1. “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” Matthew 8:22, NRSV
  2. “Shun tried to abdicate in favour of Shan Chuan, but Shan Chuan said, ‘Here I am in the midst of space and time. During the winter I wear skins and furs, in summer I wear vine leaves and linen. In the spring I plough and plant and my body is exercised by this. In the autumn I harvest and pile up and then I rest and eat. When the sun rises I wake up and work, while at sunset I rest. I journey were I will between Heaven and Earth to my heart’s desire. So why would I want to rule the country? Alas, Sire, you do not understand!’ So he said no and went away, deep into the mountains, and no one knew where he went.” Chuang-tzu 28 (Abdication), tr. Palmer.
  3. “The ruler of Lu had heard that Yen Ho had gained the Tao and so he sent a messenger bearing gifts of silk to start up discussions with him. Yen Ho was sitting in the doorway of his simple house, dressed in coarse hemp cloth and feeding a cow. The ruler of Lu’s messenger arrived and Yen Ho met him. […] The messenger proceeded to offer the gifts to him, but Yen Ho said, ‘I think that unfortunately you have got your instructions confused. If you present these to the wrong person, you will get in trouble. I suggest you return and check that you are doing the right thing.’ So the messenger went back, ensured his instructions were accurate and then came back to look for him, but he could not find him.” Chuang-tzu 28 (Abdication), tr. Palmer.
  4. “You are the world’s cleverest man. You have solved one of maths’ most intractable problems. Do you a) accept a $1m reward, or b) reject the money, barricade yourself inside your flat and refuse to answer the door? The answer, if you are the reclusive Russian genius Grigory Perelman, is b). […] Perelman refuses to talk to the journalists camped outside his home. One who managed to reach him on his mobile was told: ‘You are disturbing me. I am picking mushrooms.’” Harding, Luke 2010, Grigory Perelman, the maths genius who said no to $1m, The Guardian.
  5. “[…] three levels of renunciation can be noticed. 1. External renunciation by letting go of worldly possessions and objects of sensual pleasure which may include leaving the householder’s life to become an ascetic. 2. Internal renunciation by letting go of the mental hindrances and attachment to sensual desires through the practice of moral discipline (sila) and concentration meditation (samadhi). 3. Final renunciation by letting go of all the mental defilements and the wrong view of the self or ego by developing wisdom (panna) through insight meditation (vipassana).” Ubeysekara, Ari 2020, Renunciation (Nekkhamma) in Theravada Buddhism, online: https://drarisworld.wordpress.com/2020/12/01/renunciation-nekkhamma-in-theravada-buddhism/