Be honest with yourself. The world is not honest with you. The world loves hypocrisy. When you are honest with yourself you find the road to inner peace.
Interpretation
Being honest with yourself is essential for finding true peace, as the world often lacks authenticity.
This quote emphasizes the importance of self-honesty in a world that often promotes deceit and hypocrisy. Paramahansa Yogananda suggests that by being truthful with oneself, individuals can achieve a sense of inner peace, which is often undermined by external dishonesty and societal pressures.
In practice
During a motivational speech about mental health, to encourage attendees to embrace self-honesty.
Man is important in one sense only. He was made in the image of God: That is his importance. He is not important for his body, ego, or personality. His constant affirmation of ego-consciousness is the source of all his problems.
When, by meditation, we withdraw restless thoughts from the lake of the mind, we behold our soul, a perfect reflection of Spirit.
It is wisest to be impartial. If you have health, but are attached to it, you will always be afraid of losing it. And if you fear that loss, but become ill, you will suffer. Why not remain forever joyful in the Self?
From joy people are born; for joy they live; in joy they melt at death. Death is an ecstasy, for it removes the burden of the body and frees the soul of all pain springing from body identification. It is the cessation of pain and sorrow.
It is better to meditate a little bit with depth than to mediate long with the mind running here and there. If you do not make an effort to control the mind it will go on doing as it pleases, no matter how long you sit to meditate.
Millions of people never analyze themselves. Mentally they are mechanical products of the factory of their environment, preoccupied with breakfast, lunch, and dinner, working and sleeping, and going here and there to be entertained. They don't know what or why they are seeking, nor why they never realize complete happiness and lasting satisfaction. By evading self-analysis, people go on being robots, conditioned by their environment. True self-analysis is the greatest art of progress.
Perhaps a wiser eye than hers would be able to read tomorrow in tonight's stars, but where was the fun in that? It was better not to know. Better to be alive in the Here and the Now--in this bright, laughing moment--and let the Hours to come take care of themselves.
Listen, my dear Cors, why don't you forgive God for allowing pain? If He didn't allow it, human courage, bravery, nobility, and self-sacrifice would all be meaningless things.
Before speaking, consult your inner-truth barometer, and resist the temptation to tell people only what they want to hear.
The historian's first duties are sacrilege and the mocking of false gods. They are his indispensable instruments for establishing the truth.
I cannot conceive of a greater loss than the loss of one's self-respect.
One must know not just how to accept a gift, but with what grace to share it.
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