The capacity to devote yourself to the welfare of others yields otherwise unobtainable power and potential for good. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? This quote is about one of the most powerful forces on the planet, the human capacity for love. Isn’t that a good definition for why people will put effort into the welfare…
The great use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it. – William James What does that mean? What do we do with our lives? Yes, we eat and work and sleep and play, but when it is all said and done, what do we leave behind? To me, this is…
A life is not important except in the impact it has on other lives. – Jackie Robinson What does that mean? It can be kind of hard to admit, but with over 6 Billion other humans on the planet, we’re not all that significant in the overall scheme of things. To me, that is what the quote is saying. We don’t matter, we’re not important, with one significant…
It is important that when pursing our own self-interest we should be “wise selfish” and not “foolish selfish”. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? This is another Twitter-friendly shortened quote. The full quote is: It is important that when pursing our own self-interest we should be “wise selfish” and not “foolish selfish”. Being foolish selfish…
The problem with the world is that we draw our family circle too small. – Mother Teresa What does that mean? To me, the quote is telling us that we treat people in different manners depending on the label we have given to them. Typically immediate family has highest priority, then come more distant relations…
The things you do for yourself are gone when you are gone, but the things you do for others remain as your legacy. – Kalu Kalu (unable to find Bio info – anyone?) What does that mean? This quote talks about motivation. If your motivation directed inward, to do things for your own benefit, they…
If thy brother wrongs thee, remember not so much his wrong-doing, but more than ever that he is thy brother. – Epictetus What does that mean? This is an old translation which I’d like to make sound a little more modern: “If your friend wrongs you, don’t focus on their wrong-doing, instead focus on the…
Someone’s sitting in the shade today because someone planted a tree a long time ago. – Les Brown What does that mean? To me, this is about being kind, but with a very broad target, and thinking far into the future. Trees take a fairly long time to be useful. Even the quick growing trees…
The practice of cultivating altruism has a beneficial effect not only from a religious point of view but also from a mundane point of view. – Dalai Lama What does that mean? At theFreeDictionary.com, altruism is defined as “Unselfish concern for the welfare of others; selflessness.” So this saying, using a substitution becomes “The practice of showing…
First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win. – Mohandas Gandhi What does that mean? This is the block diagram for the path of peaceful resistance. They start by pretending you are insignificant. Then they make fun of you, trying to demean or dismiss your movement and/or objective….
