Gold - Open Your Mind, Open Your Life: A Little Book of Eastern Wisdom

Philosophy, AsianQuotations, maxims, etc. I. Title. B121.G65 2002
181dc21 2002020800 Book design by Holly Camerlinck
Illustrations by Matthew Taylor
Jacket design by Laura Shaw
Cover photo Sakamoto Photo Research Laboratory /CORBIS Attention: Schools and Businesses Andrews McMeel books are available at quantity discounts with bulk purchase for educational, business, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail the Andrews McMeel Publishing Special Sales Department: PREFACE For what purpose should one cultivate wisdom?May you always ask yourself this question. This simple yet profound sentiment is engraved at Soka University of Tokyo, one of Asias leading centers of learning. A message to students by Dr.

Daisaku Ikeda, an educator and Buddhist philosopher, it perfectly captures the spirit of Open Your Mind, Open Your Life.
Our answers to this question, all uniquely personal, reveal our common desire to be happy. I originally wrote Open Your Mind, Open Your Life with this perspectiveand was soon humbled to see it celebrated as an oasis of advice and insight on our shared journey to lasting happiness.
Building upon that valued tradition, this new and expanded volume of Open Your Mind, Open Your Life continues to illuminate lifes path with more than 300 inspiring guideposts based on the timeless wisdom of Eastern thought. Readers who treasure the smaller version of Open Your Mind, Open Your Life will be happy to find most of the material here is new, while some is shared with the smaller edition.
Taro Gold INTRODUCTION T HOUGHT CREATES REALITY Everything humanity has ever created began with a thought.
Taro Gold INTRODUCTION T HOUGHT CREATES REALITY Everything humanity has ever created began with a thought.

The place where you live, the clothes that you wear, and the paper on which these words are written were once only thoughts in someones mind. Your decision to read this, too, began with a thought.
H APPINESS SHAPES THOUGHT Everything we think is colored by our happiness, or lack thereof. Although individual definitions of happiness vary greatly, we all want to be happy. Early in life, we look for happiness among family, friends, even toys. Later in life, we may look for happiness in religion, money, sex, alcohol, education, marriage.... We all know where we have looked.

But did we find what we were searching for?
O PENNESS MANIFESTS HAPPINESS Genuine happiness, or enlightenment, is already within us; we have only to reveal it. As spring water rushes through open earth, so happiness flows through open lives. The question is how to open our lives to this inherent joy. The following pages hold answers to that question, thought by thought, from an Eastern perspective. Most of them may be new to you, some may seem like common sense (which is not so common), and others are universal truths not unique to the East. May each of them promote lasting happiness and ways of thinking that truly open your life.

T rue happiness in life is found always within. S eek to learn something from everyone you encounter. I f you want to have what you have not, you must do what you do not. L ove, cherish, and respect yourself. Become your own best friend and take care of yourself, for you are the only person with whom you will surely have a lifelong relationship. I nstead of putting others in their place, put yourself in theirs. I nstead of putting others in their place, put yourself in theirs.

E xperience is the only teacher that gives the test first and the lesson later. A pple, orange, and peacheach, in its own way, is unique and valuable. The same is true of peopleeach individual, regardless of superficial differences, is equally precious. H ow much more joy we feel when we seek not to make something of ourselves but to make someone of ourselves. B e the kind of person you wish to attract into your life. O ne who maintains a centered self will not be self-centered. O ne who maintains a centered self will not be self-centered.

I gnorance breeds fear. Fear breeds hate. Hate breeds violence. E ducation breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.

T he mind is a powerful and mysterious force. It can make the best of the worst and the worst of the best. A s force begets resistance, dialogue begets assistance. A void allowing your sense of self to be defined by the sum of your experiences. Re-create yourself every day. T he truth is rarely obvious.

H aving a child does not make you a parent, just as having a kitchen does not make you a chef. A book is like a garden carried in ones pocket. Asian proverb K now the difference between instinct and habit. Trust your instinctsquestion your habits. R ather than inherently good or evil, people are essentially neutral and have the choice of either creative or destructive actions. K nowledge is of the past.

Wisdom is of the future. Y our actions speak your truth. One may defeat a thousand obstacles and adversaries, yet he who defeats the enemies within is the noblest victor. SHAKYAMUNI F ocus on the task at hand and give it your best. Climb one mountain at a time, starting with the one in front of you.