These Buddha quotes will open your mind and guide you to work on yourself to be a better person.
Our life consists of searching for truth and eternal peace. By learning the teachings of Buddha, we can be guided to the path toward enlightenment. With his teachings that covered broad topics such as love, life, suffering, and self, we’re sure you’ll learn something you can apply in your daily life.
Aside from that, his teachings will also help you have a deeper understanding of life.
So, if you want to learn more about Buddha’s knowledge, don’t miss out on the collection we’ve created for you below.
Start reading here.
Best Buddha Quotes
1. “The past is already gone. The future is not yet here. There’s only one moment for you to live.”
2. “Radiate boundless love towards the entire world.”
3. “If anything is worth doing, do it with all your heart.”
4. “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles, then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.”
5. “The secret of health for both mind and body is not to mourn for the past, nor to worry about the future, but to live the present moment wisely and earnestly.”
6. “Be where you are. Otherwise, you will miss your life.”
7. “Conquer anger with non-anger. Conquer badness with goodness. Conquer meanness with generosity. Conquer dishonesty with truth.”
8. “One who conquers himself is greater than another who conquers a thousand times a thousand men on the battlefield. Be victorious over yourself and not over others.”
9. “The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart.”
10. “Every morning, we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.”
11. “No one saves us but ourselves. No one can, and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.”
12. “A disciplined mind brings happiness.”
13. “To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one’s own in the midst of abundance.”
14. “An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.”
15. “You must love yourself before you love another. By accepting yourself and fully being what you are, your simple presence can make others happy.”
Positive Buddha Quotes to Inspire You
16. “Better it is to live one day seeing the rise and fall of things than to live a hundred years without ever seeing the rise and fall of things.”
17. “In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.”
18. “Live every act fully, as if it were your last.”
19. “You can search throughout the entire universe for someone who is more deserving of your love and affection than you are yourself, and that person is not to be found anywhere. You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.”
20. “Your own self is your master. Who else could be? With yourself well controlled, you gain a master very hard to find.”
21. “Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.”
22. “If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.”
23. “One moment can change a day, one day can change a life, and one life can change the world.”
24. “Don’t rush anything. When the time is right, it’ll happen.”
25. “I never see what has been done. I only see what remains to be done.”
Also read: Positive Quotes, Inspirational Quotes
Buddha Quotes About Life
26. “Understanding is the heartwood of well-spoken words.”
27. “Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind. To walk safely through the maze of human life, one needs the light of wisdom and the guidance of virtue.”
28. “When it hurts, observe. Life is trying to teach you something.”
29. “Those who cling to perceptions and views wander the world offending people.”
30. “Should a seeker not find a companion who is better or equal, let them resolutely pursue a solitary course.”
31. “The world is afflicted by death and decay. But the wise do not grieve, having realized the nature of the world.”
32. “Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.”
33. “They blame those who remain silent, they blame those who speak much, they blame those who speak in moderation. There is none in the world who is not blamed.”
34. “Live with no sense of ‘mine,’ not forming an attachment to experiences.”
35. “Whatever has the nature of arising has the nature of ceasing.”
36. “On life’s journey, faith is nourishment, virtuous deeds are a shelter, wisdom is the light by day, and right mindfulness is the protection by night. If a man lives a pure life, nothing can destroy him.”
37. “You don’t have a soul. You are a soul. You have a body.”
38. “When watching after yourself, you watch after others. When watching after others, you watch after yourself.”
39. “He who loves 50 people has 50 woes. He who loves no one has no woes.”
Meaningful Buddha Quotes That Will Expand Your Mind
40. “All experiences are preceded by the mind. Having mind as their master, created by mind.”
41. “Conquer anger through gentleness, unkindness through kindness, greed through generosity, and falsehood by truth.”
42. “Ceasing to do evil, cultivating the good, purifying the heart, this is the teaching of the Buddhas.”
