47 On Reading and Writing
Beloved Dharia,
Love.
It is important to read and write a good deal while a student.
However, that does not mean to read and write indiscriminately, just anything.
A man could read for hours every day, but if he is reading nothing but
the "TV Guide", he won't be very educated.
If a man writes the word "baloney" a thousand times, it will
not be anything productive.
So just as important as the act of reading and writing is the issue of what you are reading, and what you are writing.
Also important, is the question of when.
There are times in a student's progress where it is important that they
spend much time reading, or much time writing out their thought processes.
At other times, it is important to specifically avoid this.
So the real issue is one of what is best for you, personally.
Read, but do not read just any nonsense and assume it to be true, or
relevant to the work you are doing.
It is also just as important to read novels and stories of good quality
as it is to read books you think are "spiritual", sometimes
more so.
Love
Swami
