Timeless Wisdom: A Curated Collection of Inspirational Buddha Quotes

Discover the profound insights of Buddha through this carefully curated collection of inspirational quotes. Each quote offers a glimpse into the timeless wisdom that has guided millions towards peace, mindfulness, and self-awareness. From embracing the present moment to understanding the power of our thoughts, these quotes inspire reflection and personal growth. Whether you're seeking motivation, clarity, or a deeper connection to your inner self, Buddha's words provide gentle guidance and encouragement. Explore themes of compassion, mindfulness, and the path to enlightenment, all encapsulated in succinct, powerful statements. This collection serves as a daily reminder to live with intention, kindness, and wisdom.

Wisdom from the Masters

"We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think."

- Buddha

Belief in Self

"Every human being is the author of his own health or disease."

- Buddha

Health

"The mind is everything. What you think, you become."

- Buddha

Belief in Self

"The past is already gone, the future is not yet here. There’s only one moment for you to live."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"Nothing is permanent."

- Gautama Buddha

Change

"Set your heart on doing good. Do it over and over again and you will be filled with joy."

- Gautama Buddha

Joy

"If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly our whole life would change."

- Gautama Buddha

Awareness

"Three things cannot be long hidden: the Moon, the Sun and the Truth."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"The mind is everything; what you think, you become."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make our world."

- Buddha

Belief in Self

"Nothing can harm you as much as your own thoughts unguarded."

- Gautama Buddha

Self-awareness

"Learn this from water: loud splashes the brook but the oceans depth are calm."

- Gautama Buddha

Balance

"Rule your mind or it will rule you."

- Gautama Buddha

Self-improvement

"Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die."

- Buddha

Empathy

"You will not be punished for your anger. You will be punished by your anger."

- Buddha

Adversity

"Conquer anger with non-anger. Conquer badness with goodness. Conquer meanness with generosity."

- Buddha

Compassion

"Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much as your own unguarded thoughts."

- Gautama Buddha

Self-awareness

"Anger will never disappear so long as thoughts of resentment are cherished in the mind. Anger will disappear as soon as thoughts of resentment are forgotten."

- Buddha

Adversity

"Silence the angry man with love. Silence the ill-natured man with kindness. Silence the miser with generosity. Silence the liar with truth."

- Buddha

Compassion

"At the end of the day, I’m at peace because my intentions are good and my heart is pure."

- Buddha

Inner Peace

"It’s better to travel well than to arrive."

- Buddha

Philosophy

"However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you If you do not act upon them?"

- Buddha

Integrity

"To support mother and father, to cherish wife and children, and to be engaged in peaceful occupation — this is the greatest blessing."

- Buddha

Family

"Friendship is the only cure for hatred, the only guarantee of peace."

- Buddha

Peace

"If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your path."

- Gautama Buddha

Compassion

"Train your mind to see something good in everything."

- Gautama Buddha

Positivity

"The quieter you become, the more you can hear."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"No matter how hard the past, you can always begin."

- Buddha

New Beginnings

"With our thoughts, we make the world."

- Gautama Buddha

Creativity

"Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment."

- Buddhist quote

Mindfulness

"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."

- Buddah

Forgiveness

"No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path."

- Buddha

Self-awareness

"Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship."

- Buddha

Well-being

"You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserve your love and affection."

- Buddha

Self-esteem

"What we think, we become."

- Buddha

Belief in Self

"There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely."

- Buddha

Courage

"Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life."

- Buddha

Spirituality

"You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger."

- Gautama Buddha

Empathy

"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done."

- Gautama Buddha

Motivation

"Without health life is not life; it is only a state of langour and suffering - an image of death."

- Buddha

Health

"To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one's own in the midst of abundance."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"Better than worshiping gods is obedience to the laws of righteousness."

- Buddha

Morality

"He who loves 50 people has 50 woes; he who loves no one has no woes."

- Buddha

Love

"Charity bestowed upon those who are worthy of it is like good seed sown on a good soil that yields an abundance of fruits. But alms given to those who are yet under the tyrannical yoke of the passions are like seed deposited in a bad soil. The passions of the receiver of the alms choke, as it were, the growth of merits."

