Dalai Lama famous quotes

If every 8 year old in the world is taught meditation, we will eliminate violence from the world within one generation
-- Dalai Lama

#Clever #Years #Meditation

If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Happiness #Happy

Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Motivational

"The true essence of humankind is kindness. There are other qualities which come from education or knowledge, but it is essential, if one wishes to be a genuine human being and impart satisfying meaning to one's existence, to have a good heart."
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Kindness #Heart

My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Success #God

We often add to our pain and suffering by being overly sensitive, over-reacting to minor things, and sometimes taking things too personally.
-- Dalai Lama

#Pain #Positivity #Suffering

Today, more than ever before, life must be characterized by a sense of Universal responsibility, not only nation to nation and human to human, but also human to other forms of life.
-- Dalai Lama

#Peace #Nature #Inspiration

Happiness arises as a result of different causes and conditions. If you harm someone out of anger, you may feel some superficial satisfaction, but deep down you know it was wrong. Your confidence will be undermined. However, if you have an altruistic attitude, you’ll feel comfortable and confident in the presence of others.
-- Dalai Lama

#Attitude #Different #May

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Uplifting #Kindness

Whether one is rich or poor, educated or illiterate, religious or nonbelieving, man or woman, black, white, or brown, we are all the same. Physically, emotionally, and mentally, we are all equal. We all share basic needs for food, shelter, safety, and love. We all aspire to happiness and we all shun suffering. Each of us has hopes, worries, fears, and dreams. Each of us wants the best for our family and loved ones. We all experience pain when we suffer loss and joy when we achieve what we seek. On this fundamental level, religion, ethnicity, culture, and language make no difference.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Dream #Religious

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Spiritual #Teacher

If you don't love yourself, you cannot love others. You will not be able to love others. If you have no compassion for yourself then you are not able of developing compassion for others.
-- Dalai Lama

#Love Yourself #Yoga #Compassion

We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection.
-- Dalai Lama

#Love #Inspirational #Life

Man surprised me most about humanity.Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money. Then he sacrifices money to recuperate his health.And then he is so anxious about the future that he does not enjoy the present; the result being that he does not live in the present or the future; he lives as if he is never going to die, and then dies having never really lived.
-- Dalai Lama

#Spiritual #Hard Work #Sacrifice

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Love #Spiritual #Peace

Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.
-- Dalai Lama

#Peace #Yoga #Inspiration

The whole purpose of religion is to facilitate love and compassion, patience, tolerance, humility, and forgiveness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Humility #Compassion

If you wish to experience peace, provide peace for another.
-- Dalai Lama

#Peace #Wish

If there is love, there is hope that one may have real families, real brotherhood, real equanimity, real peace. If the love within your mind is lost and you see other beings as enemies, then no matter how much knowledge or education or material comfort you have, only suffering and confusion will ensue
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Real #Confusion

When you think everything is someone else's fault, you will suffer a lot. When you realize that everything springs only from yourself, you will learn both peace and joy.
-- Dalai Lama

#Spring #Yoga #Thinking

Anger cannot be overcome by anger. If someone is angry with you, and you show anger in return, the result is a disaster. On the other hand, if you control your anger and show its opposite - love, compassion, tolerance and patience - not only will you remain peaceful, but the other person's anger will also diminish.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Hands #Opposites

The future will be in the hands of those of you who belong to the 21st century. You have the opportunity and responsibility to build a better humanity. This means developing warm-heartednes s in this very life, here and now. So, do whatever work you do, but ask yourselves now and then, 'How can I contribute to human beings being happier and more peaceful?'
-- Dalai Lama

#Mean #Responsibility #Opportunity

Women have the capacity to lead us to a more peaceful world with compassion, affection, and kindness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Kindness #Compassion #Peaceful

Harmony can not thrive in a climate of mistrust, cheating, bullying; mean-spirited competition.
-- Dalai Lama

