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Speaker 1: Forgiveness. If men only understood all the emptiness and acting

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of the sleeping and the waking of the souls they

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judge so blindly, of the hearts they pierce so unkindly, they,

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with gentler words and feeling, would apply the balm of healing,

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if they only understood kindness nobler ever than revenge Shakespeare.

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The remembering of injuries is spiritual darkness. The fostering of

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resentment is spiritual suicide. To resort to the spirit and

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practice of forgiveness is the beginning of enlightenment. It is

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also the beginning of peace and happiness. There is no

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rest for him who broods over slights and injuries and wrongs,

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no quiet repose of mind for him who feels that

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he has been unjustly treated, and who schemes how best

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to act for the discomfiture of his enemy. How can

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have happiness dwell in a heart that is so disturbed

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by ill? Will do birds resort to a burning bush

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wherein to build and sing? Neither can happiness inhabit in

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that breast that is aflame with burning thoughts of resentment.

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Nor can wisdom come and dwell where such folly resides.

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Revenge seems sweet only to the mind that is unacquainted

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with the spirit of forgiveness. But when the sweetness of

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forgiveness is tasted, then the extreme bitterness of revenge is known.

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Revenge seems to lead to happiness to those who are

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involved in the darkness of passion, but when the violence

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of passion is abandoned and the mildness of forgiveness is

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restored to then it is seen that revenge leads to suffering.

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Revenge is a virus which eats into the very vitals

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of the mind and poisons the entire spiritual being. Resentment

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is a mental fever which burns up the wholesome energies

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of the mind, and taking offense is a form of

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moral sickness, which SAPs the healthy flow of kindliness and

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good will, and from which men and women should seek

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to be delivered. The unforgiving and resentful spirit is a

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source of great suffering and sorrow, and he who harbors

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and encourages it, who does not overcome and abandon it,

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forfeits much blessedness, and does not obtain any measure of

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true enlightenment. To be hard hearted is to suffer, to

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be deprived of light and comfort. To be tender hearted

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is to be serenely glad, is to receive light and

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be well comforted. It will seem strange to many to

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be told that the hard hearted and unforgiving suffer most.

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Yet it is profoundly true. For not only do they,

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by the law of attraction, draw to themselves the revengeful

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passions in other people, but their hardness of heart itself

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is a continual source of suffering. Every time a man

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hardens his heart against a fellow being, he inflicts upon

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himself five kinds of suffering, namely, the suffering of loss

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of love, the suffering of lost communion and fellowship, the

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suffering of a troubled and confused mind, the suffering of

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wounded passion or pride, and the suffering of punishment inflicted

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by others. Every act of unforgiveness entails upon the doer

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of that act these five sufferings, whereas every act of

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forgiveness brings to the doer five kinds of blessedness. The

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blessedness of love, the blessedness of increased communion and fellowship,

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the blessedness of a calm and peaceful mind, the blessedness

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of passion stilled and pride overcome, and the blessedness and

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kindness and good will bestowed by others. Numbers of people

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are today suffering the fiery torments of an unfre giving spirit.

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And only when they make an effort to overcome that

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spirit can they know what a cruel and exacting taskmaster

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they are serving. Only those who have abandoned the service

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of such a master for that of a nobler master

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of forgiveness can realize and know how grievous a service

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is the one, how sweet the other. Let a man

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contemplate the strife of the world, how individuals and communities,

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neighbors and nations leaving continual retaliations towards each other. Let

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him realize the heartaches, the bitter tears, the grievous partings

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and misunderstandings, even the bloodshed and woe which spring from

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that strife, And thus realizing, he will never again yield

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to ignoble thoughts of resentment, never again take offense at

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the actions of others, never again live an unforgiveness towards

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any being, Have good will to all that lives, letting

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unkindness die and greed and wrath, so that your lives

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be made like soft airs passing by. When a man

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abandons retaliation for forgiveness, he passes from darkness to light. So

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dark and ignorant is unforgiveness that no being who is

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at all wise or enlightened could descend to it. But

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its darkness is not understood and known until left behind,

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and the better and nobler course of conduct is sought

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and practiced. Man is blinded and deluded only by his

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own dark and sinful tendencies. And the giving up of

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all unforgiveness means the giving up of pride in certain

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forms of passion, the abandonment of the deeply rooted idea

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of the importance of one's self and of the necessity

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for protecting and defending that self. And when that is done,

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the higher life, greater wisdom, and pure enlightenment, which pride

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and passion completely obscured, are revealed in all their light

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and beauty. Then there are petty offenses, little spites and

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passing slights, which, while of a less serious nature than

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the deep seated hatreds and revenges, dwarf the character and

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cramp the soul. They are due to the sin of

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self and self importance and thrive on vanity. Whosoever is

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blinded and deluded by vanity will continually see something in

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the actions in the attitudes of others towards him at

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which to take offense. And the more there is a vanity,

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the more greatly will the imaginary slight or wrong be exaggerated. Moreover,

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to live in the frequent indulgence of petty resentments increases

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the spirit of hatred and leads gradually downward to greater darkness, suffering,

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and self delusion. Don't take offense or allow your feelings

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to be hurt, which means get rid of pride and vanity.

