Excerpt: What many people want dearly in life is a sense of freedom. But, most follow confused means to achieve it. These quotes on freedom will help.
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Introduction: What is freedom really?
Upon careful inspection, what many people want dearly in life is a sense of freedom. Nobody wants to feel caged, forced, or like they’re being controlled. But, how we go about achieving this sense of freedom might be different than you previously thought (or have been taught).
In a world of romanticized lifestyles, highlight reels, and get-rich-quick-schemes, the concept of freedom can get convoluted with the rest of the noise. Most people think that freedom is the absence of responsibility. But, when you look closely, the opposite is actually the case: freedom is a byproduct of responsibility.
You can’t be free until you’ve taken proper responsibility for yourself and your life. You can’t even free up the mental resources needed to enjoy said freedom until you’ve covered the bases for your survival, right? How free are you really if you’re starving? How free can you possibly be if you’re without water? Is being free of a place to shelter, freedom?
And this truth carries over to many other key areas in life, too. How does freedom and money intersect? Is freedom something we can only buy rich? How about freedom and love? Is love something that’s only possessed in a relationship with another? What about freedom and discipline? Is a life free of discipline—one where you can do whatever you want, whenever you want—really a life of freedom? We’ve gathered together some of our best quotes below to encourage a closer look.
Attentively dissect the quotes on freedom below and take note of anything that makes you nod or wonder. These insights may very well provide the key(s) to freedom you’ve been looking for. And we welcome you to share any accompanying thoughts that rise from this article in the comment section at the end. We’d love to hear from you. Emphasis added is my own. Enjoy! ~ Matt
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The List: Introductory Quotes On Freedom
“When was the last time you spent an entire day doing exactly what you wanted to do? Said exactly what you wanted to say? You have a belief system, a rule set. Stuffing these things in a box and being someone else makes you exactly that. Someone else.”
Trevor Smith, Tiny Buddha
“There is something in every one of you that waits and listens for the sound of the genuine in yourself. It is the only true guide you will ever have. And if you cannot hear it, you will all of your life spend your days on the ends of strings that somebody else pulls.”
Unknown
“Man is manacled only by himself: thought and action are the jailers of Fate—they imprison, being base; they are also the angels of Freedom—they liberate, being noble. Not what he wishes and prays for does a man get, but what he justly earns. His wishes and prayers are only gratified and answered when they harmonize with his thoughts and actions.”
James Allen, As a Man Thinketh | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
“Lust is a destroyer of peace in our lives: Lust for a beautiful person. Lust for an orgasm. Lust for someone other than the one we’ve committed to be with. Lust for power. Lust for dominance. Lust for other people’s stuff. Lust for the fanciest, best, most expensive things that money can buy. And is this not at odds with the self-mastery we say we want? A person enslaved to their urges is not free—whether they are a plumber or the president.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 114) | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
“I fear nothing, I hope for nothing, I am free.”
Nikos Kazantzakis, via Sunbeams (Page 67)
“Insecurity is an intrinsic part of life—and good that it is so, because it makes life a freedom, it makes life a continuous surprise. One never knows what is going to happen. It keeps you continuously in wonder. Don’t call it uncertainty—call it wonder. Don’t call it insecurity—call it freedom.”
Osho, Courage (Page xii)
“Nothing can be secure, because a secure life will be worse than death. Nothing is certain. Life is full of uncertainties, full of surprises—that is its beauty! You can never come to a moment when you can say, ‘Now I am certain.’ When you say you are certain, you simply declare your death. Life goes on moving with a thousand and one uncertainties. That’s its freedom. Don’t call it insecurity.”
Osho, Courage (Page x)
“The unrestricted person, who has in hand what they will in all events, is free. But anyone who can be restricted, coerced, or pushed into something against what they will is a slave.”
Epictetus, Discourses, via The Daily Stoic (Page 81)
“Whenever you expect something to be a certain way and it isn’t, you’re upset and you suffer. On the other hand, when you let go of expectations, when you accept life as it is, you’re free.”
Richard Carlson, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
“Kill desires—you will not find any blood coming out of them, because they are bloodless. But kill a need, and there will be bloodshed. Kill a need, and a part of you will die. Kill a desire, and you will not die. Rather, on the contrary, you will become freer. More freedom will come out of dropping desires. If you can become a person of need and no desires, you are already on the path, and heaven is not far off.”
Osho, Fame, Fortune, and Ambition
Quotes on How Freedom and Money Connect:
“People who live far below their means enjoy a freedom that people busy upgrading their lifestyles can’t fathom.”
