Quotes to inspire and reflect

I cannot teach you violence, as I do not believe in it. I can only teach you not to bow your heads before anyone, even at the cost of your life.

I am prepared to die, but there is no cause for which I am prepared to kill.

Honest differences are often a healthy sign of progress.

Hatred can be overcome only by love.

Golden fetters are no less galling to a self-respecting man than iron ones: the sting lies in the fetters, not in the metal.

Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony.

Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath of life. What would a man not pay for living?

Freedom is not worth having if it does not include the freedom to make mistakes.

Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.

Fear has its use, but cowardice has none.

Every worthwhile accomplishment, big or little, has its stages of drudgery and triumph: a beginning, a struggle, and a victory.

Every one of us must find his peace from within. And peace, to be real, must be unaffected by outside circumstance.

Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth.

Even as wisdom often comes from the mouths of babes, so does it often come from the mouths of old people. The golden rule is to test everything in the light of reason and experience, no matter from where it comes.

Confession of errors is like a broom which sweeps away the dirt and leaves the surface brighter and clearer.

Distinguish between real needs and artificial wants and control the latter.

Common sense is a realized sense of proportion.

Champions are made from something they have deep inside them: a desire, a dream, a vision.

Breach of promise is a base surrender of truth.

Birth and death are not two different states, but they are different aspects of the same state. There is as little reason to deplore the one as there is to be pleased about the other.

A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history.

Be congruent, be authentic, be your true self.

A person who is worried about the outcome of his work does not see his goal; he sees only his opposition and the obstacles before him.

A religion that takes no account of practical affairs and does not help to solve them is no religion.

An unjust law is itself a species of violence. Arrest for its breach is more so.

As human beings, our greatness lies not so much in being able to remake the world (that is the myth of the atomic age) as in being able to remake ourselves.

An ounce of patience is worth more than tons of preaching.

A ‘No’ uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a ‘Yes’ merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble.

An opponent is entitled to the same regard for his principles as we would expect others to have for ours. Non-violence demands that we should see every opportunity to win over opponents.

[…] anger controlled can be transmitted into a power that can move the world.

Anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct understanding.

An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation; nor does truth become error because nobody sees it.

A nation’s culture resides in the hearts and in the soul of its people.

A man of character will make himself worthy of any position he is given.

A man is but the product of his thoughts; what he thinks, he becomes.

Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.

All compromise is based on give and take, but there can be no give and take on fundamentals. Any compromise on mere fundamentals is a surrender; for it is all give and no take.

All your scholarship would be in vain if at the same time you do not build your character and attain mastery over your thoughts and your actions.

All business depends upon men fulfilling their responsibilities.

Adaptability is not imitation. It means power of resistance and assimilation.

This is the farmer sowing the corn, That kept the cock that crowed in the morn, That waked the priest all shaven and shorn, That married the man all tattered and torn, That kissed the maiden all forlorn, That milked the cow with the crumpled horn, That tossed the dog That worried the cat That killed the rat That ate the malt That lay in the house that Jack built.

A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is the prerogative of the brave.

There was a man in our town, And he was wondrous wise; He jumped into a bramble bush And scratched out both his eyes.

There were two blackbirds, Sitting on a hill, The one named Jack, The other named Jill; Fly away, Jack! Fly away, Jill! Come again, Jack! Come again, Jill!

Sing, sing! What shall I sing? The cat’s run away with the pudding-bag string.

Shoe the horse, shoe the mare, But let the little colt go bare.

Bobby Shaftoe’s gone to sea, Silver buckles on his knee; He’ll come back and marry me, Pretty Bobby Shaftoe.

Fe fi fo fum! I smell the blood of an Englishman; Be he alive or be he dead, I’ll grind his bones to make my bread.