Maharajji told me, 'Give up anger and I'll help you.' I found _x000D_ that love freed me back into the ocean of love and my righteous anger didn't do that. And I would rather be free than right.
In India, there's a way of seeing life as a cosmic play. It's called Lila. I can watch my life, and I can see my guru playing with me.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Lila suggests that life is a playful cosmic activity, allowing us to observe our existence as if we are part of a larger game.
The quote by Ram Dass reflects the Indian philosophical concept of Lila, which implies that life is not merely a series of serious events but a cosmic play where we are participants and observers. This perspective encourages individuals to adopt a more relaxed and joyous attitude towards life's challenges, seeing them as part of a greater unfolding narrative that involves divine playfulness and spiritual guidance.
Themes
In practice
Example use cases
In a speech about mindfulness, I could illustrate how adopting the perspective of Lila can help us appreciate the beauty in everyday struggles.
More from Ram Dass
All quotes βThe gift you offer another person is just your being.
Let the natural flow of the universe, course through your being, and harmonize your soul.
You can be still and still moving. Content even in your discontent.
The heart surrenders everything to the moment. The mind judges and holds back. _x000D_ _x000D_ In most of our human relationships, we spend much of our time reassuring one another that our costumes of identity are on straight. _x000D_ _x000D_ When we see the Beloved in each person, it's like walking through a garden, watching flowers bloom all around us.
When I look at relationships, my own and others, I see a wide range of reasons for people to be together and ways in which they are together. I see ways in which a relationship - which means something that exists between two or more people - for the most part reinforces people's separateness as individual entities.
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People aim for the stars, and they end up like goldfish in a bowl. I wonder if it wouldn't be simpler just to teach children right from the start that life is absurd.
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There is more than one kind of freedom," said Aunt Lydia. "Freedom to and freedom from. In the days of anarchy, it was freedom to. Now you are being given freedom from. Don't underrate it.