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Death Quote by Leo Schaya

“The act of contemplation and what contemplates—to return to our own terminology—are essentially one with the pure Act, pure Being. On the contrary, what does not contemplate God and does not do His Will is—by definition—not united with Him and, having gone away from Him, is degraded and denies its…” quote by Leo Schaya
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““The act of contemplation and what contemplates—to return to our own terminology—are essentially one with the pure Act, pure Being. On the contrary, what does not contemplate God and does not do His Will is—by definition—not united with Him and, having gone away from Him, is degraded and denies its own reason for being: the only Being, the single and universal Act. Every action here below, whether perfect or deformed by man, is a manifestation of that Act, of that Being. The essence of act is Being and its immediate reason for being is the actualization, the realization of Being. Action that is not in conformity with Being, instead of actualizing Being, of realizing it, tends to stifle it, to kill it. And since such action cannot annihilate the eternal Being, it inevitably turns against the one who has acted against Him and who thereby denies and kills his own ephemeral being. Action that kills being is the sin of mankind, a sin carried to extremes by our own contemporaries. They cultivate action for the sake of action without regard to being, His Being: hence, agitation without any true aim, collective suicide, and loss of soul. Modern man preaches “progress,” progress towards the abyss, and commits himself body and soul to an activity that does violence to being; he cultivates a “Tree of Science (or Knowledge),” which proves to be a “Tree of Death.” He rejects contemplation as being something ineffective: men who devote their life to contemplation are considered useless, idle people, enemies of society. Countries which have remained more or less traditional are regarded as “unproductive” to the very extent that they retain signs of contemplation. Modern man has no notion that contemplation is the purest and highest form of action, and the most powerful; that it actualizes the supreme Being, the universal Act; that in contemplation the real presence of the Lord of the worlds reveals Himself, manifests Himself here below. Our contemporaries do not know that contemplation is in itself not the act of man, but of God, in face of which all actions initiated by man vanish like a mirage. God contemplates the world in Himself, and the world is. God contemplates the end of the world in Himself, and the world is finished. A man of God contemplates with God, acts with Him, and is conscious of God in himself and in all things.””

Leo Schaya

About This Quote

Source Book: The Spiritual Philosophy of Leo Schaya, 1995

Contemplation aligns with pure Being, while action divorced from Being degrades the soul and leads to destructive progress.

In simple terms: Meditation connects us to true existence; meaningless activity harms us.

Key Takeaway

Prioritize contemplative practice.

Themes

spirituality philosophy being action modernity

Mood

thoughtful serious inspirational

Type

Death:0 End of the world:0 Man of god:0 Manifestation:0 Meditation:1 Modern man:1 Science:0 Act Contemplation:1 Contemplate God:0 Contemplates God:0 Contemplation Purest:1 Contemplation Considered:0

When to use this quote

  • personal meditation
  • academic study
  • ethical decision making

Key Concepts

metaphysics ethics theology

Questions to Reflect On

  • How can modern society value contemplation?
  • What practices foster alignment with Being?
A Different Perspective

Contemplation can be dismissed as idle, yet it is essential for meaningful action.

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