In the West we are so addicted to the notion of progress that we project this idea onto our spiritual life, and can become very confused by the dawning realization that He whom we seek is always with us, that we are always close to Him but do not know it. The spiritual path is a process of revealing this nearness, the intimacy of love that is always with us.

[T]he light of oneness is available to all of us, present in hidden aquifers where life’s waters continue to flow, waiting in a living silence for us to notice.

One of the attributes of the saint is that he has no fear, for fear is anticipating some disagreeable event that might come or expecting that something beloved might pass away in the future. The saint is concerned only with the present moment. He has no future to fear.

Your journey is towards your homeland. Remember you are travelling from the world of appearances to the world of Reality. – Abdul Khaliq Ghujduwani

The perfect mystic is not an ecstatic devotee lost in contemplation of Oneness, nor a saintly recluse shunning all commerce with mankind, but “the true saint” goes in and out amongst the people and eats and sleeps with them and buys and sells in the market and marries and takes part in social intercourse, and never forgets God for a single moment. – Abu Said ibn Abi al-Khair 

There is a polish for everything that taketh away rust;and the polish of the heart is the invocation of Allâh. – Hadith of the Prophet

Sufis describe the heart as a mirror which the wayfarer polishes and polishes with aspiration andinner work, until no imperfection remains. Then the mirror of the heart can reflect the true light ofthe Beloved.

God placed within the heart the knowledge of Him, and so the heart became lit by God’s Light. By this light He gave the heart eyes to see. Then God spoke in a parable and said, “Compared to a niche wherein is a lamp.” The lamp of the Divine Light is in the hearts of those who believe in the Oneness of God. – Al-Hakim at-Tirmidhi

Be in this world as if you are a traveller, a passer-by, with your clothes and shoes full of dust. Sometimes you sit under the shade of a tree, sometimes you walk in the desert. Be always a passer-by, for this is not home. – Hadith of the Prophet