Dalai Lama Quotes

Our lives are in constant flux, which generates many predicaments. But when these are faced with a calm and clear mind supported by spiritual practice, they can all be successfully resolved. When our minds are clouded by hatred, selfishness, jealousy, and anger, we lose not only control but also our judgment. At those wild moments, anything can happen, including war. Although the practice of compassion and wisdom is useful to us all, it is especially valuable for those responsible for running national affairs, in whose hands lie the power and opportunity to create a framework for world peace.

~ Dalai Lama

Compassion can be roughly defined in terms of a state of mind that is nonviolent, non-harming, and nonaggressive. It is a mental attitude based on the wish for others to be free of their suffering and is associated with a sense of commitment, responsibility, and respect towards others.

~ Dalai Lama

There is no need for temples, no need forcomplicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophie is kindness.

~ Dalai Lama

Too much self-centered attitude, you see, brings, you see, isolation. Result: loneliness, fear, anger. The extreme self-centered attitude is the source of suffering.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

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. Thanks to the teachings of Buddha, I have been able to take this second way.

~ Dalai Lama

I find hope in the darkest of days, and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.

~ Dalai Lama

My main hope is eventually, in modern education field, introduce education about warm-heartedness, not based on religion, but based on common experience and a common sort of sense, and then scientific finding.

~ Dalai Lama

When you practice gratefulness, there is a sense of respect toward others.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

Sleep is the best meditation.

~ Dalai Lama

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

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

Computers make me totally blank out.

~ Dalai Lama

Calm mind brings inner strength and self-confidence, so that's very important for good health.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

More compassionate mind, more sense of concern for other's well-being, is source of happiness.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

There is no need for temples, no need for complicated philosophies. My brain and my heart are my temples; my philosophy is kindness.

~ Dalai Lama

If you have religious faith, very good, you can add on secular ethics, then religious belief, add on it, very good. But even those people who have no interest about religion, okay, it's not religion, but you can train through education.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

Whether you call it Buddhism or another religion, self-discipline, that's important. Self-discipline with awareness of consequences.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

If you have a particular faith or religion, that is good. But you can survive without it.

~ Dalai Lama

The best way to resolve any problem in the human world is for all sides to sit down and talk.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

My faith helps me overcome such negative emotions and find my equilibrium.

~ Dalai Lama

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

~ Dalai Lama

My aim is to create a happy society with genuine friendship. Friendship between Tibetan and Chinese peoples is very essential.

~ Dalai Lama

I am sometimes sad when I hear the personal stories of Tibetan refugees who have been tortured or beaten. Some irritation, some anger comes. But it never lasts long. I always try to think at a deeper level, to find ways to console.

~ Dalai Lama

I think technology really increased human ability. But technology cannot produce compassion.

~ Dalai Lama

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.

~ Dalai Lama

I think governments can't do much.

~ Dalai Lama

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.

~ Dalai Lama

Appearance is something absolute, but reality is not that way - everything is interdependent, not absolute. So that view is very helpful to maintain a peace of mind because the main destroyer of a peaceful mind is anger.

~ Dalai Lama

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

The purpose of our lives is to be happy.

~ Dalai Lama

Generally speaking, if a human being never shows anger, then I think something's wrong. He's not right in the brain.

~ Dalai Lama