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Quote by Leo Tolstoy
English (Source)
All the ways of man are commanded, except one, that of perfection, of increasing spiritual strength, of liberation from the body, and of nearness to God. This is the only wise act in life and it is done only in the present moment. The past did not exist, it is, like all relationships with the world, only material for perfection. But do not set the future as the goal of your activity (this is the most important thing that I understood now). The future, the image of what will be, need not exist for the man who lives wisely. There is only the present, in which I can do my own life's work. I don't know what will come of this. It is not given to me to know what will turn out for the world (and men imagine they can know this, and are guided by it; therein lies the chief cause of the evil life of men), I am not given to know what will turn out for my soul. So we don't have to become better or live a better life expecting a reward. And how good it is. You feel the true joy of good only if you get nothing in return.