Quote collection
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"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."
"Life can be pleasant or miserable. To lead a fruitful life, and to make it positive, practice analytical meditation."
"Without freedom, creativity cannot flourish. The right to freedom is crucial to progress in any society; and the context is having a sense of global responsibility."
"Patience as we wait to take action is a kind of compassionate mind. Impatience on the other hand can be a source of failure."
"Ultimately, the reason why love and compassion bring the greatest happiness is simply that our nature cherishes them above all else. The need for love lies at the very foundation of human existence."
"We need to find secular ways to cultivate warm-heartedness. We need secular ways to educate ourselves about inner values. The source of a happy life is within us. Trouble makers in many parts of the world are often quite well educated, so it is not just education that we need. We need to pay attention to inner values."
"So long as we are under the control of disturbing emotions, real happiness is hard to find."
"For change to happen in any community, the initiative must come from the individual."
"Our every action has a universal dimension, a potential impact on others' happiness."
"Inner darkness, which we call ignorance, is the root of suffering. The more inner light that comes, the more darkness will diminish. This is the only way to achieve salvation or nirvana."
"There is a saying in Tibetan that "at the door of the miserable rich man sleeps the contented beggar". The point of this saying is not that poverty is a virtue, but that happiness does not come with wealth, but from setting limits to one's desires, and living within those limits with satisfaction."
"If you have a great deal of knowledge, but you're governed by negative emotions, then you tend to use your knowledge in negative ways. Therefore, while you are learning, don't forget the importance of warmheartedness."
"According to Buddhism, individuals are masters of their own destiny. And all living beings are believed to possess the nature of the Primordial Buddha Samantabhadra, the potential or seed of enlightenment, within them. So our future is in our own hands. What greater free will do we need?"
"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."
"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."
"The purpose of life is to increase the warm heart."
"Ethics: The indispensable interface between my desire to be happy and yours."
"When seen from outer space, our beautiful blue planet has no national boundaries."
"All beings come from a mother's womb. We should have a clear realization of the oneness of all humanity."
"In some places, there's the concept of one religion, one truth. In the Muslim world, there's the notion of Allah. The Western, multireligious modern society is some kind of a challenge to this. These, I feel, are the main causes [for terrorism], and, when combined with lots of anger and frustration, cause a huge amount of hate."