wisdom – James Roose-Evans

From beyond

From the dimension of reality that is beyond all verifiable dimensions, from beyond time and space, we receive intimations of meaning that sustain us. It has nothing to do with the imagination or with fantasy; rather, it is another kind of knowing, a received knowledge, intuitive rather than intellectual. Our age so venerates the intellect that it is chary of that which cannot be neatly analysed and catalogued by the intellect.

Each one of us is capable of tuning in to this other dimension of reality through prayer or meditation, through the heightened awareness that comes from an inner listening. For there is within us all the wisdom we can ever need.

Words of wisdom

For centuries wisdom was handed down from one generation to another in the form of simple sentences which were taught to children and grandchildren. It can be a fruitful practice to take one of these maxims as one’s thought for the day, reflecting on it at intervals.

Here are some of these words of wisdom:

When one door shuts another opens.
Every cloud has a silver lining.
A stitch in time saves nine.
As you sow, so shall you reap.
Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.
Never judge a book by its cover.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
An empty vessel makes much noise.
A rolling stone gathers no moss.
Never put off to tomorrow what you can do today.
People who live in glasshouses shouldn’t throw stones.
Actions speak louder than words.
All good things come to an end.
A ship in harbour is safe; but that is not what a ship is for.
Opportunity did not knock until I built a door.

Ageless guardians

Joseph Campbell wrote: ‘We have only to know and trust and the ageless guardians will appear.’

Elizabeth Kübler-Ross wrote: ‘Spiritual masters always hear us and guide us from the moment of birth throughout our lives to the threshold of death. There are many teachers.’

Carl Jung wrote: ‘In each of us there is another we do not know. He speaks to us in dreams and tells us how differently he sees us from the way we see ourselves. In the last analysis most of our difficulties come from losing contact with our instincts, with the age-old unforgotten wisdom stored up in us.’

When asked for his blessing, Padre Pio would say: ‘May the angel of the Lord be with you and open doors for you!’