[I never assisted the sun materially in his rising, but, doubt not, it was of the last importance only to be present at it.]

Living in the moment inwardly, with attention to both worlds (outer & inner) is truly […]

[It is to solve some of the problems of life, not only theoretically, but practically.] 

The key work here is practical; something in short order these days.

[Morning work! By the blushes of Aurora and the music of Memnon, what should be man’smorning work in this world? I had three pieces of limestone on my desk, but I was terrified to find that they required to be […]

[Economy is a subject which admits of being treated with levity, but it cannot so be disposed of.]

I like Jeff Crammer’s comment on Thoreau’s use of the word Economy in his annotated edition where he reminds us […]

[according to the fable]

Perhaps better to use Myth? Which, like Thoreau’s Walden, the Bible certainly is. Good myth I suspect for those who mine the depths, but not something born out by history.

[I say, beware of all enterprises that require new clothes, and not rather a new wearer of clothes. If there is not a new man, how can the new clothes be made to fit?]

Or the manner of  the inner man being  more […]

The strict business habits required when dealing with the “celestial empire” appear to be those habits of head and heart that allow one to mine the wealth of human resource deep within at native bottom.

I really like the comment on Pribeck’s take on Thoreau’s symbolic use of wind; I had never carried that image before but I will now take note! A good one -thanks. 

I don’t think Thoreau is measuring time here in any way, or passing time to be specific. To be purely perceptive of, and attuned through the senses to the present moment where one is in that moment, as opposed to […]

..to embark

To adventure on life is a sweet call for us embark upon the Hero’s journey.

There is a duplication of the last two sentences in this paragraph.

It is sometimes said that a miracle is the action of a higher world’s law operating in a lower world (as presented in Edwin Abbott’s […]

I love Thoreau’s use of paradox, forever reminding us that “every stick has two ends” or never to get all that comfortable with a static thought. Look at how he presents the capacity to “look through each other’s […]

Is Thoreau merely asking us to do our own thinking? That if we have experienced nothing for ourselves, we have not done anything at all? When I think of Thoreau’s interest, and understanding, of Native American […]

I can’t help but wonder what Thoreau would have thought about the game Monopoly? As a member of the GAMES Magazine Hall of Fame, Monopoly is the most popular board game in the world; sold in 103 countries and […]

Or like a pearl galvanizing us to dive deep in search of further treasure.

The finest qualities of our nature, like the bloom on fruits, can be preserved only by the most delicate handling. 

This sentence, as an educator, strikes me most forcefully as our current industrial model of […]

I think our reading labors are often mistaken too, and I find it interesting that it (Reading) is the very next chapter after he tells us where he lived, and what he lived for.

I sense that Thoreau is intimating much about the mythic adventure he has taken (called Walden) in these opening pages. It is very reminiscent of J. Cambell’s “Hero With A Thousand Faces” where he speaks about the […]

I would welcome any insight into the comment above that “There are those who question just how “simple and sincere” T’s own account is—and not without reason.” Why was this so, and who are the ones who question […]