Naval Ravikant | Read Matt’s Blog on this quote ➜
“Mo’ money, mo’ problems, and also mo’ stuff, less freedom.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 209)
“The more things we desire and the more we have to do to earn or attain those achievements, the less we actually enjoy our lives—and the less free we are.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 33)
“No one dogged by creditors is free. Living outside your means is not glamorous. Behind the appearances, it’s exhausting. It’s also dangerous. The person who is afraid to lose their stuff, who has their identity wrapped up in their things, gives their enemies an opening. They make themselves extra vulnerable to fate.”
Ryan Holiday, Stillness is the Key (Page 209)
“There are two ways to be wealthy—to get everything you want or to want everything you have. Which is easier right here and right now? The same goes for freedom. If you chafe and fight and struggle for more, you will never be free. If you could find and focus on the pockets of freedom you already have? Well, then you’d be free right here, right now.”
Ryan Holiday, The Daily Stoic (Page 95)
“How would you live your life if you could wake up each day knowing there was enough money coming in to cover not only your basic needs but also your goals and dreams? The truth is, a lot of us would keep working, because that’s the way we’re wired. But we’d do it from a place of joy and abundance. Our work would continue, but the rat race would end. We’d work because we want to, not because we have to. That’s financial freedom.”
Tony Robbins, Money: Master the Game | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
Quotes on How Freedom and Love Connect:
“Love knows no boundaries. Love cannot be jealous, because love cannot possess. It is ugly, the very idea that you possess somebody because you love. You possess somebody—it means you have killed somebody and turned him into a commodity. Only things can be possessed. Love gives freedom. Love is freedom.”
Osho, Love, Freedom, Alonenss: The Koan of Relationships
“Love is the only freedom from attachment. When you love everything you are attached to nothing… Man made prisoner by the love of a woman and woman made prisoner by the love of a man are equally unfit for freedom’s precious crown. But man and woman made as one by love, inseparable, indistinguishable, are verily entitled to the prize.”
Mikhail Naimy, The Book of Mirdad
“It is very easy to think about love. It is very difficult to love. It is very easy to love the whole world. The real difficulty is to love a single human being. It is very easy to love God or humanity. The real problem arises when you come across a real person and you encounter him. To encounter him is to go through a great change and a great challenge. He is not going to be your slave and neither are you going to be a slave to him. That’s where the real problem arises. If you are going to be a slave or if he is going to be a slave, then there is no problem. The problem arises because nobody is here to play a slave—and nobody can be a slave. Everybody is a free agent… the whole being consists of freedom. Man is freedom.”
Osho, Courage (Page 157)
“Freedom grants the opportunity for greater meaning, but by itself there is nothing necessarily meaningful about it. Ultimately, the only way to achieve meaning and a sense of importance in one’s life is through a rejection of alternatives, a narrowing of freedom, a choice of commitment to one place, one belief, or (gulp) one person.”
Mark Mason, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
“Explore the possibilities. Be yourself. Find a person who matches with you. Take the risk, but be honest. If it works, keep going. If it doesn’t work, then do yourself and your partner a favor: Walk away; let her go. Don’t be selfish. Give your partner the opportunity to find what she really wants, and at the same time give yourself the opportunity. If it’s not going to work, it is better to look in a different direction. If you cannot love your partner the way she is, someone else can love her just as she is. Don’t wast your time, and don’t waste your partner’s time. That is respect.”
Don Miguel Ruiz, The Mastery of Love
Quotes On How Freedom and Discipline Connect:
“No person is free who is not master of himself.”
Epictetus
“Freedom is born of self-discipline. No individual, no nation, can achieve or maintain liberty without self-control. The undisciplined man is a slave to his own weaknesses.”
Alan Valentine
“Self-discipline is a form of freedom. Freedom from laziness and lethargy, freedom from the expectations and demands of others, freedom from weakness and fear and doubt. Self-discipline allows a pitcher to feel his individuality, his inner strength, his talent. He is the master of, rather than a slave to, his thoughts and emotions.”
Harvey Dorfman
“Commitment gives you freedom because you’re no longer distracted by the unimportant and frivolous. Commitment gives you freedom because it hones your attention and focus, directing them toward what is most efficient at making you healthy and happy. Commitment makes decision-making easier and removes any fear of missing out; knowing that what you already have is good enough, why would you ever stress about chasing more, more, more again? Commitment allows you to focus intently on a few highly important goals and achieve a greater degree of success than you otherwise would.”
Mark Mason, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
“The best rules do not ultimately restrict us but instead facilitate our goals and make for fuller, freer lives.”
