Reasoning in the World

Posted on February 6, 2012 by Terry

This afternoon I took a moment to read The Rendezvous in Nature’s Messages of Peace and ran across this thought.

While I am aware of the tremendous value of reasoning in the world, I think that it is often colored with selfishness, greed, and egotism, which render it not true reasoning at all. It seems to me that the more important things are always those which are whispered to us from within, and the constructive function of reasoning is to make these things a part of consciousness through definite acceptance of them.

There are those grand instincts in the consciousness of man which are glorious in their promise, yet which the world would crucify and destroy with its shallow reasoning if it could. Perhaps the greatest sermon preached by solitude in the Green Cathedrals is, “listen to the still small voice within, and fear not to accept the wonders of divine instinct and intuition.”

Quotable

"A childhood has another quality which we really should never surrender. It clings to no yesterdays." A Tippy Canoe and Canada Too‚ pg. 166A childhood has another

"Animals are individuals to me, and I am glad I think of them not only as serving man with flesh and hide, but also as co-partners in the glorious revelation of the infinitude of life."Animals are individuals to

"A person must stand on holy ground to realize… that in himself are talents and the opportunities through which he must work out his salvation. Not in the world, but in his own character in his work. Success is not measured by comparing himself with his neighbor, but rather in the degree he cultivates and uses his natural ability." A Tippy Canoe and Canada Too‚ pg. 231A person must stand

"The greatest comfort mingled with the greatest volume of natural beauty, to my thought is a night in a sleeping bag in the wilderness area of the north." A Tippy Canoe and Canada Too pg. 180The greatest comfort mingled

"Fear is the screen that hides from our view the friendship native to the wild heart. Wildness is only a form of fear, for when kindness and patience have penetrated the veil, we see unmistakable evidence of the love in all forms of life."Fear is the screen

"Many and beautiful are the gifts of spring, not the least of which is the silent suggestion of the omnipotence of life."Many and beautiful are

"Our failure to understand the true nature of things has put so many creatures on the undesirable list that if all were destroyed of which people do not approve, there would be little wild life left." A Tippy Canoe and Canada Too‚ pg. 71Our failure to understand

"One need never be lonely in the great outdoors. There is satisfying companionship to be found among forest folk when we are worthy."One need never be

"But hold on, Hi-Bub, don't let the world snatch your treasure from you. Fight for your right to love the forest, and it will never fail you." A Tippy Canoe and Canada TooBut hold on

(Duke) "Once in while I have reached the place where peace was close at hand that I knew where to seek it at last. It was when I forget myself, and as someone said, look through nature to nature‚ as God." Eeny, Meeny, Miney, Mo and Still-Mo pg. 38Once in a while