"This is a great powerful statement from some
spiritually achieved ones: 'My life depends on me, not on Heaven.'
Excessively religious people may think those people had no
God, but I don't see it that way. I think that these were spiritually
self-responsible people who did not rely on external authority to make
themselves behave correctly. The did not relinquish authority over their
lives to other people and external circumstances, trading in Heaven's support to
become dependent on others. They did what was right and depended upon
their own attainment and achievement to see them through life.
This kind of achievement is called spiritual independence,
and it is above the realm of ordinary religious followers. I regard it as
highly respected elucidation of the Way."
- Hua-Ching Ni, The Light of All Stars Illuminates the Way, 1994,
p.26
"The gods help those that help themselves."
- Aesop's Fables, Ancient Greece
"I listen with attention to the judgment of
all men; but so far as I can remember, I have followed none but my own."
- Michel de Montaigne
"The man who makes everything that leads
to happiness depend upon himself, and not upon other men, has adopted the
very best plan for living happily. This is the man of moderation, the man of
manly character and of wisdom."
- Plato
"The
worst thing you can do for those you love is the things they could and
should do themselves."
- Abraham Lincoln
"As
soon as you trust yourself, you will know how to live."
- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Advice Beauty Broad Minded Cheerfulness
Fitness Friendship Mindfulness Gardening
Charity Thinking Memory Vigor Vision Self-Reliance
Generosity Hospitality Learning Open Minded
Paramitas Patience Play Simplicity Tolerance
Willpower Wonder Philosophy Bibliography Links
The Good Life Website
Compiled by Mike Garofalo
E-Mail
This webpage was last modified or updated on October 16, 2016.
This webpage was first posted on the Internet on November 5, 2013
Green Way Research, Red Bluff, California