43. “Purity and impurity depend on oneself. No one can purify another.”
44. “Quiet the mind, and the soul will speak.”
45. “I will not look at another’s bowl intent on finding fault: a training to be observed.”
46. “Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over and over again.”
47. “All wrong-doing arises because of mind. If the mind is transformed, can wrong-doing remain?”
48. “Just as a solid rock is not shaken by the storm, even so, the wise are not affected by praise or blame.”
49. “Drop by drop is the water pot filled. Likewise, the wise man, gathering it little by little, fills himself with good.”
50. “All tremble at violence. All fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill.”
51. “The one in whom no longer exist the craving and thirst that perpetuate becoming. How could you track that Awakened One, trackless, and of limitless range.”
52. “Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines, but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes.”
53. “Nothing ever exists entirely alone. Everything is in relation to everything else.”
54. “We are shaped by our thoughts. We become what we think. When the mind is pure, joy follows like a shadow that never leaves.”
Also read: Meaningful Quotes, Quotes to Live By
Insightful Buddha Quotes
55. “A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again, but is he peaceful, loving, and fearless then he is in truth called wise.”
56. “Whatever precious jewel there is in the heavenly worlds, there is nothing comparable to one who is Awakened.”
57. “One is not called noble who harms living beings. By not harming living beings, one is called noble.”
58. “Hatred is never appeased by hatred in this world. By non-hatred alone is hatred appeased. This is a law eternal.”
59. “Should you find a wise critic to point out your faults, follow him as you would a guide to hidden treasure.”
60. “As a water bead on a lotus leaf, as water on a red lily does not adhere, so the sage does not adhere to the seen, the heard, or the sensed.”
61. “Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.”
Buddha Quotes About Love
62. “True love is born from understanding.”
63. “Love the whole world as a mother loves her only child.”
64. “Love is a gift of one’s innermost soul to another so both can be whole.”
65. “The way to happiness is, keep your heart free from hate, your mind from worry. Live simply, give much. Fill your life with love. Do as you would be done by.”
66. “If you truly loved yourself, you could never hurt another.”
67. “We will develop love, we will practice it, we will make it both a way and a basis.”
Also read: True Love Quotes
Buddha Quotes on Peace
68. “Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.”
69. “Those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace.”
70. “Better than a thousand hollow words is one word that brings peace.”
71. “Resolutely train yourself to attain peace.”
72. “Do not look for a sanctuary in anyone except yourself.”
73. “Learn this from water: loud splashes the brook, but the oceans’ depth are calm.”
Powerful Buddha Quotes on Happiness
74. “Thousands of candles can be lighted from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.”
75. “Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others.”
76. “There is no path to happiness. Happiness is the path.”
77. “It is ridiculous to think that somebody else can make you happy or unhappy.”
78. “Happiness is not having a lot. Happiness is giving a lot.”
79. “Happiness does not depend on what you have or who you are. It solely relies on what you think.”
80. “If with a pure mind a person speaks or acts, happiness follows them like a never-departing shadow.”
81. “To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one’s family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one’s own mind. If a man can control his mind, he can find the way to enlightenment, and all wisdom and virtue will naturally come to him.”
82. “Whatever living beings there may be, feeble or strong, long, stout, or of medium size, short, small, large, those seen or those unseen, those dwelling far or near, those who are born as well as those yet to be born—may all beings have happy minds.”
83. “Whatever is not yours, let go of it. Your letting go of it will be for your long-term happiness and benefit.”
Buddha Quotes on Suffering and How to Overcome It
84. “All conditioned things are impermanent. When one sees this with wisdom, one turns away from suffering.”
85. “Pain is certain. Suffering is optional.”
86. “The root of suffering is attachment.”
87. “Have compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike. Each has their suffering. Some suffer too much, others too little.”
88. “Our life is shaped by our mind. We become what we think. Suffering follows an evil thought as the wheels of a cart follow the oxen that draw it. Our life is shaped by our mind. We become what we think.”
