Page:The Praises of Amida, 1907.djvu/20

10 2. We read in the Holy Books that &quot;the fool is so ignorant that he thinketh himself wise, and that he knoweth neither where he came from at birth, nor whither he will go after death.&quot; The text is not one to be applied to others, it applies to ourselves; for it is we ourselves that do not know with regard to ourselves, whence we came to take up our abode in this human life, nor whither we shall go after we have left this hostelry.

To be sure, we do know that our bodies came forth from our mother's wombs, and that they will be resolved into dust in the grave. But the body is not the self; and it is of this real self that we know not whence it came nor whither it goeth. The past through which we have come is dark, the future in front of us is dark too. And we, who live in this hostelry and enjoy its protection, know not when we shall leave it to plunge into the thick darkness of our further journey. Darkness is always the parent of fear: this darkness is standing waiting for us with jaws widely opened, ready to