The Dalai Lama, a spiritual leader and advocate for peace, embodies compassion, wisdom, and humility. His teachings inspire kindness, mindfulness, and the pursuit of inner happiness. Through his unwavering commitment to nonviolence and interfaith dialogue, he spreads a message of harmony, understanding, and the importance of cultivating a compassionate heart.
Love and compassion are necessities, not luxuries. Without them humanity cannot survive.
I always tell people that religious institutions and political institutions should be separate. So while I’m telling people this, I myself continue with them combined. Hypocrisy!
The Chinese government wants me to say that for many centuries Tibet has been part of China. Even if I make that statement, many people would just laugh. And my statement will not change past history. History is history.
When you are discontent, you always want more, more, more. Your desire can never be satisfied. But when you practice contentment, you can say to yourself, ‘Oh yes – I already have everything that I really need.’
There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness.
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
The purpose of our lives is to be happy.
It is very important to generate a good attitude, a good heart, as much as possible. From this, happiness in both the short term and the long term for both yourself and others will come.
I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.
All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness the important thing is they should be part of our daily lives.
Sleep is the best meditation.
My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.
Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something, and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent.
We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.
Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.
We can live without religion and meditation, but we cannot survive without human affection.
Many Tibetans sacrifice their lives.
It is necessary to help others, not only in our prayers, but in our daily lives. If we find we cannot help others, the least we can do is to desist from harming them.
When you practice gratefulness, there is a sense of respect toward others.
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.
The best way to resolve any problem in the human world is for all sides to sit down and talk.
Whether one believes in a religion or not, and whether one believes in rebirth or not, there isn’t anyone who doesn’t appreciate kindness and compassion.
If you have a particular faith or religion, that is good. But you can survive without it.
Generally speaking, if a human being never shows anger, then I think something’s wrong. He’s not right in the brain.
With realization of one’s own potential and self-confidence in one’s ability, one can build a better world.
Look at situations from all angles, and you will become more open.
World belongs to humanity, not this leader, that leader or that king or prince or religious leader. World belongs to humanity.
The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness.
Out of 6 billion humans, the troublemakers are just a handful.
Home is where you feel at home and are treated well.
The ultimate authority must always rest with the individual’s own reason and critical analysis.
Whether you call it Buddhism or another religion, self-discipline, that’s important. Self-discipline with awareness of consequences.
My faith helps me overcome such negative emotions and find my equilibrium.
I think governments can’t do much.
We all have to live together, so we might as well live together happily.
The important thing is that men should have a purpose in life. It should be something useful, something good.
Appearance is something absolute, but reality is not that way – everything is interdependent, not absolute.
Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.
Happiness is not something ready made. It comes from your own actions.
Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can’t help them, at least don’t hurt them.
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.
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.
Even when we have physical hardships, we can be very happy.
Disagreement is something normal.
Computers make me totally blank out.
A lack of transparency results in distrust and a deep sense of insecurity.
I think really, China, Chinese, I think they really have a long history of civilization, rich culture.
As long as I am alive, I am fully committed to amity between Tibetans and Chinese. Otherwise there’s no use.
I never dreamt, in my dream, I’m Dalai Lama.
Chinese people themselves, they really want change.
China has to go along with world trends. That’s democracy, liberty, individual freedom. China sooner or later has to go that way. It cannot go backward.
One thing I want to make clear, as far as my own rebirth is concerned, the final authority is myself and no one else, and obviously not China’s Communists.
I am just one human being.
I always believe the rule by king or official leader is outdated. Now we must catch up with the modern world.
Today different ethnic groups and different nations come together due to common sense.
It is difficult to violently suppress people in the long run, as the example of the Soviet Union and the Eastern European countries has shown.
Number of people have said to me, after hearing your thinking, their mind becomes much more happier.
Some mischievous people always there. Last several thousand years, always there. In future, also.
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.
I have no trouble sleeping.
My desire to devolve authority has nothing to do with a wish to shirk responsibility.
There are techniques of Buddhism, such as meditation, that anyone can adopt.
Conversion is not my intention. Changing religion is not easy. You may develop some kind of confusion or difficulties.
I became the Dalai Lama not on a volunteer basis.
I describe myself as a simple Buddhist monk. No more, no less.
I consider myself as a free spokesman for the people.
I want to be just a pure spiritual leader.
I think there’s every reason this 21st century will be much happier.
In the practice of tolerance, one’s enemy is the best teacher.
If you can, help others; if you cannot do that, at least do not harm them.
In order to carry a positive action we must develop here a positive vision.
I have always had this view about the modern education system: we pay attention to brain development, but the development of warmheartedness we take for granted.
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.
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.
Wherever I go meeting the public… spreading a message of human values, spreading a message of harmony, is the most important thing.