89. “Suffering is not holding you, you are holding suffering.”
Buddha Quotes to Have a Deeper Understanding of Meditation
90. “Meditation brings wisdom. Lack of meditation leaves ignorance.”
91. “If you meditate earnestly, pure in mind and kind in deeds, leading a disciplined life in harmony with the dharma, you will grow in glory. If you meditate earnestly, through spiritual disciplines, you can make an island for yourself that no flood can overwhelm.”
92. “If you are quiet enough, you will hear the flow of the universe. You will feel its rhythm. Go with this flow. Happiness lies ahead. Meditation is key.”
93. “Meditate. Do not delay, lest you later regret it.”
94. “Don’t run after pleasure and neglect the practice of meditation. If you forget the goal of life and get caught in the pleasures of the world, you will come to envy those who put meditation first.”
Buddha Quotes That Tell You More About Change
95. “Change is never painful. Only resistance to change is painful.”
96. “Nothing remains without change.”
97. “It seems that although we thought ourselves permanent, we are not. Although we thought ourselves settled, we are not. Although we thought we would last forever, we will not.”
Buddha Quotes on Forgiveness
98. “To understand everything is to forgive everything.”
99. “Remembering a wrong is like carrying a burden on the mind.”
100. “It is in the nature of things that joy arises in a person free from remorse.”
Deep Buddha Quotes That Will Shift Your Perspective About Everything
101. “Good people keep on walking whatever happens. They do not speak vain words and are the same in good fortune and bad. If one desires neither children nor wealth nor power nor success by unfair means, know such a one to be good, wise, and virtuous.”
102. “Just as the great ocean has one taste, the taste of salt, so also this teaching and discipline have one taste, the taste of liberation.”
103. “I do not dispute with the world. Rather, it is the world that disputes with me.”
104. “Train your eyes and ears. Train your nose and tongue. The senses are good friends when they are trained. Train your body in deeds, train your tongue in words, train your mind in thoughts. This training will take you beyond sorrow.”
105. “Let none find fault with others. Let none see the omissions and commissions of others. But let one see one’s own acts, done and undone.”
106. “It is easy to see the faults of others, but difficult to see one’s own faults. One shows the faults of others like chaff winnowed in the wind, but one conceals one’s own faults as a cunning gambler conceals his dice.”
107. “There is no fear for one whose mind is not filled with desires.”
108. “In whom there is no sympathy for living beings, know him as an outcast.”
109. “Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes.”
110. “Not by rituals and resolutions, nor by much learning, nor by celibacy, nor even by meditation can you find the supreme, immortal joy of nirvana until you extinguish your self-will.”
111. “Silence the angry man with love. Silence the ill-natured man with kindness. Silence the miser with generosity. Silence the liar with truth.”
112. “Everything that happens to us is the result of what we ourselves have thought, said, or done. We alone are responsible for our lives.”
113. “Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking and pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness.”
114. “The greatest gift is to give people your enlightenment, to share it. It has to be the greatest.”
115. “The external world is only a manifestation of the activities of the mind itself, and the mind grasps it as an external world simply because of its habit of discrimination and false reasoning. The disciple must get into the habit of looking at things truthfully.”
Buddha Quotes on Gratitude and Appreciation
116. “Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die. So, let us all be thankful.”
117. “Imagine that every person in the world is enlightened but you. They are all your teachers, each doing just the right things to help you.”
118. “If you light a lamp for somebody, it will also brighten your path.”
119. “Faith and prayer both are invisible, but they make impossible things possible.”
120. “There isn’t enough darkness in all the world to snuff out the light of one little candle.”
Buddha Quotes to Assist You in Managing Your Anger
121. “Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else. You are the one who gets burned.”
122. “You will not be punished for your anger. You will be punished by your anger.”
123. “Holding on to anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.”
