My Favorite Quotes
The quotes are in random order.
What is not defined cannot be measured. What is not measured cannot be improved. What is not improved always deteriorates.
The true measure of a man is what he would do if he knew he would never be caught.
Not all humans are humane. A human being has to learn how to become humane. That process can go terribly wrong. Children's brains grow and are molded by people around them. Under proper conditions they develop empathy. In the absence of proper conditions they develop cruelty and indifference.
The family is a microcosm. By knowing how to heal the family, I know how to heal the world.
The BEST thing for the human nervous system is a human being. The WORST thing for a human being is also a human being.
The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.
Anything worth doing is worth doing poorly. I don't aim at perfection. I try to be progressively less stupid.
Anger, Depression, Guilt and Shame are tragic expression of unmet needs.
Self-Talk
I tell myself the following statements at appropriate times.
It is none of my business.
Let me mind my own business.
Not so fast.
It's OK.
"I don't know". Let me hold on to that when I don't know for sure. Else say "I guess so and so" or "I have to find out".
I don't know one bit about this person. It is nonsense to judge him/her.
Surya
Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.
We wish others "Happy new year" once a year. Why not "Happy new month" every month, "Happy new week" every week and "Happy new day" every morning and "Happy new moment" every moment. And by the way 'What is Happiness?'
Surya
Our lives begin and end the day we remain silent about things that matter.
Every morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.
If I want my tomorrow to be different from yesterday, I have to do some things differently today from how I did them yesterday.
We can't arrive exactly on time. We arrive a few seconds or minutes early or late.
If we definitely don't want to be late, we have to definitely arrive early.
Same here: To definitely achieve a target, we have to definitely exceed it. If we don't exceed, we will fall short.
Surya
Too many people spend their lives being dutiful descendants instead of good ancestors. The responsibility of each generation is not to please their predecessors. It is to improve things for their offspring. It is more important to make your children proud than to make your parents proud.
It's hard enough to love the people you love without having to love the people they love.
Author not known
The 12 hardest things I am learning to say:
It's like this.
Tell me more.
I don't know.
I know.
No
Yes
I was wrong.
Good enough.
I love you.
(Be silent - No words at all)
Onward
This is it.
I believe that whenever we diminish and disregard another person, we also diminish our own self.
The challenge of conversation is not just in being our self but in choosing our self, since what we call self is constantly reinvented through interactions with others. The self is always under construction.
My article on same topic "One living self and infinite dead selves".
Human beings are flawed, and if forgiveness for bad behavior is denied, then we are in trouble.
George Washington basically failed his way to success.
Every morning I get 16 one hour time coupons - 6 to 7am, 7 to 8am, so on, ending with 9 to 10pm. Every time coupon expires at the end of the hour. I can either use them to move towards my goals or let them expire.
Surya
You can listen like a blank wall or like a splendid auditorium where every sound comes back fuller and richer.
The Buddha asked his disciples "How long is your life?
His disciples gave different answers - "May be fifty years?"
"Months?" "Days?" "Weeks?".
He said "Wrong, wrong. Our life is only one breath"
I understand from this that we should focus intensely and unwaveringly, on each and every breath. We should notice its continuous changes in speed, depth and accompanying body sensations like coolness and warmth in the nose and expansion and contraction of the abdomen and chest, as though it is our last breath.It's is more important to know what sort of person has a disease than to know what sort of disease a person has.
You can call on human beings to make noble sacrifices for almost any worthy cause. But just don't ask them to give up their suffering!
Never miss a good chance to shut up.
The important thing is to never stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence.
It takes two to speak the truth - one to speak and the other to hear.
When I don't know something, let me not blurt out something. Let me admit like a child "I don't know" and happily hold on to that statement again like a child. If my answer is a guess, let me say "I guess .....". This approach will not put me or others on the wrong track. We will find the truth some time.
One who has a WILL, will find a WAY.
Surya
The first 20 miles are not difficult. As for last six miles, I run while talking to God.
Over 1.5 million years of human existence, it is only for about past one hundred years that most people have gone to anyone other than the oldest person they know for solutions to life’s problems.
Between the optimist and the pessimist, the difference is droll -
The optimist sees the doughnut
And the pessimist sees the hole!
Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill.
Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.
Chase after money and security and your will never unclench.
Care about people's approval and you will be their prisoner.
Do your work then step back - The only path to serenity.
What we think as ‘LACK OF’ energy, is often ‘LOCKED UP’ energy.
When you have the ‘WILL’, ‘POWER’ will follow it like a slave.
Sorry I can’t place myself in another person’s shoes. My feet are glued to my shoes! May be the other person’s feet are also glued to their shoes. No wonder we can't understand each other.
An open mind is one that is equally open to ‘Belief’ and ‘Disbelief’.
What are the most difficult things to ‘GET’ and ‘GIVE’? They are ‘ForGET’ and ‘ForGIVE’.
Surya
You should remember you are at least three distinct and separate individuals.
First, you are the person who, at the time of your consideration, really exists.
Second, you are the person whom you believe exists.
Third, you are the person who others see and believe is you.
Dialogue between a journalist and Mother Teresa
Journalist: What do you do in your prayer?
Mother Teresa: I listen to God.
Journalist: What does God do?
Mother Teresa: HE also listens.
God does not require that we be successful – only we be faithful.
At 100, I have a mind that is superior, thanks to experience than when I was 20.
Not everything that counts can be counted.
We have two ears and one mouth. We should use them proportionally.
Never miss a good chance to shut up.
The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its own reason for existence.
Listening is not merely not talking, though even that is beyond most of our powers. It means a taking vigorous, human interest in what is being told to us.
You can listen like a blank wall or like a splendid auditorium where every sound comes back richer and fuller.
When people don't express themselves, they die one piece at a time.
Most people see the problem of love primarily as that of being loved, rather being that of loving. Love is primarily, giving not receiving. Love is the Active concern for the life and growth of that which we love.
There is no happiness if the things we believe in are different from things we do.
Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.
As soon as a man comes to life, he is at once old enough to die.
The ability to observe without evaluating, is the highest form of intelligence.
When I am seeing things as they are and not imagining (my mind is clear) and I have no ill will, hatred etc. (my heart is clean) and I speak respectfully, I don't have to be afraid of even God, let alone any human being.
Surya
