Isaac of Nineveh

From what Isaac has to say, I think that the first passage is the only one that stuck out to me. What made me curious is how he mentions an infinite type of love. This sparked my attention because I feel like he is comparing the love of god lasting for eternity to the love of a spouse. I could be wrong but I feel he did this comparison to show just how strong God's love is especially when it is contrasted against the next biggest love. This is profound because if he is indeed comparing these two things, is it to justify his place as God or is it for us to feel--for lack of a better term--human?

Ludwig Wittgenstein

What Ludwig had to say is pretty interesting. However, what I want to point out is the last of the passages: "The truth can be only spoken by someone who already lives inside it; not by someone who still lives in untruth and only sometimes reaches out from untruth toward it." So since we live in an imperfect world full of lies and deceit, how can an "outsider" know that someone else is telling the truth and is actually derived from truth. I understand the underlying point Ludwig is trying to make about eliminating heresy and expanding the knowledge that is not compromised from heresy but the fact of the matter is, is that if individuals lived by this doctrine, would not there be many claiming that they descend from and are encapsulated in truth? I know that I will not be one of the one's to proclaim that I am too lazy to speak truth, and don't get this tainted view of what I am, because I am human and all humans are susceptible to the human nature of seeking power, in any degree. Truth is power.

Symeon the New Theologian

I really enjoyed the second passage by Symeon. "The more a man enters the light of understanding, the more aware he is of his own ignorance." It is a profound passage because when you contrast a man's knowledge against everything there is to know, the man knows nothing in comparison. This is a very humbling point because almost everyone suffers from thinking they know everything and it is because of this mentality that knowledge is hindered. I liked this because of how straight forward the point of this passage was.
The last passage is similar but still important in its own regard. "When our mind is emptied of thought, it finds nothing but light." If we empty our thoughts, especially our bad ones, we are more prone to be enlightened individuals with more awareness of the grace of life.

Hugh of St. Victor

Hugh of St. Victor has an intriguing take on what heavenly is. It comes off as a rather down to earth message because it keeps those seeking divinity "out of the clouds." This is an important way of trying to find solitude since he strongly emphasizes looking into oneself to find a deeper meaning for yourself. Looking deeper into yourself brings you closer to God because God is inside everyone. However, I think of this as a metaphor because God is synonymous with peace, hence, when you die you are at peace in heaven with God. It is also important because part of the reason to do this is to free yourself of material possessions. I like what Hugh of St. Victor has to say largely because it is real advice that is applicable to anyone who is seeking a religion, philosophy, or a more whole perspective of life.

Abi'l-Khayr

Even though this writer is of Islamic origin, I did not get the sense that he was until I looked at the name again. In fact, if a European name had been used instead, I would have thought him a Christian. This is intriguing because this exemplifies the relatedness of the two theologies and how much they are actually alike. The part of the text that really stood out to me was when he says, "You desire what God desires; your own desires are gone, you are emancipated from your wants, and have gained peace and joy in both worlds." This is a demonstration of how this philosopher's Islamic view is entirely on track with the Christian idea of living with as little indulgence, and even adequacy, as Jesus Christ had. It also reminds me of Buddhism and the path to Enlightenment. This is clearly a critical moral, communicated between several religions around the world and it still lives on today.

Huang-Po

From all of the other readings in this book, Huang-Po, to me is different. I find it interesting that he takes one idea, and beats it to death. What I am specifically referring to is "the mind." Basically, Huang-Po just says to leave it alone. Only marvel at the capabilities of the mind and do not analyze it. The mind is limitless in what it can do and in order to ascertain peace it must be through the mind because they are one in the the same. This is very much a Buddhistic way of thinking. This is profound because without bring peace to the mind and realizing that they are married to each other, peace will always be an elusive goal for anyone.

Albert Einstein

In this collection of Einstein quotes, the first and second quotes are my favorite. In the first quote, Einstein declares that the sensation of the mystical is the most profound human emotion. He ties it into the limitless possibilities that mysticism can bring. The fact that Einstein is a scientist shows that in order to be intellectual, unworldly ideas do in fact have a place in science, and that place begins at the theory. From the theory stems the hypothesis and from the hypothesis comes experimental research. The duty of experimental research is to falsify or support the hypothesis. However, without these ludicrous ideas, theories would never be propagated. It is incredibly important to note that of all people, Albert Einstein, often regarded as the most intelligent person to ever live, is the same person that suggests to not limit thinking and to invite abstract ideas. Putting this into perspective, I doubt that Einstein would have been able to single handily create distinctive contributions to astrophysics and nuclear physics without an imagination. This greatly ties in with the second passage when scientists and nature are brought up. Basically, this is a passage that suggests that nature is incredible and that scientists strive be as great as God's creation--to become a god in their own right, a Dr. Frankenstein so to speak.