Background Image

...

Many Problems That Confront Us Today Are Created By Man, Whether They Are Violent Conflicts, Destruction Of The Environment, Poverty Or Hunger. These Problems Can Be Resolved Thanks To Human Efforts By Understanding That We Are Brother And Sister And By Developing This Sense Of Closeness. We Must Cultivate A Universal Responsibility Toward Each Other And Extend It To The Planet That We Have To Share.

-Dalai Lama

...

Please Wait....
Translating....

Many Problems That Confront

Dalai Lama

...

Many Problems That Confront Us Today Are Created By Man, Whether They Are Violent Conflicts, Destruction Of The Environment, Poverty Or Hunger. These Problems Can Be Resolved Thanks To Human Efforts By Understanding That We Are Brother And Sister And By Developing This Sense Of Closeness. We Must Cultivate A Universal Responsibility Toward Each Other And Extend It To The Planet That We Have To Share.

Views: 9

Topic

More From Dalai Lama

Affection Is Important Because It Counters Anger, Hatred And Suspicion That Can Prevent Our Minds From Functioning Clearly.

If You Shift Your Focus From Oneself To Others, And Think More About Others' Well-being And Welfare, It Has An Immediate Liberating Effect.

What Acts As A Far More Effective Circumstance For Generating Compassion And What, In Fact, Rouses Us From Our Comfortable Meditation Seat Is Actually Seeing Or Hearing Others - Encountering Others Directly, Not Just Conceptually In Our Imagination.

We Are Driven By Self-interest, It’s Necessary To Survive. But We Need Wise Self-interest That Is Generous And Co-operative, Taking Others’ Interests Into Account. Co-operation Comes From Friendship, Friendship Comes From Trust, And Trust Comes From Kind-heartedness. Once You Have A Genuine Sense Of Concern For Others, There’s No Room For Cheating, Bullying Or Exploitation.

There Are Five Billion Human Beings And In A Certain Way I Think We Need Five Billion Different Religions.

People Assume That Happiness Stems From Collecting Things Outside Of Yourself, Whereas True Happiness Stems From Removing Things From Inside Of Yourself

Collecting Things

It Is Not Just A Person's Physical Constitution, Their Intellegence, Their Education, Or Even Their Social Conditioning That Enables Them To Withstand Hardship. Much More Significant Is Their Inner Development. And While Some May Be Able To Survive Through Sheer Willpower, The Ones Who Suffer The Least Are Those Who Have A High Degree Of Patience And Courage In The Face Of Adversity.

In A Free Country, America, Or India, And Japan, And Many Places, Democracy Country, Free Country, But Still Within The Sort Of Rule Of Law, Some Injustice, Some Sort Of Problems, Some Discrimination, And Also Some Sort Of Scandals Or The Corruptions. These Things, You See, They Are Always In My Mind, I Think Many People Agree, Lack Of Moral Principle.

If You Have Only Education And Knowledge And A Lack Of The Other Side, Then You May Not Be A Happy Person, But A Person Of Mental Unrest, Of Frustration. Not Only That, But If You Combine These Two, Your Whole Life Will Be A Constructive And Happy Life. And Certainly You Can Make Immense Benefit For Society And The Betterment Of Humanity. That Is One Of My Fundamental Beliefs: That A Good Heart, A Warm Heart, A Compassionate Heart, Is Still Teachable.

My Aim Is To Create A Happy Society With Genuine Friendship. Friendship Between Tibetan And Chinese Peoples Is Very Essential.

Genuine Friends

Ethics: The Indispensable Interface Between My Desire To Be Happy And Yours.

Mutual Respect Is The Foundation Of Genuine Harmony.

I Feel That Compassionate Thought Is The Most Precious Thing There Is. It Is Something That Only We Human Beings Can Develop. And If We Have A Good Heart, A Warm Heart, Warm Feelings, We Will Be Happy And Satisfied Ourselves, And Our Friends Will Experience A Friendly And Peaceful Atmosphere As Well. This Can Be Experienced Community To Community, Country To Country, Continent To Continent.

To Conquer Oneself Is A Greater Victory Than To Conquer Thousands In A Battle.

A Heart Full Of Love And Compassion Is The Main Source Of Inner Strength, Willpower, Happiness, And Mental Tranquility

We Are Working As Hard As We Can; We Are Preparing Ourselves As Carefully As We Can; We Fully Intend To Make Our Contribution To The World In The Coming Century.

Love Is Wanting Others To Be Happy.

Foolish, Selfish People Are Always Thinking Of Themselves And The Result Is Always Negative. Wise Persons Think Of Others, Helping Them As Much As They Can, And The Result Is Happiness. Love And Compassion Are Beneficial Both For You And Others. Through Your Kindness To Others, Your Mind And Heart Will Open To Peace.

Anger And Hatred Are The Real Enemies That We Must Confront And Defeat, Not The 'enemies' Who Appear From Time To Time In Our Lives.

The Problem Isn't Materialism As Such. Rather It Is The Underlying Assumption That Full Satisfaction Can Arise From Gratifying The Senses Alone. Unlike Animals Whose Quest For Happiness Is Restricted To Survival And To The Immediate Gratification Of Sensory Desires, We Human Beings Have The Capacity To Experience Happiness At A Deeper Level Which, When Achieved, Can Overwhelm Unhappy Experiences.

