Inheritance and culture obscure people’s higher capacities.

The Sufi way is through knowledge and practice, not through intellect and talk.

Materialism, attachment to things of the world, includes pride. Many religious people suffer from pride: taking pleasure or even delight in being good, or religious.

One cannot learn from someone whom one distrusts.

The human being, whether he realises it or not, is trusting someone or something every moment of the day.

But one may say something and yet not be able to do it. Try, for instance, lifting yourself up by the bootstraps.

If wine is the enemy of religion, I shall devour the enemy of religion.

The Sufis regard systems which treat everyone alike as mechanical and degenerate.

A man must be a Solomon before his magical ring will work

A man must be a Salomon before his magical ring will work. (Hafiz)

Imagination blocks you like a bolt on a door. Burn that bar. (Rumi)

Trauma is a unique phenomenon all on its own, as if it is an entity in and of itself.

The strong survive, but the courageous triumph.

The war in Iraq has been extremely divisive here at home, and has also divided the world community.

That freedom that Picasso afforded himself, to be an artist in a huge number of ways, seems to be a huge psychological liberation.

An organizer is a leader who does not lead but gets behind the people and pushes.

Some speak of a return to nature, I wonder where they could have been?

Against great advantages in another, there are no means of defending ourselves except love.

She was mine before she was yours.

Humility may bring you humiliation here on earth, but surely not in heaven.

The death penalty doesn't need your assent to continue ... it needs your indifference.