The Dalai Lama is one of the greatest spiritual leaders of all time, with seemingly never-ending words of wisdom. With so many amazing quotes, picking just some Dalia Lama quotes to share is a challenge, but we think these 13 quotes have some extra perspective shifting power.
There is only one important point you must keep in your mind and let it be your guide. No matter what people call you, you are just who you are. Keep to this truth. You must ask yourself how is it you want to live your life. We live and we die, this is the truth that we can only face alone. No one can help us, not even the Buddha. So consider carefully, what prevents you from living the way you want to live your life?
From a young age, we’re molded into what we should be. And over time, it becomes easier to fit into that mold than to deal with the criticism or judgment of others. But as the Dalai Lama puts it, the only truth is being yourself.
And it’s a good truth, considering research shows that being authentic gives us a sense of power.
So think about it. What’s keeping you from being the truest version of yourself? Whatever it is, especially if it’s the thoughts of others, it’s time to let go.
Every human being has the same potential. Whatever makes you feel “I am worthless” is wrong. Absolutely wrong. You are deceiving yourself. We all have the power of thought, so what could you possibly be lacking? If you have the willpower, then you can do anything.
How many times have you hesitated or completely avoided doing something because you thought you couldn’t? Or how many times have you held yourself back from an awesome opportunity because you felt you weren’t worthy?
It’s usually not a lack of skills or ability that keeps us from accomplishing our goals, but rather the thoughts that we can’t that leads us to give up right before we’re about to succeed.
Whatever you want, you can achieve. You just have to want it bad enough and try, really try.
Hard times build determination and inner strength. Through them, we can also come to appreciate the uselessness of anger. Instead of getting angry nurture a deep caring and respect for troublemakers because by creating such trying circumstances they provide us with invaluable opportunities to practice tolerance and patience.
Wouldn’t it be great if things were always easy? Hands down, but that’s not a feasible reality. Life gets hard, and it knocks you down. When that happens, it’s easy to fall into a pit of “why me” and an angry rage against everything. But life gets a lot easier when anger is turned into acceptance.
Once you accept that a situation is happening to you, instead of feeling anger towards it you can figure out how to handle it, how to overcome it, and how to grow.
After all, diamonds are made under pressure, and the challenges we face are truly as the Dalai Lama says, what build determination and inner strength. And hard times come with a bunch of other benefits too.Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.
We’ve all experienced the (perhaps out of proportion) devastation of not getting what we want; of not getting into our top school choice, of not landing (or even getting interviewed) for our dream job, of watching the person we’re so sure is our soulmate walk away.
But when you look back at those situations and then at your life now, you’re probably doing just fine - probably even better than fine.
Sometimes we don’t get that dream job or that perfect relationship because something that’s better for us is right around the corner.
And whatever it is that we don’t get, that feeling of failure or hitting rock bottom teaches us how to persevere, how strong we are, and how to work and fight even harder for the things that matter.
Peace does not mean an absence of conflicts; differences will always be there. Peace means solving these differences through peaceful means; through dialogue, education, knowledge; and through humane ways.
We live in a world with a ton of conflict, and at the same time, signing on to any social network will result in being flooded with signs and images of “good vibes only.”
The Dalai Lama puts an eye-opening view on the situation - things aren’t ever going to be good vibes only, that’s just not the nature of life, but that doesn’t have to be a bad thing.
The real peace is found in dealing with conflict with kindness and knowledge, instead of creating more conflict through anger.
If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.
The Dalai Lama believes that the ultimate way to reach happiness is through practicing genuine compassion for all living things.
And it very well might lead to more than happiness too, as research shows that compassion for others can even lead to a longer lifespan.
And being compassionate to ourselves makes us better at handling stress.I believe the very purpose of our life is to seek happiness. Whether one believes in religion or not, whether one believes in that religion or this religion, we are all seeking something better in life. So, I think, the very motion of our life is towards happiness.
How often do you lose track of the purpose of your life? It’s easy to do when busy schedules and obligations run the day; the “why” behind everything you do can get blurry.