I Totally Disagree With The View That The Tibet Struggle Will Die, And There Will Be No Hope For Tibet, After The Dalai Lama Passes Away.

A Calm Mind Is Good For Our Physical Health, But It Also Enables Us To See Things More Realistically.

Some Consider Me As A Living Buddha. That's Nonsense. That's Silly. That's Wrong. If They Consider Me A Simple Buddhist Monk, However, That's Probably Okay.

Just One Small Positive Thought In The Morning Can Change Your Whole Day.

There Is Competition, But It Is Used In A Good Way. It Is Positive To Want To Go First, Provided The Intention Is To Pave The Way For Others, Make Their Path More Easy, Help Them, Or Show The Way. Competition Is Negative When We Wish To Defeat Others, To Bring Them Down In Order To Lift Ourselves Up.

Those Who Don't Have A Life Filled With Luxury May Have A Home Filled With Compassion, Based On Their Choice To Be Content And To Practice Self-discipline. Even When We Have Physical Hardships, We Can Be Very Happy.

To Be Extremely Self-centred, Only Interested In Your Own Satisfaction, Always Brings Negative Consequences In The Long Run.

I Have Found That The Greatest Degree Of Inner Tranquility Comes From The Development Of Love And Compassion. The More We Care For The Happiness Of Others, The Greater Is Our Own Sense Of Well-being. Cultivating A Close, Warmhearted Feeling For Others Automatically Puts The Mind At Ease. It Is The Ultimate Source Of Success In Life.

Giving Up Attachment To The World Does Not Mean That You Set Yourself Apart From It. Generating A Desire For Others To Be Happy Increases Your Humanity. As You Become Less Attached To The World, You Become More Humane. As The Very Purpose Of Spiritual Practice Is To Help Others, You Must Remain In Society.

Education Is The Best Way To Train Ourselves That We Will Secure Our Own Well-being By Concerning Ourselves With Others. It Is Possible To Create A Better World, A More Compassionate, More Peaceful World, Which Is Not Only In Everyone’s Interest, But Is Everyone’s Responsibility To Achieve.

Giving Material Goods Is One Form Of Generosity, But One Can Extend An Attitude Of Generosity Into All One's Behavior. Being Kind, Attentive, And Honest In Dealing With Others, Offering Praise Where It Is Due, Giving Comfort And Advice Where They Are Needed, And Simply Sharing One's Time With Someone - All These Are Forms Of Generosity, And They Do Not Require Any Particular Level Of Material Wealth.

Had Tibet Not Fallen Away From Dharma China Could Not Have Invaded.

An Enemy Is Indeed A Precious Teacher.

Our Prime Purpose In This Life Is To Help Others. And If You Can't Help Them, At Least Don't Hurt Them.

There Is No Way To Escape Death, It Is Just Like Trying To Escape By Four Great Mountains Touching Sky. There Is No Escape From These Four Mountains Of Birth, Old Age, Sickness And Death.

I Don't Take Myself Too Seriously! That Makes Me Happy.

We Must Recognize That The Suffering Of One Person Or One Nation Is The Suffering Of Humanity.

There Can Be No Peace As Long As There Is Grinding Poverty, Social Injustice, Inequality, Oppression, Environmental Degradation, And As Long As The Weak And Small Continue To Be Trodden By The Mighty And Powerful.

We Live Within The Environment. So That Directly Relates With Our Survival, Our Life. So Through That Way, More Concern Of Well Being Of Humanity, Then Naturally Concerned About Environment.

If We Have No Inner Peace, We Deceive Ourselves Into Thinking That Comfort And Prosperity Will Bring Happiness.

Neither A Space Station Nor An Enlightened Mind Can Be Realized In A Day.

If One Assumes A Humble Attitude, One's Own Good Qualities Will Increase. Whereas If One Is Proud, One Will Become Jealous Of Others, One Will Look Down On Others, And Due To That There Will Be Unhappiness In Society.

One Problem With Our Current Society Is That We Have An Attitude Towards Education As If It Is There To Simply Make You More Clever, Make You More Ingenious... Even Though Our Society Does Not Emphasize This, The Most Important Use Of Knowledge And Education Is To Help Us Understand The Importance Of Engaging In More Wholesome Actions And Bringing About Discipline Within Our Minds. The Proper Utilization Of Our Intelligence And Knowledge Is To Effect Changes From Within To Develop A Good Heart.

The Most Compassionate Form Of Giving Is Done With No Thought Or Expectation Of Reward, And Grounded In Genuine Concern For Others.

Genuine Concern

Concern For Others

If You Want Others To Be Happy, Practice Compassion. If You Want To Be Happy, Practice Compassion.

I Have Found That The Greatest Degree Of Inner Peace Comes From Cultivating Love And Compassion.

According To Buddhist Practice, There Are Three Stages Or Steps. The Initial Stage Is To Reduce Attachment Towards Life. The Second Stage Is The Elimination Of Desire And Attachment To This Samsara. Then In The Third Stage, Self-cherishing Is Eliminated

Meet Hostility And Suspicion With Kindness. Helping Others Out Of Love Is Always The Best Option.