124. “In a controversy, the instant we feel anger, we have already ceased striving for the truth and have begun striving for ourselves.”
125. “Let him not deceive another nor despise anyone anywhere. In anger or ill-will, let him not wish another ill.”
126. “Anger will never disappear so long as thoughts of resentment are cherished in the mind. Anger will disappear just as soon as thoughts of resentment are forgotten.”
127. “Be truthful. Do not yield to anger.”
128. “He who can curb his wrath as soon as it arises, as a timely antidote will check snake’s venom that so quickly spreads, such a monk gives up the here and the beyond, just as a serpent sheds its worn-out skin.”
129. “Leave behind confused reactions and become patient as the earth, unmoved by anger, unshaken as a pillar, unperturbed as a clear and quiet pool.”
Buddha Quotes That Will Motivate You to Be Compassionate
130. “We will develop and cultivate the liberation of mind by lovingkindness, make it our vehicle, make it our basis, stabilize it, exercise ourselves in it, and fully perfect it.”
131. “Kindness should become the natural way of life, not the exception.”
132. “Teach this triple truth to all: a generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things which renew humanity.”
133. “Set your heart on doing good. Do it over and over again, and you will be filled with joy.”
134. “It is better to do nothing than to do what is wrong. For whatever you do, you do to yourself.”
135. “Words have the power to both destroy and heal. When words are both true and kind, they can change our world.”
136. “Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care, for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill.”
137. “In separateness lies the world’s greatest misery. In compassion lies the world’s true strength.”
138. “Should a person do good, let him do it again and again. Let him find pleasure therein, for blissful is the accumulation of good.”
139. “If you propose to speak, always ask yourself: is it true, is it necessary, is it kind.”
140. “If you knew what I know about the power of giving, you would not let a single meal pass without sharing it in some way.”
Short Buddha Quotes That Are Full of Truth
141. “You only lose what you cling to.”
142. “Delight in heedfulness! Guard well your thoughts!”
143. “You cannot travel the path until you have become the path itself.”
144. “If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.”
145. “Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely.”
146. “The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows.”
147. “The trouble is, you think you have time.”
148. “The tongue like a sharp knife kills without drawing blood.”
149. “Nothing can harm you as much as your own thoughts unguarded.”
150. “Better than worshiping gods is obedience to the laws of righteousness.”
151. “Chaos is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence.”
152. “To abstain from lying is essentially wholesome.”
153. “Health is the greatest gift. Contentment is the greatest wealth.”
154. “With mindfulness, strive on.”
155. “Avoid evil deeds as a man who loves life avoids poison.”
Also read: Short Quotes
Enlightening Buddha Quotes About Karma
156. “I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act, but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act.”
157. “Someone who has set out in the vehicle of a Bodhisattva should decide that ‘I must lead all the beings to nirvana, into that realm of nirvana which leaves nothing behind.’ What is this realm of nirvana which leaves nothing behind?”
158. “Neither fire, nor wind, birth, nor death, can erase our good deeds.”
Buddha Quotes to Help You Achieve Inner Peace
159. “The whole secret of existence is to have no fear. Never fear what will become of you. Depend on no one. Only the moment you reject all help are you freed.”
160. “If the problem can be solved, why worry? If the problem cannot be solved, worrying will do you no good.”
161. “When you attain victory over yourself, not even the gods can turn it into defeat.”
162. “One should strive to understand what underlies sufferings and diseases, and aim for health and well-being while gaining in the path.”
163. “There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth. Not going all the way, and not starting.”
164. “Everything that has a beginning has an ending. Make your peace with that, and all will be well.”
165. “The wise ones fashioned speech with their thought, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve.”
166. “Those who have failed to work toward the truth have missed the purpose of living.”
167. “In the end, these things matter most: how well did you love, how fully did you live, how deeply did you let go.”
168. “If you want to fly, give up everything that weighs you down.”