#Motivational #Bullying #Cheating

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Motivational #Inspiring

Sleep is the best meditation.
-- Dalai Lama

#Yoga #Sleep #Insomnia

As you breathe in, cherish yourself. As you breathe out, cherish all Beings.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Cherish #Breathe

Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Motivational

In the practice of tolerance, one's enemy is the best teacher.
-- Dalai Lama

#Positive #Inspiring #Spiritual

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Dream #Spiritual

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Spiritual

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Love #Inspirational #Happiness

Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something, and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Buddhist #Sometimes

See the positive side, the potential, and make an effort.
-- Dalai Lama

#Effort #Sides

Today, as we wish each other a Happy New Year, let us determine to be more sincere, compassionate, warm-hearted human beings, trying to make our world a more equal place. That way we'll actually make it a happy year.
-- Dalai Lama

#New Year #Our World #Years

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Heart #Mean #Happy Life

We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.
-- Dalai Lama

#Motivational #Peace #Self Esteem

World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Spiritual #Peace

Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Motivational

The point of life is happiness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life Is

Open your arms to change but don't let go of your values.
-- Dalai Lama

#Moving On #Letting Go #Spiritual

The period of greatest gain in knowledge and experience is the most difficult period in one's life.
-- Dalai Lama

#Gains #Spirituality #Periods

Through violence, you may 'solve' one problem, but you sow the seeds for another.
-- Dalai Lama

#Buddhist #May #Violence

The reality today is that we are all interdependent and have to co-exist on this small planet. Therefore, the only sensible and intelligent way of resolving differences and clashes of interests, whether between individuals or nations, is through dialogue.
-- Dalai Lama

#Reality #Intelligent #Differences

Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Spiritual

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Real #Fall #Grieving

Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back and reasons to stay.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Travel

Hardship, in forcing us to exercise greater patience and forbearance in daily life, actually makes us stronger and more robust. From the daily experience of hardship comes a greater capacity to accept difficulties without losing our sense of inner calm. Of course, I do not advocate seeking out hardship as a way of life, but merely wish to suggest that, if you relate to it constructively, it can bring greater inner strength and fortitude.
-- Dalai Lama

#Exercise #Inner Strength #Wish

If you think you are too small to make a difference, try sleeping with a mosquito.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Funny #Inspiring

We have to think and see how we can fundamentally change our education system so that we can train people to develop warm-heartedness early on in order to create a healthier society. I don't mean we need to change the whole system, just improve it. We need to encourage an understanding that inner peace comes from relying on human values like, love, compassion, tolerance and honesty, and that peace in the world relies on individuals finding inner peace.
-- Dalai Lama

#Honesty #Mean #Thinking

Love is the absence of judgment.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Life #Motivational

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Worry #Needs

I believe all suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their happiness or satisfaction. Yet true happiness comes from a sense of inner peace and contentment, which in turn must be achieved through the cultivation of altruism, of love and compassion and elimination of ignorance, selfishness and greed.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Peace #Pain

I believe that at every level of society the key to a happier world is the growth of compassion. We do not need to become religious, nor do we need to believe in an ideology. All that is necessary is for each of us to develop our good human qualities.
-- Dalai Lama

#Religious #Believe #Compassion

It is the enemy who can truly teach us to practice the virtues of compassion and tolerance.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Practice #Tolerance

Consider that not only do negative thoughts and emotions destroy our experience of peace, they also undermine our health.
-- Dalai Lama

#Peace #Negative #Emotion

Compassion naturally creates a positive atmosphere, and as a result you feel peaceful and content.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Peaceful #Atmosphere

I always try to share with others the idea that in order to become compassionate it is not necessary to become religious.
-- Dalai Lama

#Religious #Compassion #Order

True compassion is not just an emotional response, but a firm commitment founded on reason. Therefore, a truly compassionate attitude toward others does not change, even if they behave negatively. Through universal altruism, you develop a feeling of responsibility for others: the wish to help them actively overcome their problems.
-- Dalai Lama

