I invite you to share quotes which you hold in high esteem. Whether you consider them wise, clever, profound, insightful etc.
[with the caveat, this thread is intended for sharing the quotes of others.]
Dalai Lama XIV:
[i]“When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways–either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.”
“There is a saying in Tibetan, ‘Tragedy should be utilised as a source of strength.’
No matter what sort of difficulties, how painful experience is, if we lose our hope, that’s our real disaster.”
“There are going to be frustrations in life. The question is not: How do I escape? It is: How can I use this as something positive?”
“Every day, think as you wake up, today I am fortunate to be alive, I have a precious human life, I am not going to waste it. I am going to use all my energies to develop myself, to expand my heart out to others; to achieve enlightenment for the benefit of all beings. I am going to have kind thoughts towards others, I am not going to get angry or think badly about others. I am going to benefit others as much as I can.”
“If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it’s not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever.”
“We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.”
“World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion.”
“If you can cultivate the right attitude, your enemies are your best spiritual teachers because their presence provides you with the opportunity to enhance and develop tolerance, patience and understanding.”
“Hard times build determination and inner strength. Through them we can also come to appreciate the uselessness of anger. Instead of getting angry, nurture a deep caring and respect for troublemakers because by creating such trying circumstances they provide us with invaluable opportunities to practice tolerance and patience.”
“You must not hate those who do wrong or harmful things; but with compassion, you must do what you can to stop them — for they are harming themselves, as well as those who suffer from their actions.”
“Although you may not always be able to avoid difficult situations, you can modify the extent to which you can suffer by how you choose to respond to the situation.”
“Someone else’s action should not determine your response.”
“In the practice of tolerance, one’s enemy is the best teacher.”
“A truly compassionate attitude toward others does not change even if they behave negatively or hurt you.”
“All suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their own happiness or satisfaction.”
“Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.”
“Like a lamp, dispelling the darkness of ignorance”
“Peace does not mean an absence of conflicts; differences will always be there. Peace means solving these differences through peaceful means; through dialogue, education, knowledge; and through humane ways.”
“There is only one important point you must keep in your mind and let it be your guide. No matter what people call you, you are just who you are. Keep to this truth. You must ask yourself how is it you want to live your life. We live and we die, this is the truth that we can only face alone. No one can help us, not even the Buddha. So consider carefully, what prevents you from living the way you want to live your life?”
“Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them.”
“People take different roads seeking fulfilment and happiness. Just because they’re not on your road doesn’t mean they’ve gotten lost.”
“Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.”
“Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them, humanity cannot survive.”
“This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.”
“Love and Compassion are the true religions to me. But to develop this, we do not need to believe in any religion.”
“Compassion is the wish to see others free from suffering.”
“Understanding that others are human brothers and sisters and respecting their human rights and dignities. That we humans can help each other is one of our unique human capacities.”
“Old friends pass away, new friends appear. It is just like the days. An old day passes, a new day arrives. The important thing is to make it meaningful: a meaningful friend - or a meaningful day.”
“There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done. One is called Yesterday and the other is called Tomorrow. Today is the right day to Love, Believe, Do and mostly Live.”
“Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back and reasons to stay.”
“A good friend who points out mistakes and imperfections and rebukes evil is to be respected as if he reveals the secret of some hidden treasure.”
“The way to change others’ minds is with affection, and not anger.”
“I believe each human being has the potential to change, to transform one’s own attitude, no matter how difficult the situation.”
“I defeat my enemies when I make them my friends.”
“Be kind, honest and have positive thoughts; forgive those who harm us and treat everyone as a friend; help those who are suffering and never to consider ourselves superior to anyone else.”
“The true hero is one who conquers his own anger and hatred.”
“If scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims.”
“The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual’s own reason and critical analysis.”
“It is under the greatest adversity that there exists the greatest potential for doing good, both for oneself and others.”
“Because we all share this planet earth, we have to learn to live in harmony and peace with each other and with nature. This is not just a dream, but a necessity.”
“It is our collective and individual responsibility to preserve and tend to the environment in which we all live.”
“When we feel love and kindness toward others, it not only makes others feel loved and cared for, but it helps us also to develop inner happiness and peace.”
“I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.”
“An open heart is an open mind.”
“Wherever you have friends, that’s your country, and wherever you receive love, that’s your home.”
