The Island

Facing fear of death can be a great motivator for those on the spiritual path, and this simple Buddhist speaks confidently of what can be achieved.

For those struggling in midstream, in great fear of the flood, of growing old and of dying - for all those I say, an island exists where there is no place for impediments, no place for clinging: the island of no going beyond. I call it nirvana, the complete destruction of old age and dying.

From God Makes the Rivers to Flow by Eknath Easwaran, founder of the Blue Mountain Center of Meditation, copyright © 1991; republished by permission of Nilgiri Press, Tomales, California.