Article written on Sangharakshita's return to England in November 1964 reflecting on the state of Buddhism since he'd last been in the UK. First appeared in 'The Middle Way' journal of The Buddhist Society.

A short lecture expounding the parable of 'The Jewel in the Garment' - the story of a man who falls asleep whilst drunk, works for many years for little reward, and then finds out a friend had left a priceless jewel for him in his clothes whilst he slept.

“Absolute spiritual altruism is the attitude of being concerned with the attainment of Enlightenment, or salvation, not simply for one's own benefit but for the benefit of all living beings. Such unbounded altruism does not consist in devoting oneself first to one's own spiritual welfare and then to the spiritual welfare of others. Rather it consists in the spontaneous compassionate activity that manifests when the very distinction between self and others is transcended or when, to speak less metaphysically, one realizes that one's own spiritual development is bound up with that of other people, even as theirs is bound with one's own.”