A Wider Of More Altruistic Attitude Is Very Relevant In Today's World. If We Look At The Situation From Various Angles, Such As The Complexity And Inter-connectedness Of The Nature Of Modern Existence, Then We Will Gradually Notice A Change In Our Outlook, So That When We Say 'others' And When We Think Of Others, We Will No Longer Dismiss Them As Something That Is Irrelevant To Us. We Will No Longer Feel Indifferent.

We All Have The Potential To Show Others Love And Affection, But As We Progress In Our Materialistic World, These Values Tend To Remain Dormant. We Can Develop Them On The Basis Of Common Sense, Common Experience And Scientific Findings. The Response To The Recent Tragedy In The Philippines Is An Example Of How Such Values Are Awakened; People Helped Simply Because Others Are Suffering And In Need Of Support.

Some People Say That The West Has A Cruel History. These People Also May See The Achievements Of Western Countries - In Terms Of The Economy, Education, Health, And Social Achievements - As A Result Of Exploitation Of Poorer Countries, Including Arab Countries. Western Nations Get Rich By Using Resources Such As Arab Oil. Meanwhile, The Countries Supplying Them Raw Materials Remain Poor. Due To Such Injustices, Jealousies Are Created.

Using Resources

When We Speak Of A Calm State Of Mind Or Peace Of Mind, We Shouldn't Confuse That With An Insensitive State Of Apathy. Having A Calm Or Peaceful State Of Mind Doesn't Mean Being Spaced Out Or Completely Empty. Peace Of Mind Or A Calm State Of Mind Is Rooted In Affection And Compassion And Is Sensitive And Responsive To Others.

We Need To Employ A Secular Approach To Ethics, Secular In The Indian Sense Of Respecting All Religious Traditions And Even The Views Of Non-believers In An Unbiased Way. Secular Ethics Rooted In Scientific Findings, Common Experience And Common Sense Can Easily Be Introduced Into The Secular Education System. If We Can Do That There Is A Real Prospect Of Making This 21st Century An Era Of Peace And Compassion.

I Do Not Understand Men. They Spend Their Lives To Use Their Health To Make Money And Then They Spend Their Money To Restore Their Health.

What Is Important Is To See How We Can Best Lead A Meaningful Everyday Life, How We Can Bring About Peace And Harmony In Our Minds, How We Can Help Contribute To Society.

Overcoming Negative Tendencies And Enhancing Positive Potential Are The Very Essence Of The Spiritual Path.

Happiness Mainly Comes From Our Own Attitude, Rather Than From External Factors.

I Don't Think Generally Politician Come From Democratic Country. I Think Not That Thinking. But Sometimes Little Bit Short-sighted. They Are Mainly Looking For Their Next Vote.

The Need For Love Lies At The Very Foundation Of Human Existence.

Humanity Happy, I Get Benefit. Humanity In State Of Trouble, Or Violence, I Cannot Escape From That.

We Can Benefit Others Through Our Actions By Being Warm And Generous Toward Them, By Being Charitable, And By Helping Those In Need.

In Twenty Years' Time I'll Be Eighty-three, Just An Old Man With A Stick Moving Like A Sloth Bear. While I'm Alive, I Am Fully Committed To Autonomy, And I Am The Person Who Can Persuade The Tibetan People To Accept It.

One Can Overcome The Forces Of Negative Emotions, Like Anger And Hatred, By Cultivating Their Counter-forces, Like Love And Compassion.

Cultivating Inner Discipline Is Something That Takes Time; Expecting Rapid Results Is Simply A Sign Of Impatience.

Generally Speaking, If A Human Being Never Shows Anger, Then I Think Something's Wrong. He's Not Right In The Brain.

Just As We Take For Granted The Need To Acquire Proficiency In The Basic Academic Subjects, I Am Hopeful That A Time Will Come When We Can Take It For Granted That Children Will Learn, As Part Of The Curriculum, The Indispensability Of Inner Values: Love, Compassion, Justice, And Forgiveness.

Religion, Any Religion, No Matter What Sort Of Wonderful Religion, Never Be Universal. So Now Education Is Universal, So We Have To Sort Of Find Ways And Means Through Education System, From Kindergarten Up To University Level, To Make Awareness These Good Things, The Values, Inner Values.

It's Best Not To Get Too Excited Or Too Depressed By The Ups And Downs Of Life.

Wisdom Is The Best Guide And Faith Is The Best Companion.

We Must Recognize That All Beings Want The Same Thing We Want. This Is The Way To Achieve A True Understanding, Unfettered By Artificial Consideration.

Live A Good, Honourable Life. Then When You Get Older And Look Back, You'll Be Able To Enjoy It A Second Time.

Love And Compassion ... Are The Ultimate Source Of Human Happiness, And The Need For Them Lies At The Very Core Of Our Being.

We May Now Have Reached A Point Where This Gap In Our Make-up Has Become Unsustainable; Partly Because What In The Past Would Have Counted As Material Plenty Has Become The Norm For The Majority In Much Of The World; And Partly Because The Slow Retreat Of Religion That Coincided With The Spread Of A Capitalist Economy Has Left A Gaping Hole In Millions Of People's Lives. (geoff Mulgan)

Capitalist Economy

There Is Often A Big Disparity Between The Way In Which We Perceive Things And The Way Things Really Are.

