The Buddha taught a way—that is, a method of investigation, not a set of beliefs—that leads to ultimate truth, a truth beyond words.
Without goals, without some purposeful anticipation, we live, Frankl said, only a 'provisional existence', a kind of marking time which is really a death in life.
Essays in Understanding, 1930-1954The life of peoples, according to Montesquieu, is ruled by laws and customs; the two are distinguished in that “laws govern the actions of the citizen and customs govern the actions of man” (L’Esprit des Lois, Book XIX, ch. 16). Laws establish the realm of public political life, and customs establish the realm of society. The downfall of nations begins with the undermining of lawfulness, whether the laws are abused by the government in power, or the authority of their source becomes doubtful and questionable. In both instances, laws are no longer held valid. The result is that the nation, together with its “belief” in its own laws, loses its capacity for responsible political action; the people cease to be citizens in the full sense of the word.
Arendt, Hannah. Essays in Understanding, 1930-1954 (p. 315). Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.
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