169. “What you are is what you have been. What you’ll be is what you do now.”
170. “All suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their own happiness or satisfaction.”
Buddha Quotes That Everyone Needs to Read
171. “It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.”
172. “The foolish man conceives the idea of ‘self.’ The wise man sees there is no ground on which to build the idea of ‘self;’ thus, he has a right conception of the world and well concludes that all compounds amassed by sorrow will be dissolved again, but the truth will remain.”
173. “There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it.”
174. “If you are facing in the right direction, all you need to do is keep on walking.”
175. “What we are today comes from our thoughts of yesterday, and our present thoughts build our life of tomorrow. Our life is the creation of our mind.”
176. “When one has the feeling of dislike for evil, when one feels tranquil, one finds pleasure in listening to good teachings. When one has these feelings and appreciates them, one is free of fear.”
Wise Buddha Quotes
177. “Your work is to discover your work, and then, with all your heart, to give yourself to it.”
178. “To be idle is a short road to death, and to be diligent is a way of life. Foolish people are idle. Wise people are diligent.”
179. “Speak or act with an impure mind, and trouble will follow you.”
180. “Believe nothing, no matter where you read it or who said it, no matter if I have said it unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”
181. “Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good.”
182. “There is nothing so disobedient as an undisciplined mind, and there is nothing so obedient as a disciplined mind.”
183. “An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast. A wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind.”
184. “If a man going down into a river, swollen and swiftly flowing, is carried away by the current, how can he help others across?”
185. “As I am, so are these. As are these, so am I. Drawing the parallel to yourself, neither kill nor get others to kill.”
186. “If we fail to look after others when they need help, who will look after us?”
187. “Know from the rivers in clefts and in crevices, those in small channels flow noisily, the great flow silent. Whatever’s not full makes noise. Whatever is full is quiet.”
188. “A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker. A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker.”
189. “However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act on upon them?”
Buddha Quotes on Taking Care of Your Health
190. “To keep the body in good health is a duty. Otherwise, we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.”
191. “Health is the best gift, contentment the best wealth, trust the best kinsman, nirvana the greatest joy. Drink the nectar of the dharma in the depths of meditation, and become free from fear and sin.”
192. “Without health, life is not life. It is only a state of languor and suffering an image of death.”
193. “Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.”
194. “Your body is precious. It is our vehicle for awakening. Treat it with care.”
More Buddha Quotes That Will Widen Your Knowledge
195. “Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.”
196. “In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west. People create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.”
197. “There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that disintegrates friendships and breaks up pleasant relations. It is a thorn that irritates and hurts. It is a sword that kills.”
198. “It is better to travel well than to arrive.”
199. “You yourself must strive. The Buddhas only point the way.”
200. “Ambition is like love, impatient both of delays and rivals.”
What Is the Biggest Lesson You’ve Learned From These Buddha Quotes?
Reading the teachings of Buddha can have a significant impact on our lives. By learning about suffering and non-permanence, we can change our perspectives on many things. It allows us to reassess our identities and the things we have done.
Above all, he shows us how to achieve inner peace and freedom. Being human means that we can feel negative emotions that can hurt others. But, through Buddhism, we can practice the cessation of suffering and walk the path towards contentment and love.
Many scholars believe that the first Buddha existed in the 6th century B.C.; a lot of the records that we look at now can only be confirmed to be true if we’re actually knowledgeable about the scriptures. Many websites deem some of Buddha’s quotes to be fake or unconfirmed. But, one thing is true: all the records attributed to him are wise and full of insights that we can apply in various aspects of our lives.
Buddha was once human; yet, his work on himself filled him with peace and self-awareness that extended to his followers. Like him, we can also be better versions of ourselves through proper practice. We hope we were able to give justice to Buddha’s teachings through this collection.
Did you learn a lot from our Buddha quotes? Which Buddha quote affected you the most? Comment your answers below!
