SACRED THOUGHTS

 

                             SACRED THOUGHTS

1.     First of all some sayings of Prophet Muhammad translated by Kabir Helminski.

*You will not enter paradise until you believe, and you will not believe until you love one another.

* Give greeting to everyone among you.

* I was delegated as a prophet to perfect moral virtues.

*Good character is half of faith.

*God is merciful to those who show mercy to others.

*Power consists not in being able to strike another but in being able to control oneself when anger arises.

The three best things are: to be humble amidst vicissitudes of fortune; to pardon when powerful; and to be generous with no strings attached.

2.     Love God , and he will dwell with you. Obey God, and he will reveal to you the truth of his deepest teachings.

3.     Take away God and religion, and men live to no purpose, without proposing any worthy and considerable end of life to themselves.

4.     True religion and virtue give a cheerful and happy turn to the mind; admit of all true pleasures, and even procure for us  the highest.  

5.     If you are not right toward God, you can never be so toward man; and this is forever true.

6.     The moral virtues, without religion, are but cold, lifeless, and insipid.

7.     Religion is the tie that connects man with his Creator, and holds him to his throne. If that tie is sundered or broken, he floats away a worthless atom in the universe, its proper attractions all gone.

8.     Religion is the best armour in the world, but the worst cloak.

9.     Spiritual anarchy is not likely to work either for the happiness of the individual or for the welfare of the society.

10.             There is only one religion, though there are a hundred versions of it.

                              --------

PUNCHLINE: If men are so wicked with religion, what would they be without it!

                                                      *******   

 G. R. Kanwal

26 August 2026

                       

 

LEGISLATORS

 

                                LEGISLATORS

                        The briefest definition of a legislator is : a member of a group of  people that has the power to make laws.  

                         A bit longer definition says: A person who has the power to write, change, and pass laws. This person is typically a member of a law-making group, such as a parliament, congress, or city council.

                        Monarchy is one man’s rule, so is dictatorship. It is democracy which has as many elected legislators as it needs to make all sorts of new laws and amend old ones.

                        An ideal democracy makes appropriate laws to protect the rights of all the communities.  It is known liberal democracy. It fulfills the expectations all the citizens irrespective of their religion.

            A secular democracy is non-religious. It is humanistic. In its eyes all the religions have the same freedom as that of a ruling party.

                        The qualities of a good legislator comprise : analytical skill with high ethical standards. He listens to the public, understands their expectations, solves their problems, makes their lives optimally comfortable;  is unselfish, non-greedy, does not work for self-elevation, has the least interest in making himself wealthy; is non-communal, non-sectarian; men and women for him are the children of the same God. To put it briefly, he is a public servant, not their master.

                        He has no ego. His chief aim is the maximum happiness of the maximum number of people.  

                        According to a popular view: That state is best ordered where the wicked have no command, and the good have.

                        There is a substantial difference between an average legislator and a statesman.

                        An American clergy William R. Alger (1822-1905) says: True statesmanship is the art of changing  a nation from what it is into what it ought to be.

                        The English poet Alexander Pope (1688-1744) said:  A genuine  statesman is a friend to truth ! of soul sincere, in action faithful, and in honour clear;  he breaks no promise, serves no private end, gains no title, loses no friend; is ennobled by himself; and is approved, praised, and honoured by all.       

                                                *******

G.R. Kanwal

24 August 2026

 

QUALITIES OF UN-OFFENSIVE SPEECH

 

                QUALITIES OF UN-OFFENSIVE SPEECH

            Speech is communication, expression, delivery, address, oration, discourse, lecture. sermon, parlance, and utterance. It conveys thoughts, feelings, ideas, emotions, feelings, information, news,etc.    

            What matters more than the purpose of a speech is the style of the speaker. He should be gentle, sweet, appreciative, positive, pleasing, humorous, gratifying, and admirable.

            It will be dangerous if he is bitter, critical, harsh, fault-finder, and offensive.

            His speech should be persuasive, not provocative; easy to understand;  appropriately brief; and, as far as possible,  according to the expectations of his listeners.

