A true sage knows that the only reality, both for himself and for all other beings, is this summit, which is inaccessible to evil

"People sometimes wonder where the serene expression that characterizes the face of certain sages comes from. It comes, quite simply, from the fact that they’ve managed to overcome their fear of loss. They have risen to the summit of their being, where they feel something indestructible within, something that can never be taken away. Whatever happens, a true sage knows that the only reality, both for himself and for all other beings, is this summit, which is inaccessible to evil and shielded from all adversity: the spirit, the spark that God transmitted to all human creatures. But how can we reach that point? By working on ourselves, by purifying our thoughts and feelings so that we gradually dissolve the opaque layers which separate us from this spark and prevent us from sensing that it alone is real. Providence, as it is called by religion, comes from this deeply held conviction that certain beings possess, based on their experience that something within them is totally beyond reach and free from all vicissitude."