12 Inspirational Dalai Lama Quotes To Help You Live A Happy Life

The 14^th and current Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso is the longest lived incumbent.

According to Buddhists beliefs, the Dalai Lama is a reincarnation whose only wish is to bring peace to everyone all over the world. The Dalai Lama is known for his very insightful and soul touching verses.

Below are some of the Dalai Lama’s most inspirational quotes on happiness!

1. On being a better person:

“The goal is not to be better than the other man, but your previous self.”

2. On caring for others:

“I believe that the very purpose of life is to be happy. From the very core of our being, we desire contentment. In my own limited experience I have found that the more we care for the happiness of others, the greater is our own sense of well-being. Cultivating a close, warmhearted feeling for others automatically puts the mind at ease. It helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter. It is the principal source of success in life. Since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. The key is to develop inner peace.”

3. On being to self-centered:

Too much self-centered attitude, you see, brings, you see, isolation. Result: loneliness, fear, anger. The extreme self-centered attitude is the source of suffering.

4. On suffering and anxiety:

Physical comforts cannot subdue mental suffering, and if we look closely, we can see that those who have many possessions are not necessarily happy. In fact, being wealthy often brings even more anxiety.

5. On strength and hope:

When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways – either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength. Thanks to the teachings of Buddha, I have been able to take this second way.

6. On living a happy life:

“The very purpose of our life is happiness, which is sustained by hope. We have no guarantee about the future, but we exist in the hope of something better. Hope means keeping going, thinking, ‘I can do this.’ It brings inner strength, self-confidence, the ability to do what you do honestly, truthfully and transparently.”

7. On compassion:

“If you let anger destroy your peace of mind, it will eventually ruin your own health. So keep compassion ― your mind will remain clear. If you develop full compassion, not let anger or hatred in, then after constant effort for days and months and years, decades, your mental state can change, that much I can tell you through my own little experience.”

8. On tolerance and patience:

Hard times build determination and inner strength. Through them we can also come to appreciate the uselessness of anger. Instead of getting angry nurture a deep caring and respect for troublemakers because by creating such trying circumstances they provide us with invaluable opportunities to practice tolerance and patience.” 

9.     On being content:

“When you are discontent, you always want more, more, more. Your desire can never be satisfied. But when you practice contentment, you can say to yourself, ‘Oh yes — I already have everything that I really need.”

10. On living a meaningful life:

“We are but visitors on this planet. We are here for ninety or one hundred years at the very most. During that period, we must try to do something good, something useful with our lives. If you contribute to other people’s happiness, you will find the true goal, the true meaning of life.”

11. On religion the Dalai Lama says:

“Whether you believe in God or not does not matter so much, whether you believe in Buddha or not does not matter so much; as a Buddhist, whether you believe in reincarnation or not does not matter so much. You must lead a good life. And a good life does not mean just good food, good clothes, and good shelter. These are not sufficient. A good motivation is what is needed: compassion, without dogmatism, without complicated philosophy; just understanding that others are human brothers and sisters and respecting their rights and human dignity.”

12. On responding and handling difficult situation:

“Although you may not always be able to avoid difficult situations, you can modify the extent to which you can suffer by how you choose to respond to the situation.”

Stefany Liefeld is on a lifelong mission to help people stay positive on their life journey and become their greatest version. She loves babies and all things creative and unusual. Grab her free resource list: 36 Life Changing Resources for a Happier Life.

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