If We Make Consistent Effort, Based On Proper Education, We Can Change The World.

So Long As We Are Under The Control Of Disturbing Emotions, Real Happiness Is Hard To Find.

I Am The Source Of My Own Suffering, Because Of The Habits Of My Mind.

Therefore We Have To Make Effort Through Well Through Every Corner, Media People, Education Sort Of Institution, And Family, Parents, Everywhere. It Is Our Common Goal, Common Interest Promote More Compassion Toward The World.

We Are All Basically The Same Human Beings, Who Seek Happiness And Try To Avoid Suffering. Everybody Is My Peer Group. Your Feeling "i Am Of No Value" Is Wrong. Absolutely Wrong.

If You Want To Be Wisely Selfish, Care For Others

The Greatest Antidote To Insecurity & Sense Of Fear Is Compassion. It Brings One Back To The Basis Of One's Inner Strength.

I Try To Treat Whoever I Meet As An Old Friend. This Gives Me A Genuine Feeling Of Happiness. It Is The Practice Of Compassion.

Spiritual Practice . . . Involves, On The One Hand, Acting Out Of Concern For Others' Well-being. On The Other, It Entails Transforming Ourselves So That We Become More Readily Disposed To Do So.

The Only Clear Thing Is That We Humans Are The Only Species With The Power To Destroy The Earth As We Know It. The Birds Have No Such Power, Nor Do The Insects, Nor Does Any Mammal. Yet If We Have The Capacity To Destroy The Earth, So, Too, Do We Have The Capacity To Protect It.

Good Human Qualities-honesty, Sincerity, A Good Heart-cannot Be Bought With Money, Nor Can They Be Produced My Machines, But Only By The Mind Itself. We Can Call This The Inner Light, Or God's Blessing, Or Human Qualitity. This Is The Essence Of Mankind.

The Nature Of The Mind Is Such That If Certain Mental Qualities Are Developed On A Sound Basis, They Not Only Remain, But They Also Increase. In Fact, Once Properly Developed, The Mind's Good Qualities Eventually Increase Indefinitely. Therefore Spiritual Practice Brings Us Long-term Happiness And Inner Strength.

My Belief Is That The Various Religious Traditions Have Great Potential To Increase Compassion, The Sense Of Caring For One Another, And The Spirit Of Reconciliation. However, I Believe That A Human Being, Without Religious Faith, Can Be A Very Good Person - Sincere, A Good Heart, Having A Sense Of Concern For Others - Without Belief In A Particular Religious Faith.

I Am A Firm Believer In The Importance Of Democracy, Not Only As The Ultimate Goal, But Also As An Essential Part Of The Process.

Everybody Wants A Happy Life And A Peaceful Mind, But We Have To Produce Peace Of Mind Through Our Own Practice.

Every Single Being, Even Those Who Are Hostile To Us, Is Just As Afraid Of Suffering As We Are, And Seeks Happiness In The Same Way We Do. Every Person Has The Same Right As We Do To Be Happy And Not To Suffer. So Let's Take Care Of Others Wholeheartedly, Of Both Our Friends And Our Enemies. This Is The Basis For True Compassion.

In Order To Be Happy We Must First Possess Inner Contentment; And Inner Contentment Doesn't Come From Having All We Want; But Rather From Wanting And Appreciating Being Grateful For All We Have.

It Is Felt That A Disciplined Mind Leads To Happiness And An Undisciplined Mind Leads To Suffering, And In Fact It Is Said That Bringing About Discipline Within One's Mind Is The Essence Of The Buddha's Teaching.

For The Rest Of Your Life To Be As Meaningful As Possible, Engage In Spiritual Practice If You Can. It Is Nothing More Than Acting Out Of Concern For Others. If You Practice Sincerely And With Persistence, Little By Little, Step By Step You Will Gradually Reorder Your Habits And Attitudes So As To Think Less About Your Own Narrow Concerns And More About Others' - And Thereby Find Peace And Happiness Yourself.

His Holiness Pope John Paul Ii Was A Determined And Deeply Spiritual Minded Person For Whom I Had Great Respect And Admiration. His Experience In Poland, Then A Communist Country, And My Own Difficulties With Communists, Gave Us An Immediate Common Ground

The Enemy Is A Very Good Teacher.

Basically We Are All The Same Human Beings With The Same Potential To Be A Good Human Being Or A Bad Human Being. The Important Thing Is To Realize The Positive Side And Try To Increase That; Realize The Negative Side And Try To Reduce. That's The Way.

Anger, Jealousy, Impatience, And Hatred Are The Real Troublemakers, With Them Problems Cannot Be Solved.

We All Have The Potential To Be Better Than We Are.

Artists Have The Responsibility To Serve Humanity Give People Hope.

The More You Nurture A Feeling Of Loving Kindness, The Happier And Calmer You Will Be.

Peace Is Not Just The Mere Absence Of Violence Or Disturbance. It's When There Is A Possibility Of Conflict, But You Deliberately Avoid Violence And Adopt Methods To Solve The Problem Through Peaceful Means. That Is Real Peace.

