The Dalai Lama Quotes

The very purpose of meditation is to discipline the mind and reduce afflictive emotions.

A mind that is characterized by unrest will not be tranquil even in the presence of great calm.

On every level of human life, compassion is the key thing.

Spend some amount of time alone everyday.

Unfortunate events though potentially a source of anger and despair have equal potential to be a source of spiritual growth. Whether or not this is the outcome depends on your response.

Reality is devoid of any intrinsic identity that can be captured by any one single proposition - that is what Buddha meant by "voidness."

I'm nothing special, just an ordinary human being. That's why I always describe myself as a simple Buddhist monk.

Happiness doesn't always come from a pursuit. Sometimes it comes when we least expect it.

The enemy is the necessary condition for practicing patience.

The basic Buddhist stand on the question of equality between the genders is age-old. At the highest tantric levels, at the highest esoteric level, you must respect women: every woman.

Death means change our clothes. Clothes become old, then time to come change. So this body become old, and then time come, take young body.

Even when a person has all of life's comforts - good food, good shelter, a companion - he or she can still become unhappy when encountering a tragic situation.

Logically, harmony must come from the heart... Harmony very much based on trust. As soon as use force, creates fear. Fear and trust cannot go together.

Even an animal, if you show genuine affection, gradually trust develops... If you always showing bad face and beating, how can you develop friendship?

I think governments can't do much.

Moving towards better rather than moving away from bad is an attitude of embracing life rather than rejecting it.

A genuine transformation that results from sustained concerted effort is long lasting because it has a firm foundation.

Spend 5 minutes breathing in, cherishing yourself; and, breathing out cherishing others. If you think about people you have difficulty cherishing, extend your cherishing to them anyway.

When there is too much stress or worry, look within.

There must be a way of promoting human values without involving religion, based on common sense, experience and recent scientific findings.

Don't become a Buddhist. The world doesn't need Buddhist. Do practice Compassion. The world needs more compassion.

Distrust brings frustration and fear. So therefore, the lonely feeling automatically come. So, lonely feeling is not creation of environment, but creation of your own mental attitude.

The three types of misery are the misery of suffering, the misery of change, and pervasive misery.

The nature of our motivation determines the character of our work.

The essence of all religions is love, compassion, and tolerance. Kindness is my true religion. The clear proof of a person's love of God is if that person genuinely shows love to fellow human beings.

A calm mind helps our human intelligence to assess the situation realistically.

A thousand candles can be lit from one candle, however the life of the original candle is not shortened in the least.

If you concern yourself mainly with others, the broader your thinking becomes, and life’s inevitable difficulties disturb you less.

To reduce destructive emotions we need to strengthen constructive emotions. For example, to counter anger we cultivate love and compassion.

Love and compassion ... are the ultimate source of human happiness, and the need for them lies at the very core of our being.

True compassion is universal in scope. It is accompanied by a feeling of responsibility.

Treat each person as you would an old friend.

Appreciate how rare and full of potential your situation is in this world, then take joy in it, and use it to your best advantage.

If I say, "I am a monk." or "I am a Buddhist," these are, in comparison to my nature as a human being, temporary. To be human is basic.

We have to have some form of politics. Politics is a form of resolving conflicts. Politics which comes from sincere motivation is constructive.

An enemy is indeed a precious teacher.

Compassion, along with love, is the face of altruism.

A generous heart and wholesome actions lead to greater peace.

In the modern world, the interests of a particular community can no longer be considered to lie within the confines of its own boundaries.

By being inattentive to the needs of others, inevitably we end up harming them.

Where there is a mind, there are feelings such as pain, pleasure, and joy. No sentient being wants pain: all wants happiness instead.

I hold the view that death is rather like changing one's clothes when they are torn and old. It is not an end in itself. Yet death is unpredictable-you do not know when and howT it will take place.

By far the single greatest danger facing humankind - in fact, all living beings on our planet - is the threat of nuclear destruction.

I became the Dalai Lama not on a volunteer basis.

Certain beliefs must accompany every action: One should act without selfishness, cultivate compassion for all living things, and develop respect for others.

Religion does not mean just precepts, a temple, monastery, or other external signs, for these as well as hearing and thinking are subsidiary factors in taming the mind.

We need to teach people that the environment has a direct bearing on our own benefit.

If you shift your focus from oneself to others, and think more about others' well-being and welfare, it has an immediate liberating effect.

If we had to accept the idea of an independent creator, the explanations given in [several Buddhist texts] which completely refutes the existence per se of all phenomena, would be negated.

We are the creators of our own happiness and suffering, for everything originates in the mind.