The power of memories and expectations is such that for most human beings, the past and the future are not as real, but rather more real than the present.
When you know both yourself as well as your competition, you are never in danger. To know yourself and not others, gives you half a chance of winning. Knowing neither yourself or your competition puts you in a position to lose.
"Of All God's Creatures, There Is Only One That Cannot Be Made Slave Of The Leash. That One Is The Cat. If Man Could Be Crossed With The Cat It Would Improve The Man, But It Would Deteriorate The Cat."
Brave, bold men, these are what we want. What we want is vigor in the blood, strength in the nerves, iron muscles and nerves of steel, not softening namby-pamby ideas. Avoid all these. Avoid all mystery. There is no mystery in religion. Is there any mystery in the Vedanta, or in the Vedas, or in the Samhitâs, or in the Puranas? What secret societies did the sages of yore establish to preach their religion? What sleight-of-hand tricks are there recorded as used by them to bring their grand truths to humanity?