Inspirational Quotes by Thomas Merton
“Our landlord, Mr. Duggan, ran a nearby saloon. He got in trouble with Father for helping himself to the rhubarb which we were growing in the garden. I remember the grey summer dusk in which this happened. We were at the supper table, when the bended Mr. Duggan was observed, like some whale in the sea of green rhubarb, plucking up the red stalks. Father rose to his feet and hastened out into the garden. I could hear indignant words. We sat at the supper table, silent, not eating, and when Father returned I began to question him, and to endeavour to work out the morality of the situation. And I still remember it as having struck me as a difficult case, with much to be said on both sides. In fact, I had assumed that if the landlord felt like it, he could simply come and harvest all our vegetables, and there was nothing we could do about it. I mention this with the full consciousness that someone will use it against me, and say that the real reason I became a monk in later years was that I had the mentality of a medieval serf when I was barely out of the cradle.”
“All theology is a kind of birthday Each one who is born Comes into the world as a question For which old answers Are not sufficient…”
“Gerçek anlamda derin düşünme; psikolojik bir hile değil, teolojik bir lütuftur.”
“Now in order to kill the enemy, our men must be roused to anger; that there may be advantage from defeating the enemy, they must have their rewards.”
“El éxito en la guerra se alcanza cuidando de adaptarse permanentemente al propósito del enemigo.”
“- الاحتفاظ بجاسوس في الداخل يعادل جيشاً بأكمله!! - وأفضل الجواسيس من يحمل جنسية العدو ولكنه يؤمن بأهدافك!! - وأخيرا.. ضمان النصر النهائي قد يتطلب التضحية بأفضل الجواسيس!!!”
“12. Therefore, in your deliberations, when seeking to determine the military conditions, let them be made the basis of a comparison, in this wise:— 13. (1) Which of the two sovereigns is imbued with the Moral law? [I.e., “is in harmony with his subjects.” Cf. ss. 5.] (2) Which of the two generals has most ability? (3) With whom lie the advantages derived from Heaven and Earth? [See ss. 7,8] (4) On which side is discipline most rigorously enforced? [Tu Mu alludes to the remarkable story of Ts’ao Ts”
“- لا تفتح على نفسك عدة جبهات في وقت واحد.. تحالف مع أحد الأعداء حتى تنتهي من الآخر!”
“Los soldados prisioneros deben ser bien tratados, para conseguir que en el futuro luchen para ti.”
“Hay cinco elementos esenciales para la victoria: (1) Ganará, quien sabe cuándo luchar y cuándo no hacerlo. (2) Ganará, quien sabe manejar, tanto las fuerzas superiores como las fuerzas inferiores. (3) Ganará, quien posea el ejército que esté animado por el mismo espíritu en todas sus filas. (4) Ganará, quien preparado, sepa esperar para coger al enemigo desprevenido. (5) Ganará, quien dueño de la capacidad militar, no sea interferido por el soberano.”
“Todos los hombres pueden ver las tácticas, pero lo que nadie puede ver es la estrategia que hace que de estas observaciones evolucione la victoria.”
“The tao is the way of humanity and justice; 'laws' are regulations and institutions. Those who excel in war first cultivate their own humanity and justice and maintain their laws and institution. By these means they make their governments invincible.”
topics: tao
“- حين تواجه عدوا قويا لا تتحرك حتى تجد فرصة سانحة ولا تحارب حتى يخرج عن طوره ويهاجم!”
“Generally in war the best policy is to take a state intact; to ruin it is inferior to this. To capture the enemy's army is better than to destroy it; to take intact a battalion, a company or a five-man squad is better than to destroy them. For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill. Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy. Next best is to disrupt his alliances; do not allow your enemies to get together. The next best is to attack his army. If you cannot nip his plans in the bud, or disrupt his alliances when they are about to be consummated, sharpen your weapons to gain the victory.”
“• عمل القائد هو أن يبقى هادئاً فيضمن السرية، وأن يكون مستقيماً وعادلاً، فيضمن استقرار النظام العام.”
“To a surrounded enemy you must leave a way of escape. Show him there is a road to safety, and so create in his mind the idea that there is an alternative to death. Then strike.”
“وتروي المخطوطات الصينية أن "سون أتزو وو" والمعروف اختصارا باسم "سون أتزو" كان مواطنا وجنديا في مملكة "تشي”
“Do not press an enemy at bay. Wild beasts, when at bay, fight desperately. How much more is this true of men! If they know there is no alternative they will fight to the death.”
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Thomas Merton wrote more than 70 books, mostly on spirituality, as well as scores of essays and reviews. Merton was a keen proponent of interfaith understanding.
Interest in his work contributed to a rise in spiritual exploration beginning in the 1960s and 1970s in the US. Merton's letters and diaries, reveal the intensity with which their author focused on social justice issues, including the civil rights movement and proliferation of nuclear arms. He had prohibited their publication for 25 years after his death. Publication raised new interest in Merton's life.