Better Grounded Emotionally Through Patience, We Become Stronger Mentally And Spiritually, And Tend To Be Healthier Physically.

Destructive Thoughts And Emotions Undermine The Very Causes Of Peace And Happiness. If You Think Clearly About It, It Makes No Sense To Think You’re Seeking Happiness, If You Do Nothing To Restrain Angry, Spiteful, And Malicious Thoughts And Emotions.

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.

Real Love Is Not Based On Attachment, But On Altruism. In This Case, Your Compassion Will Remain As A Humane Response To Suffering As Long As Beings Continue To Suffer.

Buddhahood Is A State Free Of All Obstructions To Knowledge And Disturbing Emotions. It Is The State In Which The Mind Is Fully Evolved.

[animals] Appreciate Others' Affection, They Also Have The Sort Of Ability To Show Their Own Affection. And Then As Soon As We're Born, Child, No Religious Faith.

We Can Wake Ourselves Up, Discover In Ourselves An Energy That Was Hidden There, And Act With More Clarity, More Force.

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.

Every Noble Work Is Bound To Face Problems And Obstacles. It Is Important To Check Your Goal And Motivation Thoroughly. One Should Be Very Truthful, Honest, And Reasonable. One's Actions Should Be Good For Others, And For Oneself As Well. Once A Positive Goal Is Chosen, You Should Decide To Pursue It All The Way To The End. Even If It Is Not Realized, At Least There Will Be No Regret.

All Living Beings Have Experience Of Pleasure And Pain, And We Are Among Them. What Makes Human Beings Different Is That We Have A Powerful Intelligence And A Much Greater Ability To Achieve Happiness And Avoid Suffering. Real Happiness And Friendship Come Not From Money Or Even Knowledge, But From Warm-heartednes S. Once We Recognize This We Will Be More Inclined To Cultivate It.

With A Basic Understanding Of All Humans As Brothers And Sisters, We Can Appreciate The Usefulness Of Different Systems And Ideologies That Can Accommodate Different Individuals And Groups With Different Cultural Heritages, Having Different Dispositions And Tastes. Each Person Has The Right To Choose Whatever Is Most Suitable, On The Basis Of A Deep Understanding Of All Others As Brothers And Sisters.

Taking Care Of Our Planet Is Like Taking Care Of Our Houses. Since We Human Beings Come From Nature, There Is No Point In Our Going Against Nature, Which Is Why I Say The Environment Is Not A Matter Of Religion Or Ethics Or Morality. These Are Luxuries, Since We Can Survive Without Them. But We Will Not Survive If We Continue To Go Against Nature.

The Simple Recognition That Everyone Else Wants To Be Happy And Not To Suffer, Just As I Do, Serves As A Constant Reminder Against Selfishness And Partiality. It Reminds Us There Is Little To Be Gained From Being Kind And Generous While Hoping To Win Something In Return. Actions Motivated By A Desire To Earn A Good Name For Ourselves Are Still Selfish, Even If They Appear To Be Acts Of Kindness.

In My Childhood, And Particularly When I Take The Responsibility, I Already Have Sort Of Keen Desire, We Must Change Our System. Then As Soon As We Reach India, 1959, At Once We Start Working For Democratization. Now Here If Remain In A Political Sort Of Field, Supreme Leader, At The Same Time Religious Leader, That May Become Hindrance Of Proper Democracy.

Whether You Call It Buddhism Or Another Religion, Self-discipline, That's Important. Self-discipline With Awareness Of Consequences.

Self Confidence Plays An Important Part In Every Aspect Of Man's Life.

Self Confidence

Anger, Pride And Competence Are Our Real Enemies.

I Call Myself A Feminist. Isn't That What You Call Someone Who Fights For Women's Rights?

Any Issue, Including Political, Economic And Religious Activities Human Beings Pursue In This World, Should Be Fully Understood Before We Pass Our Judgement. Therefore, It Is Very Important To Know The Causes. Whatever The Issue, We Should Be Able To See The Complete Picture. This Will Enable Us To Comprehend The Whole Story.

Since Form Is Emptiness And Emptiness Is Form, Then Instead Of A Hand Grasping At Nothing, It Is Better To Grasp At Someone's Nose Because This Is Closer To Reality.

I Pray For All Of Us, Oppressor And Friend, That Together We 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 Ultimate Source Of A Happy Life Is Warm-heartedness. This Means Extending To Others The Kind Of Concern We Have For Ourselves. On A Simple Level We Find That If We Have A Compassionate Heart We Naturally Have More Friends. And Scientists Today Are Discovering That While Anger And Hatred Eat Into Our Immune System, Warm-heartedness And Compassion Are Good For Our Health.

Climate Change Has Been Immense Difficulties Of Pains Or Illness Or Hard Life On This Planet. So Through That Way, You Have Sense Of Concern Of The Well Being, Not Sky, Not Just The Environment Itself.

Each Of You Should Feel That You Have Great Potential And That, With Self-confidence And A Little More Effort, Change Really Is Possible If You Want It. If You Feel That Your Present Way Of Life Is Unpleasant Or Has Some Difficulties, Then Don't Look At These Negative Things. See The Positive Side, The Potential, And Make An Effort.