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Don't give occasion for offense or hurt the feelings of others,

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which means be gently considerate, forgiving and charitable towards all

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the giving up the total uprooting of vanity and pride

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is a great task, but it is a blessed task,

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and it can be accomplished by constant practice in non

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resentment and by meditating upon one's thoughts and actions so

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as to understand and purify them. And the spirit of

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forgiveness is perfected in one in the measure that pride

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and vanity are overcome and abandoned. The not taking offense

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and the not giving offense go together. When a man

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ceases to resent the actions of others, he is already

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acting kindly towards them, considering them before himself or his

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own defense. Such a man will be gentle in what

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he says and does, will arouse love and kindness in others,

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and not stir them to ill will and strife. He

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will also be free from all fear concerning the actions

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of others towards him or He who hurts none fears

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none but the unforgiving man. He who is eager to

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pay back some real or imaginary slight or injury, will

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not be considerate towards others, for he considers himself first

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and is continually making enemies. He also loves in the

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fear of others, thinking that they are trying to do

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towards him as he is doing towards them. He who

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contrives the hurt of others fears others. There is a

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beautiful story of Prince de Hayu, which was told by

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an ancient Indian teacher to his disciples in order to

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impress them with the truth of the sublime precept that

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hatred ceases not by hatred. At any time, hatred ceases

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by non hatred. The story is as follows. Brahmadada, a

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powerful king of Benarez, made war upon Durkheti, the king

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of Cossila, in order to annex his kingdom, which was

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much smaller than his own. Dirghetti, seeing that it was

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impossible for him to resist the greater power of Brahmadada,

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fled and left his kingdom in his enemy's hands. For

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some time, he wandered from place to place in disguise,

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and at last settled down with his queen in an

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artisan's cottage, and the queen gave birth to a son,

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whom they called Drhayu. Now King Brahmadada was anxious to

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discover the hiding place of Dirghetti in order to put

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to death the conquered king, for he thought, seeing that

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I have deprived him of his kingdom, he may some

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day treacherously kill me if I do not kill him.

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But many years passed by, and Dirghetty devoted himself to

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the education of his son, and by diligent application, became

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learned and skillful and wise, And after a time Dirghetty's

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secret became known, and he, fearing that Brahmadada would discover

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him and slay all three, and thinking more of the

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life of his son than his own, sent away the prince.

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Soon after the exile, the king fell into the hands

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of Brahmadada and was, along with his queen executed. Now

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Brahmadada thought, I have got rid of Dirkhetti and his queen,

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but their son, Prince Dirkhayu, lives, and he will be

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sure to contrive some means of affecting my assassination. Yet

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he is unknown to any and I have no means

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of discovering him. So the king lived in great fear

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and continual distress of mind. Soon after the execution of

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his parents, Dr Khayu, under an assumed name, sought employment

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in the King's stables and was engaged by the master

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of elephants. Dr Khayu quickly endeared himself to all, and

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his superior abilities came at last under the notice of

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the King, who had the young man brought before him,

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and was so charmed with him that he employed him

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in his own case. And he proved to be so

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able and diligent that the King shortly placed him in

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a position of great trust under himself. One day, the

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king went on a long hunting expedition and became separated

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from his retinue. Dr Khayu, alone remaining with him, and

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the king, being fatigued with his exertions, lay down and

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slept with his head on Durkhayu's lap. Then Dr Kayu thought,

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this king has greatly wronged me. He robbed my father

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of his kingdom and slew my parents, and he is

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now entirely in my power. And he drew his sword,

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thinking to slay Bermadada, but remembering how his father had

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taught him never to seek revenge, but to forgive to

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the uttermost, he sheathed his sword. At last, the king

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awoke out of a disturbed sleep, and the youth inquired

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of him why he looked so frightened. My sleep, said

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the king is always restless, for I frequently dreamed that

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I am in the power of young Dr Hayu, and

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that he he is alone to slay me. While lying here,

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I again dreamed that with greater vividness than ever before,

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and it has filled me with dread and terror. Then

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the youth, drawing his sword, said, I am Prince dir Khayu,

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and you are in my power. The time of vengeance

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has arrived. Then the king fell upon his knees and

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begged Urkhayu to spare his life. And Dirkhayu said, it

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is you, o King, who must spare my life. For

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many years, you have wished to find me in order

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that you might kill me. And now that you have

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found me, let me beg of you to grant me

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my life. And there and then Dibrahma Dada and Dirkhayu

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grant each other life, took hands and solemnly vowed never

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to harm each other. And so overcome was the king

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by the noble and forgiving spirit of Dirkhayu, that he

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gave him his daughter in marriage and restored him to

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his father's kingdom. Thus hatred see by not hatred, by forgiveness,

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which is very beautiful and is sweeter and more effective

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than revenge. It is the beginning of love, of that

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divine love that does not seek its own, And he

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who practices it, he who perfects in it, comes at

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last to realize that blessed state wherein the torments of

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pride and vanity and hatred and retaliation are forever dispelled,

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and good will and peace are unchanging and unlimited. In

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that state of calm, silent bliss, even forgiveness passes away

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and is no longer needed. For he who has reached

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it sees no evil to resent, but only ignorance and

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illusion on which to have compassion, and forgiveness is only

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needed so long as there is any tendency to resent, retaliate,

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and take offense. Equal love towards all is the perfect law,

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the perfect state to which all lesser states find their completion.

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Forgiveness is one of the doorways in the faultless temple

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of Love divine