- Buddha

Compassion

"To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent."

- Buddha

Hard Work

"The wise ones fashioned speech with their thought, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"When one has the feeling of dislike for evil, when one feels tranquil, one finds pleasure in listening to good teachings; when one has these feelings and appreciates them, one is free of fear."

- Buddha

Inner Peace

"I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act."

- Buddha

Responsibility

"In a controversy the instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves."

- Buddha

Empathy

"The foolish man conceives the idea of 'self.' The wise man sees there is no ground on which to build the idea of 'self;' thus, he has a right conception of the world and well concludes that all compounds amassed by sorrow will be dissolved again, but the truth will remain."

- Buddha

Philosophy

"With fools, there is no companionship. Rather than to live with men who are selfish, vain, quarrelsome, and obstinate, let a man walk alone."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"All wrong-doing arises because of mind. If mind is transformed can wrong-doing remain?"

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"Those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace."

- Buddha

Inner Peace

"Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace."

- Buddha

Peace

"Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good."

- Buddha

Morality

"However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act on upon them?"

- Gautama Buddha

Motivation

"Let my skin and sinews and bones dry up, together with all the flesh and blood of my body! I welcome it! But I will not move from this spot until I have attained the supreme and final wisdom."

- Buddha

Determination

"He who gives away shall have real gain. He who subdues himself shall be free; he shall cease to be a slave of passions. The righteous man casts off evil, and by rooting out lust, bitterness, and illusion do we reach Nirvana."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"He who walks in the eightfold noble path with unswerving determination is sure to reach Nirvana."

- Buddha

Determination

"Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others."

- Buddha

Self-care

"Chaos is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence."

- Buddha

Determination

"Do not overrate what you have received, nor envy others. He who envies others does not obtain peace of mind."

- Buddha

Contentment

"Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways."

- Buddha

Self-awareness

"Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared."

- Buddha

Happiness

"We are shaped by our thoughts; we become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves."

- Buddha

Happiness

"Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule."

- Buddha

Love

"It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell."

- Buddha

Courage

"Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without."

- Gautama Buddha

Peace

"The mind is everything. What you think you become."

- Buddha

Belief

"To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear."

- Gautama Buddha

Health

"To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's own mind. If a man can control his mind he can find the way to Enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"Quiet the mind and the soul will speak."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"What you think, you become. What you feel, you attract. What you imagine, you create."

- Buddha

Personal Growth

"If you want to fly, give up everything that weighs you down."

- Buddha

Liberation

"All suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their own happiness or satisfaction."

- Buddha

Adversity

"Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates: Is it true? Is it necessary? Is it kind?"

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"Pain is inevitable. Suffering is optional."

- M. Kathleen Casey

Resilience

"Purity or impurity depends on oneself, no one can purify another."

- Buddha

Self-awareness

"Every morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most."

- Buddha

Awareness

"In the end, only three things matters: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you."

- Buddha

Love

"Don’t rush anything. When the time is right it’ll happen."

- Buddha

Balance

"To understand everything is to forgive everything."

- Buddha

Forgiveness

"When it hurts, observe. Life is trying to teach you something."

- Buddha

Reflection

"Change is never painful. Only resistance to change is painful."

- Buddha

Change

"One moment can change a day, one day can change a life, and one life can change the world."

- Buddha

Inspiration

"The root of all suffering is attachment."

- Buddha

Adversity

"Your mind is a powerful thing. When you start to filter it with positive thoughts your life will start to change."

- Buddha

Personal Growth

"If you truly loved yourself, you could never hurt another."

- Buddha

Love

"Be where you are; otherwise you will miss your life."

- Buddha

Presence

"All that we are is the result of what we have thought."

- Buddha

Philosophy

"Suffering is not holding you, you are holding suffering."

- Gautama Buddha

Adversity

"Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense."

- Buddha

Awareness

"When you realize how perfect everything is you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky."

- Buddha

Happiness

"Give, even if you only have a little."

- Buddha

Generosity

"You only lose what you cling to."

- Gautama Buddha

Change

"I will not look at another’s bowl intent on finding a fault: a training to be observed."

