Literacy is not education and education is not culture, and all these together do not constitute "Dnyan" or gnosis. This stands in a class by itself, independent of any concomitant factors. Illiteracy and ignorance invite exploitation, but literacy can also become a willing tool in the hands of those who exploit. Education devoid of culture is inherently destructive, although on the surface it seems to represent progress. Since all types of people have claimed that their greatness constitutes "culture," the word has become indefinite in the minds of the public. True culture is the result of spiritual values assimilated into life.
Therefore you must keep before you the idea of that spiritual culture which, once developed, imparts life and beauty to all undertakings — educational, technical, industrial, social, moral and political — and pierces through their differences to produce unity. This results in the development of the highest character in the life of a nation or individual.
All men in the flesh are unquestionably equal, yet no two men are equal. Despite the fact that one sun shines on the one world, sunshine is not the same the world over. In their hopes and their fears, men are the same everywhere, yet at a given moment this one is antagonistic to that one.
Love for God, love for fellow beings, love of service and love of self-sacrifice — in short love in any shape and form — is the finest "give and take" in existence. Ultimately it is love that will bring about the much-desired equating of human beings all over the world, and without necessarily disturbing the inherently diverse traits of mankind.
It is infinitely better to hope for the best than to fear the worst. Time is composed equally of night and day. In its inevitable course of ups and downs the world is fast approaching once again a glorious dawn.
My blessings to you all.
Poster Comment:
LISTEN, HUMANITY, pp. 180-181
1957 © Sufism Reoriented, Inc.