“Let us try to recognise the precious nature of each day.”
“Time passes unhindered. When we make mistakes, we cannot turn the clock back and try again. All we can do is use the present well.”
“The goal is not to be better than the other man, but your previous self.”
“As you breathe in, cherish yourself. As you breathe out, cherish all Beings.”
“Generosity is the most natural outward expression of an inner attitude of compassion and loving-kindness.”
“Seek to be an oasis of caring and concern as you live your life.”
“The more honest you are, the more open, the less fear you will have, because there’s no anxiety about being exposed or revealed to others.”
“We discover that all human beings are just like us, so we are able to relate to them more easily. That generates a spirit of friendship in which there is less need to hide what we feel or what we are doing.”
“Every human being has the same potential. Whatever makes you feel “I am worthless” is wrong. Absolutely wrong. You are deceiving yourself. We all have the power of thought, so what could you possibly be lacking? If you have the willpower, then you can do anything.”
“I pray for all of us, oppressor and friend,
that together we may succeed in building a better world
through human understanding and love,
and that in doing so we may reduce
the pain and suffering of all sentient beings.”
“The more we make a different choice, to heal our own suffering, the more we can turn to others and help to address their suffering with the laughter-filled, tear-stained eyes of the heart. And the more we turn away from our self-regard to wipe the tears from the eyes of another, the more- incredibly- we are able to hear, to heal, and to transcend our own suffering. This is the true secret to joy.”[/i]
Nelson Mandela:
[i]“As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn’t leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I’d still be in prison.”
“I knew as well as I knew anything that the oppressor must be liberated just as surely as the oppressed. A man who takes away another man’s freedom is a prisoner of hatred, he is locked behind the bars of prejudice and narrow-mindedness. I am not truly free if I am taking away someone else’s freedom, just as surely as I am not free when my freedom is taken from me. The oppressed and the oppressor alike are robbed of their humanity.”
“For to be free is not merely to cast off one’s chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others.”
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.”
“Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace.”
“As I have said, the first thing is to be honest with yourself. You can never have an impact on society if you have not changed yourself… Great peacemakers are all people of integrity, of honesty, but humility.”
“I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended.”
“I am the product of Africa and her long-cherished view of rebirth that can now be realised so that all of her children may play in the sun.”
“Death is something inevitable. When a man has done what he considers to be his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace. I believe I have made that effort and that is, therefore, why I will sleep for the eternity.”[/i]
Whenever sorrow comes, be kind to it. for God has placed a pearl in sorrow’s hand.
Rumi
I love this quote but I do not know how to be kind to sorrow.
Hi Arc. Hope life’s treating you well, friend.
Thanks for sharing. I’m glad to now be aware of Rumi.
My interpretation / thoughts:
To accept sorrow with open heart.
To not curse the heavens for existence or it’s contents.
To say it all has a place and may sit with us.
It is not a foe, but a companion -
one who can teach, guide and remind us.
Sorrow guides us to appreciation.
To that which was and is no more - appreciation that it was at all.
To that which is and need not be - appreciation of why it needn’t continue.
Imagine a world where sorrowful things happened, but we didn’t recognise it.
In that world, would it be more likely for sorrowful things to occur due to disregard?
A world where perhaps we would appreciate less, as we wouldn’t mourn departure…
Rumi:
[i]“Sorrow prepares you for joy. It violently sweeps everything out of your house, so that new joy can find space to enter. It shakes the yellow leaves from the bough of your heart, so that fresh, green leaves can grow in their place. It pulls up the rotten roots, so that new roots hidden beneath have room to grow. Whatever sorrow shakes from your heart, far better things will take their place.”
“I will find new meaning in every joy and sorrow.”
“I saw grief drinking a cup of sorrow and called out, ‘It tastes sweet, does it not?’ ‘You’ve caught me,’ grief answered, 'and you’ve ruined my business. How can I sell sorrow, when you know it’s a blessing?”
“I said: what about my eyes?
God said: Keep them on the road.
I said: what about my passion?
God said: Keep it burning.
I said: what about my heart?
God said: Tell me what you hold inside it?
I said: pain and sorrow?
He said: Stay with it. The wound is the place where the Light enters you.”
“Don’t dismiss the heart, even if it’s filled with sorrow. God’s treasures are buried in broken hearts.”
