Utopia

If the twinned inherencies of greed (I want) and selfishness (me and mine) were suddenly eliminated, we would find ourselves in a heavenly realm.

The root of all evil

In the West, we reward ambition. From a Sufi perspective, it’s a disease. Rumi: “All of our suffering results from raw greed and from the desires of the self and its itching palate.”

Clamping tools

“ME!” she cried. “MINE!” he roared. These pronouns are pincers, the killing business of arthropods. Dig into their meaning. Understand precisely what they mean and how they dominate us. Be free of them.

What he’s worth

The true man is non-violent. This means that his level of self-concern is low to non-existent. He functions normally but one vacancy sets him apart: He has no interest in profit and loss.

Nine ways to suffer

Enneagram teaching posits nine passions (from passio, meaning ‘to suffer’). These are anger, pride, deceit, envy, greed, fear, gluttony, lust and, taking up the rear, sloth. Most men assume their dominant passion is lust. Most men are wrong. Fear-based men vastly outnumber men who love to fight. We dance with each other. Lust leads. Fear follows.