The Dalai Lama certainly has lived an interesting and at times, rather difficult life. When he was only six years old, he was removed from his parent’s home and by the time he was 15, he had become both a diplomat and a military commander.
He was then forced to leave India at 25 to go to Tibet. The Dalai Lama is now approaching 80 and it would seem as if a man who lived such a difficult life would be worn and perhaps even bitter.
When you look at him, however, you can see that he still has a lot of life in his eyes and many people would like to look that young when they were in their 70s.
Hundreds of thousands of people have looked to the Dalai Lama to say the right things and do the right things for more than 50 years. Understanding his principles may help you to live a better life yourself.
Here are 15 of his life lessons in his own words:
Be kind whenever you can – which is all the time.
Well-being comes through action, not through prayer.
Arrogance can never be justified. It is the result of either low self-esteem or temporary and superficial achievements.
When someone feels that everything in their life is going wrong, it means that something wonderful is about to occur.
People exist to be loved; objects exist to be used. The world is in chaos because these things are the other way round.
The idea of compassion is not related to religion. It is a universal concept; its existence is the sole condition for the survival of the human race.
If you can help, you should do so. If you can’t, at the very least don’t do any harm.
I don’t celebrate birthdays. For me, they’re no different from any other day. In one sense, every day is a day of birth. Every day, you wake up in the morning, everything is fresh and new, and your only goal for the new day is for it to teach you something important.
The purpose of life is to be happy.
By maintaining a positive attitude towards life at all times, you can be content even in the most unfavourable circumstances.
Our enemies provide us with excellent opportunities to practice patience, perseverance and compassion.
I believe that the only true religion consists in having a good heart.
We have to maintain control over technology and never allow ourselves to become its slaves.
Great changes always begin with individuals; the basis for peace in the world is that inner calm and peace found in the heart of every one of us. Each of us can make a contribution.
Each of us bears responsibility for all of humanity. This is the basis of my simple religion. We have no need of temples or complicated philosophy. Our mind and our heart are our temples; our philosophy is our kindness.
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