- Buddha

Self-awareness

"What is evil? Killing is evil, lying is evil, slandering is evil, abuse is evil, gossip is evil, envy is evil, hatred is evil, to cling to false doctrine is evil; all these things are evil. And what is the root of evil? Desire is the root of evil, illusion is the root of evil."

- Buddha

Morality

"It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"All that we are is the result of what we have thought: it is founded on our thoughts and made up of our thoughts. If a man speak or act with an evil thought, suffering follows him as the wheel follows the hoof of the beast that draws the wagon…. If a man speak or act with a good thought, happiness follows him like a shadow that never leaves him."

- Buddha

Personal Growth

"It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you."

- Gautama Buddha

Strength

"Those who have failed to work toward the truth have missed the purpose of living."

- Buddha

Motivation

"Long is the night to him who is awake; long is a mile to him who is tired; long is life to the foolish who do not know the true law."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes."

- Buddha

Motivation

"Meditate… do not delay, lest you later regret it."

- Buddha

Meditation

"One should strive to understand what underlies sufferings and diseases – and aim for health and well-being while gaining in the path."

- Buddha

Health

"Delight in meditation and solitude. Compose yourself, be happy. You are a seeker."

- Buddha

Meditation

"If a man’s thoughts are muddy, If he is reckless and full of deceit, How can he wear the yellow robe? Whoever is master of his own nature, Bright, clear and true, He may indeed wear the yellow robe."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"Like a fine flower, beautiful to look at but without scent, fine words are fruitless in a man who does not act in accordance with them."

- Buddha

Integrity

"Meditate. Live purely. Be quiet. Do your work with mastery. Like the moon, come out from behind the clouds! Shine"

- Buddha

Meditation

"For soon the body is discarded, Then what does it feel? A useless log of wood, it lies on the ground, Then what does it know? Your worst enemy cannot harm you As much as your own thoughts, unguarded. But once mastered, No one can help you as much, Not even your father or your mother."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"If you are quiet enough, you will hear the flow of the universe. You will feel its rhythm. Go with this flow. Happiness lies ahead. Meditation is key."

- Buddha

Meditation

"Though one should live a hundred years without wisdom and control, yet better, indeed, is a single day’s life of one who is wise and meditative."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"If you meditate earnestly, pure in mind and kind in deeds, leading a disciplined life in harmony with the dharma, you will grow in glory. If you meditate earnestly, through spiritual disciplines you can make an island for yourself that no flood can overwhelm."

- Buddha

Meditation

"If you light a lamp for someone else it will also brighten your path."

- Buddha

Generosity

"Neither fire, nor wind, birth, nor death, can erase our good deeds."

- Buddha

Knowledge

"Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others."

- Buddha

Happiness

"If we fail to look after others when they need help, who will look after us?"

- Buddha

Compassion

"One who acts on truth is happy in this world and beyond."

- Buddha

Belief

"Remembering a wrong is like carrying a burden on the mind."

- Buddha

Forgiveness

"There is no fear for one whose mind is not filled with desires."

- Buddha

Inner Peace

"Irrigators channel waters; fletchers straighten arrows; carpenters bend wood; the wise master themselves."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"Stop, stop. Do not speak. The ultimate truth is not even to think."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines, but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes."

- Gautama B.

Perseverance

"Avoid evil deeds as a man who loves life avoids poison."

- Gautama Buddha

Morality

"If anything is worth doing, do it with all your heart."

- Buddha

Determination

"You are far from the end of your journey. The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart. See how you love."

- Buddha

Love

"You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe deserves your love and affection."

- Buddha

Love

"There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it."

- Buddha

Philosophy

"True love is born from understanding."

- Gautama Buddha

Love

"Just as a mother would protect her only child with her life, even so let one cultivate a boundless love towards all beings."

- Buddha

Compassion

"Ambition is like love, impatient both of delays and rivals."

- Buddha

Ambition

"Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over and over again."

- Buddha

Change

"Everything that has a beginning has an ending. Make your peace with that and all will be well."

- Buddhist saying

Awareness

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, nor to worry about the future, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly."

- Buddha

Mindfulness

"To conquer oneself is a greater task than conquering others."

- Buddha

Personal Growth

"If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change."

