so-soI love how this book is basically East meets West where there are ideas from multiple religions that Khayyam was inspired by. I‘m giving it a so-so because I‘m not really into literature/poetry, but if anyone is looking for a theological, historical text, I recommend reading this one.
“...it is his soul...that gives him consciousness...his true consciousness.”__Paramhansa Yogananda
“Even food nourishes our bodies only to the extent that our life-force is strong enough to digest it.”__Paramhansa Yogananda
Although I do believe in karma to an extent, I cannot say disabilities are consequences of misbehavior from a past life. I think Yogananda and Khayyam both semi contradict themselves in this thinking and the next idea not to feel sorry for yourself. I don‘t think people should “wallow in self pity” but to wake up and say I‘m the way I am for something I don‘t remember is just wrong.
“There are no obstacles: There are only opportunities.”__Paramhansa Yogananda
“...every human tendency is self-acquired... It is the result of individual choice.”__Paramhansa Yogananda
“No symbol... can replace the Reality it represents.”__ Paramhansa Yogananda
“Theologians believe in religion, but very few of them seek to experience its truths.”__ Paramhansa Yogananda
I like how in the expanded meaning of quatrain 49, life is compared to a good book or movie. I must admit i have definitely seen the similarities, and since I also believe everything happens for a reason, I definitely think life is like a movie.
One thing I find interesting in Omar Khayyam‘s quatrain is the idea that to get to Nirvana, you have to basically go through hopelessness and despair. My interpretation of what I‘ve read tells me that right before we enter nirvana, we basically enter into a horrible, dark place, and once we make it through there we‘re in Nirvana. This idea reminds me of the concept of purgatory and we have to go through fire to get to heaven.
“The greatest ‘business‘ of all is to busy ourselves with God. The greatest duty of all is to place Him first in our lives. No business and no earthly duty would be possible without the intelligence man derives from him.” __Paramhansa Yogananda
“A saint is a sinner who never gave up!”__Paramhansa Yogananda
“For you are not your mistakes.”__Swami Kriyananda
“To live in the present is wisdom. To live for the present is folly... The way to be constantly happy is to remain inwardly not attached to anything.”__ Swami Kiryananda
“The body is a temporary stopping place.”__Paramhansa Yogananda
“The Wear has insisted on judging Omar from its own viewpoint. But if we are to understand the East at all, we must try to see how its own people look upon its writings.”__Paramhansa Yogananda
The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam Explained | 
