Skip to content

Archives

    “Motivation is so important.  In fact all human action can be seen in terms of movement, and the mover behind all actions is one’s motivation.  If you develop a pure and sincere motivation, if you are motivated by a wish to help on the basis of kindness, compassion, and respect, then you can carry on any kind of work, in any field, and function more effectively with less fear or worry, not being afraid of what others think or whether you ultimately will be successful in reaching your goal.  Even if you fail to achieve your goal, you can feel good about having made the effort.  But with a bad motivation, people can praise you or you can achieve goals, but you still will not be happy.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

      “If the situation or problem is such that it can be remedied, then there is no need to worry about it.  In other words, if there is a solution or a way out of the difficulty, then one needn’t be overwhelmed by it.  The appropriate action is to seek its solution.  It is more sensible to spend the energy focusing on the solution rather than worrying about the problem.  Alternatively, if there is no way out, no solution, no possibility of resolution, then there is also no point in being worried about it, because you can’t do anything about it anyway.  In that case, the sooner you accept this fact, the easier it will be on you.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

        “If one comes across a person who has been shot by an arrow, one does not spend time wondering about where the arrow came from, or the caste of the individual who shot it, or analyzing what type of wood the shaft is made of, or the manner in which the arrowhead was fashioned.  Rather, one should focus on immediately pulling out the arrow.” ~ Shakyamuni, the Buddha, via The Art of Happiness

          “There is one aspect to our experience of suffering that is of vital importance.  When you are aware of your pain and suffering, it helps you to develop your capacity for empathy, the capacity that allows you to relate to other people’s feelings and suffering.  This enhances your capacity for compassion towards others.  So as an aid in helping us connect with others, it can be seen as having value.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

            “Man is ready and willing to shoulder any suffering as soon and as long as he can see a meaning in it.” ~ Victor Fankl, via The Art of Happiness

              “Our ultimate aim in seeking more wealth is a sense of satisfaction, of happiness.  But the very basis of seeking more is a feeling of not having enough, a feeling of discontentment.  That feeling of discontentment, of wanting more and more and more, doesn’t arise from the inherent desirability of the objects we are seeking but rather from our own mental state.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                “The enemy is the necessary condition for practicing patience.  Without an enemy’s action, there is no possibility for patience or tolerance to arise.  Our friends do not ordinarily test us and provide the opportunity to cultivate patience, only our enemies do this.  So, from this standpoint we can consider our enemy as a great teacher, and revere them for giving us this precious opportunity to practice patience.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                  “It seems that often when problems arise, our outlook becomes narrow.  All of our attention may be focused on worrying about the problem, and we may have a sense that we’re the only one that is going through such difficulties.  This can lead to a kind of self-absorption that can make the problem seem very intense.  When this happens, I think that seeing things from a wider perspective can definitely help – realizing, for instance, that there are many other people who have gone through similar experiences, and even worse experiences.  If you focus too closely, too intensely, on a problem when it occurs, it appears uncontrollable.  But if you compare that event with some other greater event, look at the same problem from a distance, then it appears smaller and less overwhelming.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                    “As products of an imperfect world, all of us are imperfect.  Every one of us has done some wrong.  There are things we regret – things we have done or things we should have done.  Acknowledging our wrongdoings with a genuine sense of remorse can serve to keep us on the right track in life and encourage us to rectify our mistakes when possible and take action to correct things in the future.  But if we allow our regret to degenerate into excessive guilt, holding on to the memory of our past transgressions with continued self-blame and self-hatred, this serves no purpose other than to be a relentless source of self-punishment and self-induced suffering.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                      “In our daily life, problems invariably arise.  But problems themselves do not automatically cause suffering.  If we can directly address our problem and focus our energies on finding a solution, for instance, the problem can be transformed into a challenge.  If we throw into the mix, however, a feeling that our problem is ‘unfair,’ we add an additional ingredient that can become a powerful fuel in creating mental unrest and emotional suffering.  And now we not only have two problems instead of one, but that feeling of ‘unfairness’ distracts us, consumes us, and robs us of the energy needed to solve the original problem.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                        “No man or women really knows what perfect love is until they have been married a quarter of a century.” ~ Mark Twain, via The Art of Happiness

                          “There is no guarantee that tomorrow at this time we will be here.  But still we are working for that purely on the basis of hope.  So, we need to make the best use of our time.  I believe that the proper utilization of time is this: if you can, serve other people, other sentient beings.  If not, at least refrain from harming them.  I think that is the whole basis of my philosophy.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                            “Once [our] basic needs are met (food, clothing, shelter, etc), the message is clear: we don’t need more money, we don’t need greater success or fame, we don’t need the perfect body or even the perfect mate – right now, at this very moment, we have a mind, which is all the basic equipment we need to achieve complete happiness.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness

                              “Today there are societies that are very developed materially, yet among them there are many people who are not very happy.  Just underneath the beautiful surface of affluence there is a kind of mental unrest, leading to frustration, unnecessary quarrels, reliance on drugs or alcohol, and in the worst case, suicide.  So there is no guarantee that wealth alone can give you the joy or fulfillment that you are seeking.” ~ Dalai Lama, The Art of Happiness