            According to a famous quote : Non-offensive speech respects the dignity, feelings, and background of others. It relies on respectful, precise, and inclusive language that avoids demeaning groups, attacking personal identities, or using unnecessary hostility.”

            A good speech is appreciated, not condemned. It does not start an unpleasant discussion.

            If you are talking about the dead, be gentle and courteous. According to a proverb : nothing but good should be talked about the dead.

            Don’t be communal or sectarian in your speech. An English professor of English literature James Kirkup (1918-2009) says:

             Remember, no men are strange, no countries foreign,

             Beneath all uniforms, a single body breathes

            Like ours; the land our brothers walk upon

            Is earth like this, in which we all shall lie.

The title of the poem is: No Men Are Foreign and the last stanza carries the following words:

            It is the human earth that we defile,

            Our hells of fire and dust outrage the innocence

            Of air that is everywhere our own.

            Remember, no men are foreign, and no countries strange.

                                                --------

PUNCHLINE:  Speech is silvern, silence is golden; speech is human, silence is divine.----German Proverb.

                                                            *******

G.R.Kanwal

23 August 2026

 

SELECTED THOUGHTS

 

SELECTED THOUGHTS

            In this small group of Selected Thoughts readers will find some important ideas to be stored in their memory for off and on use in daily life.

1.     Few men are admired by their servants.

2.     Prosperity is a great teacher; adversity is a greater.

3.     The flower that follows the sun does so even in cloudy days.

4.     He that has no cross will have no crown.

5.     The worst men often give the best advice.

6.     Let us respect gray hairs, especially our own.

7.     Not failure, but low aim, is crime.

8.     In great attempts it is glorious even to fail/

9.     Ambition is rhe avarice ofpower.

10.                         Great souls, by nature half divine, soar to the stars, and hold a near acquaintance with the gods.

11.                         Birth is nothing where virtue is not.

12.                         The greatest remedy for anger is delay.

13.                         Those we call ancients were really new in everything.

14.                         Good cheer is no hindrance to a good life.

15.                         Architecture is frozen music.

16.                         The mission of art is to represent nature; not to imitate her.

17.                         No bird soars too high if he soars with his own wings.

18.                         Talkers are no good doers. We go to use our hands  and not our tongues.

19.                         Heard melodies are sweet  but those unheard are sweeter.

20.                        A thing of beauty is a joy for ever.

21.                        Early to bed, and early to rise. Makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise.

22.                         Behaviour is a mirror to which every one displays his image.

23.                         The child is father of the man.

24.                         Childhood shows the man, as morning shows the day.

25.                        Confidence is a plant of slow growth; especially in an aged bosom.

                                                *******

G. R. Kanwal

22 August 2026

 

READ AND REMEMBER

 

          READ AND REMEMBER

          Happiness is within our reach if we abstain from deadly sins and embrace cardinal virtues.

            Deadly sins are known as : Pride, greed,  lust, envy, gluttony, wrath, and sloth.

            Pride is inflated sense of self-importance. Greed is excessive desire for wealth. Lust is uncontrolled sexual desire. Envy is resentment of others’ traits of success. Gluttony is over-indulgence in food and drink. Wrath is uncontrolled anger. Sloth is laziness or apathy toward spiritual duties.

            Cardinal virtues are named as: Prudence i.e. wise decision-making. Justice i.e fairness, giving everyone his due. Temperance i.e. self-control, moderation, and abstention from indulgence.  Fortitude i.e. courage in the face of fear. Faith i.e. trust in spiritual truth. Hope i.e. optimism. Charity i.e. goodwill toward others.

            Two more cardinal virtues are forgiveness i.e. refrain from revenge; and mercy i.e. showing kindness and not punishing a wrong-doer.

            Now read and remember the following famous quotes:

*Blessed is the influence of one true, loving human soul on another.

 * The influence of individual character extends from generation to generation.

*Good words do more than hard speeches.

*Let him that would move the world, first move himself.

*Every thought which genius and piety throw into the world alters the world.

*To err is human; to forgive, divine.

*Forgive thyself little, and others much.

*Pardon is the virtue of victory.