Self Confidence

A Learned Person Will Become Noble Only When He Or She Has Put Into Real Practice What Has Been Learned, Instead Of Mere Words.

Because The Existing Education System Is Oriented Towards Materialistic Goals We Need To Pay Special Attention To Inner Values Such As Tolerance, Forgiveness, Love And Compassion.

Nothing Comes Into Being Without A Cause And When All The Conditions Are Created, There Is Nothing That Can Prevent The Consequence.

There Is No Need To Mention The Great Difference Between The Amount Of Satisfaction There Is In Just Oneself Being Happy And The Amount Of Satisfaction There Is In An Infinite Number Of People Being Happy.

From The Viewpoint Of Absolute Truth, What We Feel And Experience In Our Ordinary Daily Life Is All Delusion. Of All The Various Delusions, The Sense Of Discrimination Between Oneself And Others Is The Worst Form, As It Creates Nothing But Unpleasantness For Both Sides. If We Can Realize And Meditate On Ultimate Truth, It Will Cleanse Our Impurities Of Mind And Thus Eradicate The Sense Of Discrimination. This Will Help To Create True Love For One Another. The Search For Ultimate Truth Is, Therefore, Vitally Important.

Today, The World Is So Small And So Interdependent That The Concept Of War Has Become Anachronistic, An Outmoded Approach. As A Rule, We Always Talk About Reform And Changes. Among The Old Traditions, There Are Many Aspects That Are Either Ill-suited To Our Present Reality Or Are Counterproductive Due To Their Shortsightedness. These, We Have Consigned To The Dustbin Of History. War Too Should Be Relegated To The Dustbin Of History.

The Truly Good Gaze Upon Everything With Love And Understanding.

If You Can, Help Others; If You Cannot Do That, At Least Do Not Harm Them.

I Learn As Much From A Turtle As From A Religious Text.

One Of The Basic Points Is Kindness. With Kindness, With Love And Compassion, With His Feeling That Is The Essence Of Brotherhood, Sisterhood, One Will Have Inner Peace. This Compassionate Feeling Is The Basis Of Inner Peace.

I Am A Steadfast Follower Of The Doctrine Of Non-violence Which Was First Preached By Lord Buddha, Whose Divine Wisdom Is Absolute.

Human Potential Is The Same For All. Your Feeling, 'i Am Of No Value', Is Wrong. Absolutely Wrong. You Are Deceiving Yourself. We All Have The Power Of Thought — So What Are You Lacking? If You Have Will-power , Then You Can Do Anything. It Is Usually Said That You Are Your Own Master.

Believe In Yourself

Ultimately, The Human Being Is In The Mercy Of Nature.

The Colors Of Light Are Infinite Through Refraction, Yet They All Come From The Same Source. Thus I Cannot Detach Myself From The Wickedest Soul, Nor Fail To Identify With The Most Virtuous.

When We Talk About Global Crisis, Or A Crisis Of Humanity, We Cannot Blame A Few Politicians, A Few Fanatics, Or A Few Troublemakers. The Whole Of Humanity Has A Responsibility Because It Is Our Business, Human Business. I Call This A Sense Of Universal Responsibility. That Is A Crucial Point.

In The Final Analysis, The Hope Of Every Person Is Simply Peace Of Mind.

There Needs To Be Understanding That Anger Never Helps To Solve A Problem. It Destroys Our Peace Of Mind And Blinds Our Ability To Think Clearly. Anger And Attachment Are Emotions That Distort Our View Of Reality.

A Calm Mind Helps Our Human Intelligence To Assess The Situation Realistically.

Peace Can Only Last Where Human Rights Are Respected, Where The People Are Fed, And Where Individuals And Nations Are Free. True Peace With Oneself And With The World Around Us Can Only Be Achieved Through The Development Of Mental Peace.

Love And Compassion Are The Pillars Of World Peace.

One Who Is Caught In Thought Loses One's Original Nature. All He Knows Are Words And Descriptions. When He Sees The Actual Thing, He Fails To Perceive It.

We Must Each Lead A Way Of Life With Self-awareness And Compassion, To Do As Much As We Can. Then, Whatever Happens We Will Have No Regrets.

We Need Material Development, But We Need To Understand That By Itself It Doesn't Bring Peace Of Mind.

We Need To Make Material Progress, But We Need Inner Development Too ... Remember That The Real Development We Seek Is Not In The Buildings But In Our Hearts And Minds.

On A Certain Day, Month And Year One Should Observe The Ceremony Of Tree-planting. Thus, One Fulfils One's Responsibilities, Serves One's Fellow-beings Which Not Only Brings Happiness But Benefits All.

It’s In Our Interest To Take Care Of Others. Self-centrednes S Is Opposed To Basic Human Nature. In Our Own Interest As Human Beings We Need To Pay Attention To Our Inner Values. Sometimes People Think Compassion Is Only Of Help To Others, While We Get No Benefit. This Is A Mistake. When You Concern Yourself With Others, You Naturally Develop A Sense Of Self-confidence . To Help Others Takes Courage And Inner Strength.

If Your Heart Has Peace, Nothing Can Disturb You.

Once A Year Go Someplace You've Never Been.