- Buddha

Awareness

"To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one’s own in the midst of abundance."

- Buddha

Compassion

"If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete."

- Buddha

Compassion

"Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little."

- Buddha

Compassion

"Teach this triple truth to all: A generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity."

- Buddha

Compassion

"Imagine that every person in the world is enlightened but you. They are all your teachers, each doing just the right things to help you learn perfect patience, perfect wisdom, perfect compassion."

- Buddha

Compassion

"As rain falls equally on the just and the unjust, do not burden your heart with judgement but rain your kindness equally on all."

- Buddha

Compassion

"In separateness lies the world’s greatest misery; in compassion lies the world’s true strength."

- Buddha

Compassion

"For the good of the many, for the happiness of the many, out of compassion for the world."

- Buddha

Compassion

"People with opinions just go around bothering each other."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"Whatever living beings there may be feeble or strong, long, stout, or of medium size, short, small, large, those seen or those unseen, those dwelling far or near, those who are born as well as those yet to be born may all beings have happy minds."

- Buddha

Compassion

"The tongue like a sharp knife kills without drawing blood."

- Buddha

Morality

"Happiness will never come to those who fail to appreciate what they already have."

- Buddha

Happiness

"A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again; but if he is peaceful, loving, and fearless then he is in truth called wise."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"Happiness does not depend on what you have or who you are. It solely relies on what you think."

- Buddha

Happiness

"Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forward and what hold you back, and choose the path that leads to wisdom."

- Buddha

Meditation

"Believe nothing, no matter where you read it or who has said it, not even if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles."

- Buddha

Self-improvement

"The truth is, we can let circumstances rule us, or we can take charge and rule our lives from within."

- Buddha

Empowerment

"A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again; but if he is peaceful, loving and fearless then he is in truth called wise."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you."

- Buddha

Love

"The only real obstacle in your path to success is the story you keep telling yourself that you cannot achieve it."

- Buddha

Motivation

"To keep the body in good health is a duty… otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear."

- Buddha

Health

"It is not enough to be compassionate. You must act."

- Buddha

Compassion

"The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing."

- Socrates

Education

"The root of suffering is attachment."

- Buddha

Adversity

"The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, nor to worry about the future, but to live in the present moment wisely and earnestly."

- Buddha

Health

"Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows."

- Buddha

Integrity

"You don’t have a Soul. You are a soul. You have a body."

- Buddha

Spirituality

"Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful."

- Buddha

Gratitude

"It is better to travel well than to arrive."

- Buddha

Contentment

"I am not the first Buddha who came upon Earth, nor shall I be the last. In due time, another Buddha will arise in the world - a Holy One, a supremely enlightened One, endowed with wisdom in conduct, auspicious, knowing the universe, an incomparable leader of men, a master of angels and mortals."

- Buddha

Inspiration

"A jug fills drop by drop."

- Buddha

Growth

"Of those beings who live in ignorance, shut up and confined, as it were, in an egg, I have first broken the eggshell of ignorance and alone in the universe obtained the most exalted, universal Buddhahood."

- Buddha

Inspiration

"I was born into the world as the king of truth for the salvation of the world."

- Buddha

Inspiration

"Unity can only be manifested by the Binary. Unity itself and the idea of Unity are already two."

- Buddha

Philosophy

"What is the appropriate behavior for a man or a woman in the midst of this world, where each person is clinging to his piece of debris? What's the proper salutation between people as they pass each other in this flood?"

- Buddha

Philosophy

"The virtues, like the Muses, are always seen in groups. A good principle was never found solitary in any breast."

- Buddha

Wisdom

"The foot feels the foot when it feels the ground."

- Buddha

Awareness

"The tongue like a sharp knife… Kills without drawing blood."

- Buddha

Morality

"A woman of the world is anxious to exhibit her form and shape, whether walking, standing, sitting, or sleeping. Even when represented as a picture, she desires to captivate with the charms of her beauty and, thus, to rob men of their steadfast heart."

- Buddha

Awareness

Bite-sized Inspirational Quotes

"The trouble is, you think you have time."

Awareness

"If you knew what I know about the power of giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way."

Generosity