#Attitude #Commitment #Responsibility

Every religion emphasizes human improvement, love, respect for others, sharing other people's suffering. On these lines every religion had more or less the same viewpoint and the same goal.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #People #Goal

We can reject everything else: religion, ideology, all received wisdom. But we cannot escape the necessity of love and compassion. This, then, is my true religion, my simple faith. In this sense, there is no need for temple or church, for mosque or synagogue, no need for complicated philosophy, doctrine, or dogma. Our own heart, our own mind, is the temple. The doctrine is compassion. Love for others and respect for their rights and dignity, no matter who or what they are: ultimately these are all we need.
-- Dalai Lama

#Philosophy #Heart #Simple

My call for a spiritual revolution is not a call for a religious revolution. Nor is it a reference to a way of life that is somehow otherworldly, still less to something magical or mysterious. Rather it is a call for a radical reorientation away from our habitual preoccupation with self. It is a call to turn toward the wider community of beings with whom we are connected, and for conduct which recognizes others' interests alongside our own.
-- Dalai Lama

#Spiritual #Religious #Compassion

You are the people who are shaping a better world. One of the secrets of inner peace is the practice of compassion.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Practice #People

To conquer oneself is a greater victory than to conquer thousands in a battle.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Victory #Battle

Internal peace is an essential first step to achieving peace in the world. How do you cultivate it? It's very simple. In the first place by realizing clearly that all mankind is one, that human beings in every country are members of one and the same family.
-- Dalai Lama

#Country #Simple #Diversity

Everyday, 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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Gratitude #Thinking #Everyday

An affectionate disposition not only makes the mind more peaceful and calm, but it affects our body in a positive way too.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspiration #Peaceful #Mind

Human beings are of such nature that they should have not only material facilities but spiritual sustenance as well. Without spiritual sustenance, it is difficult to get and maintain peace of mind.
-- Dalai Lama

#Spiritual #Inspiration #Mind

I believe that the very purpose of life is to be happy. From the very core of our being, we desire contentment. In my own limited experience I have found that the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of well-being.
-- Dalai Lama

#Believe #Inspiration #Contentment

Love and kindness are the very basis of society. If we lose these feelings, society will face tremendous difficulties; the survival of humanity will be endangered.
-- Dalai Lama

#Kindness #Inspiration #Feelings

My message is the practice of compassion, love and kindness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Kindness #Inspiration #Compassion

The realization that we are all basically the same human beings who seek happiness and try to avoid suffering is very helpful in developing a sense of brotherhood and sisterhood; a warm feeling of love and compassion for others.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspiration #Sisterhood #Compassion

I am open to the guidance of synchronicity, and do not let expectations hinder my path.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspiration #Expectations #Path

We are all here on this planet, as it were, as tourists. None of us can live here forever. The longest we might live is a hundred years. So while we are here we should try to have a good heart and to make something positive and useful of our lives. Whether we live just a few years or a whole century, it would be truly regrettable and sad if we were to spend that time aggravating the problems that afflict other people, animals, and the environment. The most important things is to be a good human being.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life Changing #Heart #Animal

As a Buddhist, I view death as a normal process, a reality that I accept will occur as long as I remain in this earthly existence. Knowing that I cannot escape it, I see no point in worrying about it. I tend to think of death as being like changing your clothes when they are old and worn out, rather than as some final end. Yet death is unpredictable: We do not know when or how it will take place. So it is only sensible to take certain precautions before it actually happens.
-- Dalai Lama

#Death #Buddhist #Reality

We cannot hope to die peacefully if our lives have been full of violence, or if our minds have mostly been agitated by emotions like anger, attachment, or fear. So if we wish to die well, we must learn how to live well: Hoping for a peaceful death, we must cultivate peace in our mind, and in our way of life.
-- Dalai Lama

#Death #Attachment #Peaceful

We must conduct research and then accept the results. If they don't stand up to experimentation, Buddha`s own words must be rejected.
-- Dalai Lama