If some people have the belief or view that the Dalai Lama has some miracle power, that’s totally nonsense.
I am confident I will set foot again in Tibet in my lifetime.
Hope arouses, as nothing else can arouse, a passion for the possible.
Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.
Trust yourself. You know more than you think you do.
Every new day is another chance to change your life.
We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.
The real measure of your wealth is how much youd be worth if you lost all your money.
Something opens our wings. Something makes boredom and hurt disappear. Someone fills the cup in front of us: We taste only sacredness.
You have to think anyway, so why not think big?
Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.
Every man is a volume if you know how to read him.
Neither genius, fame, nor love show the greatness of the soul. Only kindness can do that.
All the world is a stage, And all the men and women merely players.They have their exits and entrances; Each man in his time plays many parts.
Ability will never catch up with the demand for it.
When performance exceeds ambition, the overlap is called success.
If you wish to be a writer, write.
Good luck is another name for tenacity of purpose.
You can never cross the ocean unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.
Every new day is another chance to change your life.
All difficult things have their origin in that which is easy, and great things in that which is small.
If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your path.
What you give is what you get.
There is nothing so useless as doing efficiently that which should not be done at all.
Great indeed is the sublimity of the Creative, to which all beings owe their beginning and which permeates all heaven.
We are not animals. We are not a product of what has happened to us in our past. We have the power of choice.
Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.
Why worry about tomorrow, when today is all we have?
The deepest craving of human nature is the need to be appreciated.
To avoid criticism, do nothing, say nothing, be nothing.
A hero is no braver than an ordinary man, but he is braver five minutes longer.
Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.
Notice that the stiffest tree is most easily cracked, while the bamboo or willow survives by bending with the wind.
Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be.
Change in all things is sweet.
You must welcome change as the rule but not as your ruler.
Every problem has a gift for you in its hands.
Yesterdays home runs don’t win today’s games.
We choose our destiny in the way we treat others.
Focusing your life solely on making a buck shows a poverty of ambition. It asks too little of yourself. And it will leave you unfulfilled.
If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape one hundred days of sorrow.
When you lose, don’t lose the lesson.
A really great talent finds its happiness in execution.
He who lives in harmony with himself lives in harmony with the universe.
Fear is a darkroom where negatives develop.
Kindness is the greatest wisdom.
Your attitude, not your aptitude, will determine your altitude.
From error to error one discovers the entire truth.
There is no way to prosperity, prosperity is the way.
Keep silence for the most part, and speak only when you must, and then briefly.
Efficiency is doing things right; effectiveness is doing the right things.
Imagination is the highest kite one can fly.
We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.
It’s not what happens to you, but how you react to it that matters.
Many people think of prosperity that concerns money only to forget that true prosperity is of the mind.
There is nothing in a caterpillar that tells you it’s going to be a butterfly.
We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.
Let us revere, let us worship, but erect and open-eyed, the highest, not the lowest; the future, not the past!
So long as a person is capable of self-renewal they are a living being.
Success is determined by those whom prove the impossible, possible.
There are two primary choices in life: to accept conditions as they exist, or accept the responsibility for changing them.
Strong beliefs win strong men, and then make them stronger.
If I know what love is, it is because of you.
Good instincts usually tell you what to do long before your head has figured it out.
There are two ways to slide easily through life: to believe everything or to doubt everything; both ways save us from thinking.
The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.
Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.
In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.
Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.
If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your path.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
We must learn our limits. We are all something, but none of us are everything.
Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.
If you’ll not settle for anything less than your best, you will be amazed at what you can accomplish in your lives.
Progress always involves risks. You can’t steal second base and keep your foot on first.
The aim of life is self-development. To realize ones nature perfectly that is what each of us is here for.
To accomplish great things, we must dream as well as act.
We choose our destiny in the way we treat others.
Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live.
Begin at once to live and count each separate day as a separate life.
To keep the body in good health is a duty… otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.
Successful people ask better questions, and as a result, they get better answers.
When you realize how perfect everything is you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky.
Take rest; a field that has rested gives a bountiful crop.
What the caterpillar calls the end of the world, the master calls a butterfly.
Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves.
Watch the little things; a small leak will sink a great ship.
The heart has eyes which the brain knows nothing of.
Our passion is our strength.
A wise man can learn more from a foolish question than a fool can learn from a wise answer.
The truest greatness lies in being kind, the truest wisdom in a happy mind.
To study and not think is a waste. To think and not study is dangerous.
To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it.
Perseverance is a great element of success. If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody.
Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.
Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action.
Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the one who gets burned.
Keep yourself to the sunshine and you cannot see the shadow.
Be the change that you want to see in the world.
In order to win, you must expect to win.
The path to success is to take massive, determined action.
The only real valuable thing is intuition.
Time you enjoy wasting, was not wasted.