In plain words
Rubbed and rubbed, again and again, sandalwood gives out its lovely fragrance; cut and cut, again and again, the stalk of sugarcane stays sweet; burnt and burnt, again and again, gold keeps its shining colour; even when life ends, the nature of the noblest suffers no change.
Embodiments of Prema!
When a piece of sandalwood is rubbed in many ways, fragrance spreads out from it. Sugarcane, the more it is chewed, gives a sweet juice. When gold is put into the fire and burnt, the dross in it wears away and it takes shape as bright, pure gold. The noble man, however many hardships, however many losses, however many sorrows befall him, does not lose his own moral worth.
Humanness came into being for the practice of Dharma
In the world, being human is a special kind of life. But not everyone is able to recognise this special quality. What is this special quality? Being human is not merely a physical, natural form. ‘The body is indeed the first means of Dharma.’ This form of Dharma, humanness, came into being for the practice of Dharma. God is full of Ānanda, the very form of the immortal. Among the thousand names He has, the name ‘Sat-Cit-Ānanda’ is the highest. Sat means that which holds true in the three times and in every kind of circumstance. It is beyond place, time and person. That very Sat-cit means perfect Jñāna.