#Death #Dying #Research

My overriding belief is that it is always possible for criminals to improve and that by its very finality the death penalty contradicts this.
-- Dalai Lama

#Criminals #Belief #Death Penalty

The death penalty fulfills a preventive function, but it is also very clearly a form of revenge. It is an especially severe form of punishment because it is so final. The human life is ended and the executed person is deprived of the opportunity to change, to restore the harm done or compensate for it.
-- Dalai Lama

#Revenge #Opportunity #Punishment

What is the purpose of life? I believe that the purpose of life is to be happy.
-- Dalai Lama

#Believe #Happy Life #Purpose

Genuine happiness consists in those spiritual qualities of love, compassion, patience, tolerance and forgiveness and so on. For it is these which provide both for our happiness and others happiness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Happiness #Spiritual #Compassion

Since periods of great change, such as the present one, come so rarely in human history, it is up to each of us to make the best use of our time to help create a happier world.
-- Dalai Lama

#Life #Use #World

A sense of concern for others gives our lives meaning; it is the root of all human happiness
-- Dalai Lama

#Love #Family #Happiness

World peace begins with inner peace.
-- Dalai Lama

#Inspirational #Motivational #Inner Peace

My Brain and My Heart are my Temples. My true Religion is Kindness.
-- Dalai Lama

#Kindness #Heart #Brain

It is our enemies who provide us with the challenge we need to develop the qualities of tolerance, patience and compassion.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Challenges #Tolerance

Compassion can be put into practice if one recognizes the fact that every human being is a member of humanity and the human family regardless of differences in religion, culture, color and creed. Deep down there is no difference.
-- Dalai Lama

#Compassion #Color #Practice

Human beings will continue to deceive and overpower one another. Basically, everyone exists in the very nature of suffering, so to abuse or mistreat each other is futile. The foundation of all spiritual practice is love. That you practice this well is my only request.
-- Dalai Lama

#Spiritual #Practice #Suffering

Violence will only increase the cycle of violence.
-- Dalai Lama

#Justice #Violence #Increase

I appreciate any organization or individual people who sincerely make an effort to promote harmony between humanity, and particularly harmony between the various religions. I consider it very sacred work and very important work
-- Dalai Lama

#God #Organization #People

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.
-- Dalai Lama

#Motivation #Regret #Adversity

The real test of compassion is not what we say in abstract discussions but how we conduct ourselves in daily life.
-- Dalai Lama

#Real #Hero #Compassion

Real change in society must start from individual initiative.
-- Dalai Lama

#Real #Hero #Initiative

...there is an intense delight in abandoning faulty states of mind and in cultivating helpful ones in meditation.
-- Dalai Lama

#Meditation #Mind #Delight

Reason well from the beginning and then there will never be any need to look back with confusion and doubt.
-- Dalai Lama

#Philosophical #Confusion #Doubt

The past is past, and the future is yet to come. That means the future is in your hands - the future entirely depends on the present. That realization gives you a great responsibility.
-- Dalai Lama

#Philosophical #Mean #Responsibility

The essence of all religions is love, compassion and tolerance. Kindness is my true religion. No matter whether you are learned or not, whether you believe in the next life or not, whether you believe in God or Buddha or some other religion or not, in day-to-day life you must be a kind person.
-- Dalai Lama

#Spiritual #Kindness #Believe

We are born and reborn countless number of times, and it is possible that each being has been our parent at one time or another. Therefore, it is likely that all beings in this universe have familial connections.
-- Dalai Lama

#Numbers #Parent #Connections

I have been confronted with many difficulties throughout the course of my life, and my country is going through a critical period. But I laugh often, and my laughter is contagious. When people ask me how I find the strength to laugh now, I reply that I am a professional laugher.
-- Dalai Lama

#Country #Laughter #People

Without the human community one single human being cannot survive.
-- Dalai Lama

#Community #Survival #Humans