Death carries off a man busy picking flowers with an besotted mind, like a great flood does a sleeping village.
Gautama BuddhaRead
Go forth in every direction- for the happiness, the harmony, the welfare of the many. Offer your heart, the seeds of understanding, like a lamp overturned and re-lit, illuminating the darkness.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote encourages selflessness and understanding to promote collective happiness and welfare.
Gautama Buddha emphasizes the importance of contributing positively to the well-being of others by spreading understanding and compassion. The metaphor of a lamp symbolizes how individuals can transform negative situations into light and positivity, motivating others to pursue harmony and joy in their lives.
Themes
HappinessUnderstandingCompassionSelflessnessHarmony
In practice
Example use cases
During a community service project, I shared this quote to inspire volunteers to focus on the greater good.
More from Gautama Buddha
All quotes →A kind man who makes good use of wealth is rightly said to possess a great treasure; but the miser who hoards up his riches will have no profit.
Gautama BuddhaRead
There are having flowers in Spring, breezes in Summer, moon in Autumn, snows in Winter. If there is nothing worrying over you, it will be the best seasons at all times.
Gautama BuddhaRead
Make an island of yourself, make yourself your refuge; there is no other refuge. Make truth your island, make truth your refuge; there is no other refuge.
Gautama BuddhaRead
When a wise man is advised of his errors, he will reflect on and improve his conduct. When his misconduct is pointed out, a foolish man will not only disregard the advice but rather repeat the same error.
Gautama BuddhaRead
The tongue like a sharp knife ... Kills without drawing blood.
Gautama BuddhaRead
Similar quotes
It is a huge danger to pretend that awful things do not happen. But you need enough hope to keep going. I am trying to make hope. Flowers grow out of darkness.
Corita KentRead
When you sing gospel you have a feeling there is a cure for what's wrong.
Mahalia JacksonRead
They say I can open movies, and that's nice in that it puts into people's minds that women can do it. It's not just Kevin Costner, not just Arnold Schwarzenegger. Not just the guys.
Julia RobertsRead
So here is why I write what I do: We all have futures. We all have pasts. We all have stories. And we all, every single one of us, no matter who we are and no matter what’s been taken from us or what poison we’ve internalized or how hard we’ve had to work to expel it – – we all get to dream.
N.K. JemisinRead
The essence of optimism is that it takes no account of the present, but it is a source of inspiration, of vitality and hope where others have resigned; it enables a man to hold his head high, to claim the future for himself and not to abandon it to his enemy.
Dietrich BonhoefferRead
I was hooked on aviation, made model airplanes, and never thought I would be able to fly myself. It cost too much. But then World War II came along and changed all that.
John GlennRead