Jails and prisons are designed to break human beings, to convert the population into specimens in a zoo - obedient to our keepers, but dangerous to each other.
Angela DavisRead
If the many and the One be indeed the same Reality, then it is not all modes of worship alone, but equally all modes of work, all modes of struggle, all modes of creation, which are paths of realization. No distinction, henceforth, between sacred and secular. To labour is to pray. To conquer is to renounce. Life is itself religion. To have and to hold is as stern a trust as to quit and to avoid.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote emphasizes the unity of all actions and the sacredness of both work and worship.
Sister Nivedita's quote expresses the profound idea that all forms of human effort, whether they are considered sacred or secular, are equally valid paths to spiritual realization. It breaks down the barriers separating religious practice from daily life, asserting that work, struggle, creation, and even the act of living itself are forms of worship and integral to one's spiritual journey.
Themes
SacredSecularWorkWorshipRealization
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion on the importance of finding purpose in work, this quote can inspire individuals to view their jobs as a form of spiritual practice.
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