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Quote by Leo Tolstoy
English (Source)
To love God is to love His manifestation. The consciousness of His manifestation is clearest (above all) in me. But I can't help but see His manifestation everywhere: in the sky, on the earth, in the stone, in the sand, in the stars. The difference between these manifestations is only that some are closer to me (not in place, but in the nature of the manifestation), and others are more distant. The closer they are to me, the more I can and must love them. The most distant from me are the earth, the stone, the sand, the sky, the planets. It's natural to love them too, but the tree, the plant are closer to me, And I love them more, I love animals even more, and most of all the one closest to me, man. But even more, more than anything in the world, I cannot but love myself, my self, but not the corporeal, miserable self, which must be as far from me as any animal, even as stone or sand , but the spiritual self, which if I love I reach love itself, love towards everything. Bodily selfishness is repulsive, but there is nothing higher than spiritual selfishness, the transference of your consciousness into the spiritual, eternal, universal self. This transfer is done through love and brings with it a good that makes you want nothing else. How can we not thank the One who gave us this good?!