And feeling separated from purpose can be overwhelming; it’s the ultimate feeling of being lost.
But we all really only want one thing, and that's happiness.
This Dalai Lama quote can be used as a reminder to bring you back to your purpose when you’re feeling lost. And to remind you that despite our differences, we are all looking for the same thing.
I find hope in the darkest of days and focus in the brightest. I do not judge the universe.
Many people have spoken about finding the light in dark days, but the Dalai Lama takes it to another level when he says “I do not judge the universe.”
Just like there is no point in getting mad at the sky on a cloudy day, there is no use judging the universe for a rough one.
If you believe in a higher power, then this quote can serve as a reminder that you’re taken care of - that every day whether it’s the best day or the worst, serves its purpose.
And if you don’t believe in that stuff, then maybe this can be a reminder that our darkest days make us the strongest, and perhaps sometimes they come right when we need the extra strength.
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.
Being told “don’t worry” can be so annoying, especially if you’re deep into worrying. But the Dalai Lama puts it into more perspective than just “don’t worry.”
There are two possibilities for every situation - either you can do something about it or you can’t.
If you can do something about it, there’s no point in worrying because as long as there is a solution, you can find it. Worrying will only make it take longer.
And if there’s nothing you can do, worrying will only make it worse.
This study found that people who actively worried about their health twice as likely to develop heart disease than those who didn’t feel anxious about it.
Of course, this quote won't eliminate all worry from your life, but use it as a reminder to limit your worries whenever possible.
The planet does not need more successful people. The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of all kinds.
There is so much stress put on becoming successful, and it’s placed on people at a younger and younger age. Usually, this success correlates with lots of money, a high-end job, a big house, and all the other luxuries that come with it.
But even with a planet full of successful people, there is still war, suffering, environmental degradation, and so much more.
So maybe instead of stressing about being successful, we need to shift our attention to doing good; on being peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers. And maybe that is the greatest success of all.
This is my simple religion. No need for temples. No need for complicated philosophy. Your own mind, your own heart is the temple. Your philosophy is simple kindness.
We’re always searching for something. From the beginning of time, we’ve looked to religion, to philosophy, and to science to give us the meaning of life and the protocols to live by.
But in reality, it’s simple.
Everything you need is inside, and the only thing you really need to find happiness is to treat every person and every situation with kindness.
In fact, being kind to others can produce more psychological flourishing (emotional, psychological, and physical well being) than being kind to yourself.
And even though doing acts of kindness for others can make us happier, receiving acts of kindness still provides plenty of happiness too. (Don't worry, you can still go ahead and treat yourself).
People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they’re not on your road doesn’t mean they’ve gotten lost.
To be completely honest, this might be a Dalia Lama quote, or it might be a quote by author H Jackson Brown. JR, but either way it’s a message worth receiving.
Most of us pass judgment within minutes before the other person has a chance to speak; this is even easier to do when the person is on a completely different path than ours.
The Dalai Lama believes we are all looking for the same thing; happiness, and that no one's path to happiness is better than other’s.
Sometimes the kindest, most interesting people might not look it, and by judging, we can miss out on a conversation or even friendship that helps us grow.
Next time you judge, remind yourself of the other person's story; their upbringing, parents, and life circumstances that can be so colossally different from yours. How can you expect to be on the same path?
The goal is not to be better than the other man, but your previous self.
We live in a world of comparison. Through social media, we have access to the lives of others unlike ever before, and with it comes constantly comparing ourselves to people, from those living down the street to those living on the other side of the globe.
While moderate or occasional comparison can have its benefits, like leading to inspiration, for the most part, comparison is bad for you and whoever you compare yourself too.
It leads to envy, low self-esteem, and unrealistic standards of beauty and success.
Instead of focusing on how you are doing compared to someone else, focus on how you are doing compared to a month ago, or a year ago. It’s better for your health and happiness.
What’s your favorite Dalai Lama quote? Share it below!