The Key To Human Happiness Lies Within Our Own State Of Mind, And So Too Do The Primary Obstacles To That Happiness.

My Hope And Wish Is That One Day, Formal Education Will Pay Attention To What I Call 'education Of The Heart'.

When Seen From Outer Space, Our Beautiful Blue Planet Has No National Boundaries.

Learning To Forgive Is Much More Useful Than Merely Picking Up A Stone And Throwing It At The Object Of One's Anger, The More So When The Provocation Is Extreme. For It Is Under The Greatest Adversity That There Exists The Greatest Potential For Doing Good, Both For Oneself And Others.

Lack Of Understanding Of The True Nature Of Happiness, It Seems To Me, Is The Principal Reason Why People Inflict Sufferings On Others. They Think Either That The Other's Pain May Somehow Be A Cause Of Happiness For Themselves Or That Their Own Happiness Is More Important, Regardless Of What Pain It May Cause. But This Is Shortsighted. No One Truly Benefits From Causing Harm To Another Sentient Being. . . . . In The Long Run Causing Others Misery And Infringing Their Rights To Peace And Happiness Result In Anxiety, Fear, And Suspicion Within Oneself.

Try To Remain Truthful. The Power Of Truth Never Declines. Force And Violence May Be Effective In The Short Term, But In The Long Run It's Truth That Prevails.

It Is Worth Remembering That The Time Of Greatest Gain In Terms Of Wisdom And Inner Strength Is Often That Of Greatest Difficulty.

The Mind Is Key. If Anything Should Be Considered A God, So To Speak, It Is The Mind, Not Money. A Healthy Positive Mind Is The Utmost Priority. But If We Were To Reverse The Order Of These Priorities, What Would Happen? I Find It Hard To Imagine How A Person With Great Wealth, Bad Health, No Friends, And No Peace Of Mind Could Feel Even Slightly Happy.

It Is Vital That When Educating Our Children's Brains That We Do Not Neglect To Educate Their Hearts.

When You Think Everything Is Someone Else's Fault, You Will Suffer A Lot.

I Believe All Religions Pursue The Same Goals, That Of Cultivating Human Goodness And Bringing Happiness To All Human Beings. Though The Means Might Appear Different The Ends Are The Same.

We Must Openly Accept All Ideologies And Systems As A Means Of Solving Humanity's Problems. One Country, One Nation, One Ideology, One System Is Not Sufficient.

In Order To Become Prosperous, A Person Must Initially Work Very Hard, So He Or She Has To Sacrifice A Lot Of Leisure Time.

Because Of Lack Of Moral Principle, Human Life Becomes Worthless. Moral Principle, Truthfulness, Is A Key Factor. If We Lose That, Then There Is No Future.

I Have Never Been Any Place Where I Was Not First Invited. And Upon Invitation, If I Feel That There Is Potential For Making Some Contribution To Humanity, I Will Comply In Spite Of Being Tired.

No Single Tibetan Dreaming Return Of Previous Sort Of Backwardness, Therefore As Far As Economy Development Is Concerned, Tibet Remain Within The People's Republic Of China, We Will Get Greater Benefit.

I Find That Because Of Modern Technological Evolution And Our Global Economy, And As A Result Of The Great Increase In Population, Our World Has Greatly Changed: It Has Become Much Smaller. However, Our Perceptions Have Not Evolved At The Same Pace; We Continue To Cling To Old National Demarcations And The Old Feelings Of 'us' And 'them'.

Don't Use Buddhism To Become A Buddhist. Use Buddhism To Become Better At Whatever Else In Your Life You Are Doing Already.

When Young We Have A Vivid Sense Of Basic Values Like Trust And Warm-heartedness, Which We Tend To Neglect In Today's Competitive World As We Grow Up, Yet From Birth We All Have A Need For Affection. The Emotions We Experience Today Have Not Changed Much Over The Last Few Thousand Years, But The Interest Increasing Numbers Of People Are Showing In Their Inner World And How Their Emotions Work Is A Sign Of Maturity.

I Do Not Want To Carry Any Public Position.

I Have Observed That Religious Practice Is Not A Precondition Either Of Ethical Conduct Or Of Happiness Itself. I Have Also Suggested That, Whether A Person Practices Religion Or Not, The Spiritual Qualities Of Love And Compassion, Patience, Tolerance, Forgiveness, Humility And So On Are Indispensable.

Religion Is Important For Humanity, But It Should Evolve With Humanity. The First Priority Is To Establish And Develop The Principle Of Pluralism In All Religious Traditions. If We, The Religious Leaders, Cultivate A Sincere Pluralistic Attitude, Then Everything Will Be More Simple. It Is Good That Most Religious Leaders Are At Least Beginning To Recognize Other Traditions, Even Though They May Not Approve Of Them. The Next Step Is To Accept That The Idea Of Propagating Religion Is Outdated. It No Longer Suits The Times.

When You Talk You Are Only Repeating Something You Already Know. But, If You Listen You May Learn Something New.

Human Beings By Nature Want Happiness And Do Not Want Suffering. With That Feeling Everyone Tries To Achieve Happiness And Tries To Get Rid Of Suffering, And Everyone Has The Basic Right To Do This. In This Way, All Here Are The Same, Whether Rich Or Poor, Educated Or Uneducated, Easterner Or Westerner, Believer Or Non-believer, And Within Believers Whether Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Muslim, And So On. Basically, From The Viewpoint Of Real Human Value We Are All The Same.