*It is the difference betwixt lust and love, that this is fixed, that volatile. Love grows, lust wastes, by enjoyment; and the reason is, that one springs from a union of souls, and the other springs from a union of sense.

*The greatest attribute of heaven is mercy.

*Justice without wisdom is impossible.

*Base envy withers at another’s joy, and hates the excellence it cannot reach.

                                                *******

G.R.Kanwal

21 August 2026

 

LET US REPEAT

 

                LET US REPEAT

            Some poems, speeches, and religious texts never become old or outdated. Their contents remain eternal. So they deserve to be repeated in current times for guidance and inspiration.  Here are three of them:

1.     A song from the book titled Gitanjali (Song Offerings) written by India’s poet and author  Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941)  

“Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high;

Where knowledge is free;

Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls;

Where words come out from the depth of truth;

Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection;

Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit;

Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action -----

Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake.

                                                ------

2.     A sonnet on Mercy by the English poet-playwright William Shakespeare (1564-1616) contained in his play Merchant of Venice.

 

The quality of mercy is not strain’d,

It droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven,

Upon the place beneath: it is twice bless’d;

It blesseth him that gives and him that takes:

‘Tis is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes

The throned monarch better than his crown;

His sceptre shows the force of temporal power,

The attribute to awe and majesty,

Wherein doth sit the dread and fear of kings;

But mercy is above this sceptred sway,

It is enthroned in the hearts of kings.

It is an attribute to God himself.

An earthly power doth then show likest God’s

When mercy seasons justice.

                                                -----

3.     The Ten Commandments – a set of ten Biblical laws given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai.

Found in the Old Testament , they guide people on how to love God and how to treat other human beings.

 

Their details are:

*Put God first and do not worship false idols.

*Do not make or bow down to carved images.

*Treat the name of God with respect.

*Rest and honour God on the holy day of rest.

*Show respect to your father and mother.

*Do not kill other people.

*Do not commit adultery. Be faithful in your marriage.

*Do not steal.

*Do not give false testimony against your neighbour.

 *Do not be greedy for your neighbour’s house, wife, or possessions,

 

            The  above-mentioned commandments  appear in the Bible text (Exodus 20).

                                                **********

G.R.Kanwal

20 August 2026

LEARNING FROM GREAT MEN (PART III)

 

                LEARNING FROM GREAT MEN (PART III)

            Great men are enlightened with a number of sublime thoughts which they liberally share with others in their speeches and writings. Here are some of them.

1.     A Prayer by Indian poet, philosopher, and writer Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941):

This is my prayer to thee, my lord-

Strike, strike at the root of penury in my hear,    

Give me the strength lightly to bear my joys and sorrows.

Give me the strength to make my love fruitful in service.

Give me the strength to make my love fruitful in service.

Give me the strength never to disown the poor or bend my knees before insolent might.

Give me the strength to raise my mind high above daily trifles.

And give me the strength to surrender my strength to thy will with love.

                                                ---

2.     A quote from the Bhagavadgita by the great philosopher and the former President of India Dr. S.Radhakrishnan (1888-1975):

 

The spirit of man is immortal. Weapons do not cleave the Self, fire does not burn him, waters do not make him wet, nor does the wind make him dry. He is un-cleavable, he cannot be burnt, he can be neither wetted nor dried; he is eternal, all pervading, un-changing , immovable; he is the same forever.

 

Note: The Self in this quote means the Divine in man.

 

3.      A few words from the writings of the Indian mystic Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, popularly known as Osho (1931-1990).

 

“If you respect life, you will start finding it difficult even to pluck a flower. You will enjoy the flower, you can kiss the flower ----but plucking it up, you are destroying it and you are hurting the plant, which is as alive as you are.  

 

Nonviolence simply says don’t kill others. Do you think it is enough? It is only a negative statement: don’t kill others, don’t harm others. Is that enough?

 

Reverence for life says share, give your joy, your love, your peace, your bliss. Whatsoever you can share , share.

                                                            -------

PUNCHLINE: Life is the childhood of our immortality (German writer and philosopher Goethe (1749-1832).

                                                ********

G.R.Kanwal

19 August 2026