and there. I have become aware of knowledge, just as one feels life in one’s heart. I have had many thoughts, but it would be difficult for me to tell you about them. But this is one thought that has impressed me, Govinda. Wisdom is not communicable. The wisdom which a wise man tries to communicate always sounds foolish. Knowledge can be communicated, but not wisdom. One can find it, be fortified by it, do wonders through it, but one cannot communicate and teach it.”
5.
The final excerpt for this post is from the book, ‘The Path of Insight Meditation’, by Joseph Goldstein and Jack Kornfield. It's a tiny book of less than 150 pages but is packed with wisdom. If you are someone like me, intending to live life with greater awareness, then this is a must have. The book not only presents the concepts in a lucid way but also includes exercises for daily practice.
“Right understanding has two parts. To start with, it asks a question of our hearts. What do we really value, what do we really care about in this life? Our lives are quite short. Our childhood goes by very quickly, then adolescence and adult life go by. We can be complacent and let our lives disappear in a dream, or we can become aware. In the beginning of practice, we must ask what is most important to us. When we’re ready to die, what will we want to have done? What will we care about most? At the time of death, people who have tried to live consciously ask only one or two questions about their life: Did I learn to live wisely? Did I love well? We can begin by asking them now. “
And with that we come to the end of today's post. Do let me know in comments which of the excerpts connected with you deeply. And have a wonderful Sunday.