It is much more valuable to look for the strength in others. You can gain nothing by criticizing their imperfections.
Daisaku IkedaRead
A great work of art is one that truly moves and inspires you. You yourself must be moved. Don't look at art with others' eyes. Don't listen to music with others' ears. You must react to art with your own feelings, your own heart and mind.
Interpretation
Art should evoke personal emotions and reactions rather than being evaluated through the opinions of others.
This quote by Daisaku Ikeda emphasizes the importance of individual perception in experiencing art. It suggests that to truly appreciate any artistic work—be it painting, music, or any other form—you must engage with it on a personal level. This means allowing your own feelings, thoughts, and experiences to guide your understanding and enjoyment, rather than conforming to what others perceive or value.
In practice
In a discussion about the impact of a recent art exhibition.
It is much more valuable to look for the strength in others. You can gain nothing by criticizing their imperfections.
There’s no need for us to be held back by the past or how things have been so far. The important thing is what seeds we are sowing now for the future.
True love should be transformative; a process that amplifies our capacity to cherish not just one person but all people. It can make us stronger, lift us higher and deepen us as individuals. Only to the extent that we polish ourselves now can we hope to develop wonderful bonds of the heart in the future.
Let us give something to each person we meet: joy, courage, hope, assurance, or philosophy, wisdom, a vision for the future. Let us always give something.
Just as a diamond can only be polished by another diamond, it is only through genuine, all-out engagement with others that people can polish their character, and help each other to reach greater heights.
Creating harmony amidst diversity is a fundamental issue of the twenty-first century. While celebrating the unique characteristics of different peoples and cultures, we have to create solidarity on the level of our common humanity, our common life. Without such solidarity, there will be no future for the human race. Diversity should not beget conflict in the world, but richness.
Everybody was wearing rhinestones, all those sparkly clothes, and cowboy boots. I decided to wear a black shirt and pants and see if I could get by with it. I did and I've worn black clothes ever since.
I spend a lot of my time talking to the dead, but since I get paid for it, no one thinks I'm mad.
Let me stop there, but my God, how beautiful Shakespeare is, who else is as mysterious as he is; his language and method are like a brush trembling with excitement and ecstasy. But one must learn to read, just as one must learn to see and learn to live.
I love writing. I love the swirl and swing of words as they tangle with human emotions.
I have loved movies as the number one thing in my life so long that I can't ever remember a time when I didn't.
What is Art? It is the response of man's creative soul to the call of the Real.
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