Posted by Frederic Brussat on January 27, 2023

Zen Wisdom

When you handle rice, water or anything else, have the affectionate and caring concern of a parent raising a child.
— Zen Master Dogen

Jewish Wisdom

Posted by Frederic Brussat on January 13, 2023

Catholic Wisdom

The great, gashed, half-naked mountain is another of God's saints. There is no other like him. He is alone in his own character; nothing else in the world ever did or ever will imitate God in quite the same way.
- Thomas Merton in When the Trees Say Nothing

Literary Wisdom

Posted by Frederic Brussat on December 30, 2022

Psychological Wisdom

Imagine a world without pleasure. Life would appear colorless and humorless. A baby’s smile would go unappreciated. Foods would be tasteless.
— Robert Ornstein and David Sobel in Healthy Pleasures

Prayer . . .

Posted by Frederic Brussat on December 16, 2022

Buddhist Wisdom

Nothing lasts, nothing can be counted on, everything changes. That is another way of saying that we can’t control anything in our world.
Everything is continually slipping away.
─ Lewis Richmond in Work as a Spiritual Practice

Philosophy Wisdom . . .

Posted by Frederic Brussat on December 2, 2022

Proverb

A kind word is like a spring day.
— Russian proverb

Teacher Wisdom . . .

Posted by Frederic Brussat on November 18, 2022

Literary Wisdom

It is good to renew one’s wonder, said the philosopher. Space travel has made children of us all.
─ Ray Bradbury, American science fiction writer and screenwriter

Native American Wisdom

Posted by Frederic Brussat on November 4, 2022

Native American Wisdom

Beauty, in our eyes, is always fresh and living, even as God, the Great Mystery, dresses the world anew at each season of the year.

— Ohiyesa in The Wisdom of the Native Americans edited by Kent Nerburn

Catholic Wisdom

Posted by Frederic Brussat on October 21, 2022

Mystical Wisdom

Our task is to offer ourselves up to God like a clean, smooth canvas and not bother ourselves about what God may choose to paint on it, but, at every moment, feel only the stroke of his brush.

— Jean Pierre de Caussade in Teachings of the Christian Mystics by Andrew Harvey

Taoist Wisdom

Posted by Frederic Brussat on October 7, 2022

Philosophical Wisdom

Justice not only sees the place of everything, it feels the place of everything. Justice is that which knows what to do to restore things to their right place and knows when and how to do it.
— Jacob Needleman in The American Soul

Cultural Criticism

Posted by Frederic Brussat on September 23, 2022

Literary Wisdom

We walk though forests of physical things
. . . That look on us with affectionate looks.
─ Charles Baudelaire, French poet

Mystical Wisdom . . .

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About This Blog

Within all the spiritual traditions, short and sweet wisdom abounds: from mantras and blessings to 12-step slogans and proverbs, and more. As philosopher George Santayana once said: "To be brief is almost a condition of being inspired." In this blog, I will take up the quest for small seeds of spiritual wisdom, which can be found everywhere if we keep our eyes and ears open. More