My Desire To Devolve Authority Has Nothing To Do With A Wish To Shirk Responsibility.

What We Do And Think In Our Own Lives, Then, Becomes Of Extreme Importance As It Effects Everything We're Connected To.

Compassion Is Not Religious Business, It Is Human Business, It Is Not Luxury, It Is Essential For Our Own Peace And Mental Stability, It Is Essential For Human Survival.

I Don't Know Whether The Universe, With Its Countless Galaxies, Stars And Planets, Has A Deeper Meaning Or Not, But At The Very Least, It Is Clear That We Humans Who Live On This Earth Face The Task Of Making A Happy Life For Ourselves. Therefore, It Is Important To Discover What Will Bring About The Greatest Degree Of Happiness.

True Compassion Is Universal In Scope. It Is Accompanied By A Feeling Of Responsibility.

Brute Force, No Matter How Strongly Applied, Can Never Subdue The Basic Human Desire For Freedom.

As Human Beings We Are All The Same. We Have This Marvelous Intelligence, Which Sometimes Creates Problems For Us, But When Influenced By Warm-heartedness Can Be Very Constructive. In This Context We Need To Appreciate The Value Of Having Moral Principles.

See The Positive Side, The Potential, And Make An Effort.

To Develop Genuine Devotion, You Must Know The Meaning Of Teachings. The Main Emphasis In Buddhism Is To Transform The Mind, And This Transformation Depends Upon Meditation. In Order To Meditate Correctly, You Must Have Knowledge.

If You Wish To Experience Peace, Provide Peace For Another. If You Wish To Know That You Are Safe, Cause Another To Know That They Are Safe. If You Wish To Better Understand Seemingly Incomprehensible Things, Help Another To Better Understand. If You Wish To Heal Your Own Sadness Or Anger, Seek To Heal The Sadness Or Anger Of Another.

...it Becomes Clear That, Given Our Diversity, No Single Religion Satisfies All Humanity. ... And Since The Majority Does Not Practice Religion, I Am Concerned To Try To Find A Way To Serve All Humanity Without Appealing To Religious Faith.

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.

Difficult Situations

Anger Is The Real Destroyer Of Our Good Human Qualities; An Enemy With A Weapon Cannot Destroy These Qualities, But Anger Can. Anger Is Our Real Enemy.

If Someone Has A Gun And Is Trying To Kill You, It Would Be Reasonable To Shoot Back With Your Own Gun.

Infinite Altruism Is The Basis Of Peace And Happiness. If You Want Altruism, You Must Control Hate And You Must Practice Patience. The Main Teachers Of Patience Are Our Enemies.

While It Is All Very Well To Distinguish Happiness That Is Transient From That Which Is Lasting, Between Ephemeral And Genuine Happiness, The Only Happiness It Is Meaningful To Speak Of When A Person Is Dying From Thirst Is Access To Water.

Compassion Is Something Really Worthwhile. It Is Not Just A Religious Or Spiritual Subject, Not A Matter Of Ideology. It Is Not A Luxury, It Is A Necessity.

When The Days Become Longer And There Is More Sunshine, The Grass Becomes Fresh And, Consequently, We Feel Very Happy. On The Other Hand, In Autumn, One Leaf Falls Down And Another Leaf Falls Down. The Beautiful Plants Become As If Dead And We Do Not Feel Very Happy. Why? I Think It Is Because Deep Down Our Human Nature Likes Construction, And Does Not Like Destruction. Naturally, Every Action Which Is Destructive Is Against Human Nature. Constructiveness Is The Human Way. Therefore, I Think That In Terms Of Basic Human Feeling, Violence Is Not Good. Non-violence Is The Only Way.

If One's Cause Is Supported By Sound Reasoning, There Is No Point In Using Violence. It Is Those Who Have No Motive Other Than Selfish Desire And Who Cannot Achieve Their Goal Through Logical Reasoning Who Rely On Force.

Logical Reasoning

Sleep Is The Best Meditation.

If There Is No Solution To The Problem Then Don't Waste Time Worrying About It. If There Is A Solution To The Problem Then Don't Waste Time Worrying About It.

The Antidote To Hatred In The Heart, The Source Of Violence, Is Tolerance. Tolerance Is An Important Virtue Of Bodhisattvas [enlightened Heroes And Heroines] - It Enables You To Refrain From Reacting Angrily To The Harm Inflicted On You By Others. You Could Call This Practice "inner Disarmament," In That A Well-developed Tolerance Makes You Free From The Compulsion To Counterattack. For The Same Reason, We Also Call Tolerance The "best Armor," Since It Protects You From Being Conquered By Hatred Itself.

The Great Benefit Of Science Is That It Can Contribute Tremendously To The Alleviation Of Suffering At The Physical Level, But It Is Only Through The Cultivation Of The Qualities Of The Human Heart And The Transformation Of Our Attitudes That We Can Begin To Address And Overcome Our Mental Suffering...

Trending Author

Henepola Gunaratana

Category