“The garden of love is green without limit and yields many fruits other than sorrow or joy. Love is beyond either condition: without spring, without autumn, it is always fresh.”
“Be full of sorrow, that you may become hill of joy; weep, that you may break into laughter.”[/i]
—
[i]“Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul there is no such thing as separation.”
“Every leaf that grows will tell you: what you sow will bear fruit, so if you have any sense my friend, don’t plant anything but Love.”
“Find the sweetness in your own heart, then you may find the sweetness in every heart.”
“You have no idea how hard I’ve looked for a gift to bring You. Nothing seemed right. What’s the point of bringing gold to the gold mine, or water to the ocean. Everything I came up with was like taking spices to the Orient. It’s no good giving my heart and my soul because you already have these. So I’ve brought you a mirror. Look at yourself and remember me.”[/i]
[i]“It is no measure of health to be well adjusted to a profoundly sick society.”
“It is truth that liberates, not your effort to be free.”
“When you call yourself an Indian or a Muslim or a Christian or a European, or anything else, you are being violent. Do you see why it is violent? Because you are separating yourself from the rest of mankind. When you separate yourself by belief, by nationality, by tradition, it breeds violence. So a man who is seeking to understand violence does not belong to any country, to any religion, to any political party or partial system; he is concerned with the total understanding of mankind.”
“Freedom and love go together. Love is not a reaction. If I love you because you love me, that is mere trade, a thing to be bought in the market; it is not love. To love is not to ask anything in return, not even to feel that you are giving something- and it is only such love that can know freedom.”
“When I understand myself, I understand you, and out of that understanding comes love. Love is the missing factor; there is a lack of affection, of warmth in relationship; and because we lack that love, that tenderness, that generosity, that mercy in relationship, we escape into mass action which produces further confusion, further misery. We fill our hearts with blueprints for world reform and do not look to that one resolving factor which is love.”
“Tell your friend that in his death, a part of you dies and goes with him. Wherever he goes, you also go. He will not be alone.”
“One is never afraid of the unknown; one is afraid of the known coming to an end.”
“The more you know yourself, the more clarity there is. Self-knowledge has no end - you don’t come to an achievement, you don’t come to a conclusion. It is an endless river.”
“If you begin to understand what you are without trying to change it, then what you are undergoes a transformation.”
"You know, if we understand one question rightly, all questions are answered. But we don’t know how to ask the right question. To ask the right question demands a great deal of intelligence and sensitivity. Here is a question, a fundamental question: is life a torture? It is, as it is; and man has lived in this torture centuries upon centuries, from ancient history to the present day, in agony, in despair, in sorrow; and he doesn’t find a way out of it. Therefore he invents gods, churches, all the rituals, and all that nonsense, or he escapes in different ways. What we are trying to do, during all these discussions and talks here, is to see if we cannot radically bring about a transformation of the mind, not accept things as they are, nor revolt against them. Revolt doesn’t answer a thing. You must understand it, go into it, examine it, give your heart and your mind, with everything that you have, to find out a way of living differently. That depends on you, and not on someone else, because in this there is no teacher, no pupil; there is no leader; there is no guru; there is no Master, no Saviour. You yourself are the teacher and the pupil; you are the Master; you are the guru; you are the leader; you are everything. And to understand is to transform what is.
I think that will be enough, won’t it?"
“To transform the world, we must begin with ourselves; and what is important in beginning with ourselves is the intention. The intention must be to understand ourselves and not to leave it to others to transform themselves or to bring about a modified change through revolution, either of the left or of the right. It is important to understand that this is our responsibility, yours and mine…”
“It is only when the mind is free from the old that it meets everything anew, and in that there is joy.”[/i]
Why do you see the speck of chaff that is in your brother’s eye, but don’t consider the beam that is in your own eye?
Matthew 7:1-2
I’d rather learn from one bird how to sing than teach 10,000 stars how not to dance.
e.e. cummings
“I believe that if one always looked at the skies, one would end up with wings.”
Gustave Flaubert
“Let your life lightly dance on the edges of time like dew on the tip of a leaf.”
Rabindranath Tagore
Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors where there were only walls.”
Joseph Campbell
Scientists at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management have established a causal relationship between failure and future success, proving German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche’s adage that “what does not kill me makes me stronger.”