Norman Doidge, via 12 Rules for Life (Page viii)
“Without rules we quickly become slaves to our passions—and there’s nothing freeing about that.”
Norman Doidge, via 12 Rules for Life (Page viii)
“Habits do not restrict freedom. They create it. In fact, the people who don’t have their habits handled are often the ones with the least amount of freedom. Without good financial habits, you will always be struggling for the next dollar. Without good health habits, you will always seem to be short on energy. Without good learning habits, you will always feel like you’re behind the curve. If you’re always being forced to make decisions about simple tasks—when should I work out, where do I go to write, when do I pay the bills—then you have less time for freedom. It’s only by making the fundamentals of life easier that you can create the mental space needed for free thinking and creativity.”
James Clear, Atomic Habits | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
Quotes On Protecting Your Freedom:
“Stand up for what you believe in, even if it means standing alone.”
Unknown
“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.”
Nelson Mandela
“I say to you, you are absolutely free, unconditionally free. Don’t avoid the responsibility; avoiding is not going to help. The sooner you accept it the better, because immediately you can start creating yourself. And the moment you create yourself great joy arises, and when you have completed yourself, the way you wanted to, there is immense contentment, just as when a painter finishes his painting, the last touch, and a great contentment arises in his heart. A job well done brings great peace. One feels that one has participated with the whole.”
Osho, Love, Freedom, Alonenss: The Koan of Relationships
“When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw.”
Nelson Mandela
“Feminism… I think the simplest explanation, and one that captures the idea, is a song that Marlo Thomas sang, ‘Free to be You and Me.’ Free to be, if you were a girl—doctor, lawyer, Indian chief. Anything you want to be. And if you’re a boy, and you like teaching, you like nursing, you would like to have a doll, that’s OK too. That notion that we should each be free to develop our own talents, whatever they may be, and not be held back by artificial barriers—manmade barriers, certainly not heaven sent.”
Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Makers
“The more you try to control something, the more it controls you. Free yourself and let things take their own natural course.”
Unknown
“Focus not on what he or she does, but on keeping to your higher purpose. Your own purpose should seek harmony with nature itself. For this is the true road to freedom.”
Epictetus, The Art of Living
“Be yourself, and let others be themselves. Do not harm others with your beliefs. There’s only so much we can know about right and wrong, but as far as I’m able to tell, the genesis of evil lies in forceful ideology. If we act with mindful compassion over and over again, we can tangentially and unconsciously influence others to do the same. With such an attitude, one would hope the world would grow more peaceful and intelligent over time.”
Unknown, The Daily Zen
“The person is free who lives as they wish, neither compelled, nor hindered, nor limited—whose choices aren’t hampered, whose desires succeed, and who don’t fall into what repels them. Who wishes to live in deception—tripped up, mistaken, undisciplined, complaining, in a rut? No one. These are base people who don’t live as they wish; and so, no base person is free.”
Epictetus, Discourses, via The Daily Stoic (Page 74)
“Keep constant guard over your perceptions, for it is no small thing you are protecting, but your respect, trustworthiness and steadiness, peace of mind, freedom from pain and fear, in a word your freedom. For what would you sell these things?”
Epictetus, The Daily Stoic (Page 52)
“If you desire the virtues which are within your power, there is no room for envy or aping others. Instead of wishing to be a general, a congressman, or a celebrity, desire to be free. And the way to be free is to let go of anything that is not within your control.”
Epictetus
“Only a free person can be a happy person. The amount of happiness that you have depends on the amount of freedom that you have in your heart. Freedom here is not political freedom. Freedom here is freedom from regret, freedom from fear, from anxiety and sorrow.”
Thich Nhat Hanh, No Death, No Fear
“Identify the things that are holding you back. Are you scared of speaking or do you have trouble in your relationships? Do you lack a positive attitude or do you need more energy? Make a written inventory of your weaknesses. Satisfied people are far more thoughtful than others. Take the time to reflect on what it is that might be keeping you from the life you really want to know deep down you can have. Once you have identified what your weaknesses are, the next step is to face them head on and attack your fears. If you fear public speaking, sign up to give twenty speeches. If you fear starting a new business or getting out of a dissatisfying relationship, muster every ounce of your inner resolve and do it. This might be the first taste of real freedom that you have experienced in years. Fear is nothing more than a mental monster you have created, a negative stream of consciousness.”
Robin S. Sharma, The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari | Read our top quotes from this book ➜
“Ultimately we know deeply that the other side of every fear is freedom.”
Marilyn Ferguson
“I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended.”
Nelson Mandela
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