The Buddha has helped millions of people around the world live their lives with peace and calm. Because of this, I have uncovered some of the most notable and iconic Buddha quotes to absorb this wisdom and show appreciation. 🕉
Below, you will find a wide range of Buddha quotes which are great for those who want some clarity, perspective, grounding, and some light in a dark time.
Side note: If I have missed any iconic or must have Buddha quotes, please share them in the comments and I will be more than happy to include them in future updates! 😃
137+ Inspiring Buddha Quotes & Sayings
1. “I am the miracle.” – Buddha
2. “A jug fills drop by drop.” – Buddha
3. “Born out of concern for all beings.” – Buddha
4. “May all beings have happy minds.” – Buddha
5. “True love is born from understanding.” – Buddha
6. “Give, even if you only have a little.” – Buddha
7. “Live every act fully, as if it were your last.” – Buddha
8. “The root of suffering is attachment.” – Buddha
9. “Wear your ego like a loose-fitting garment.” – Buddha
10. “Meditate do not delay, lest you later regret it.” – Buddha
11. “All that we are is the result of what we have thought.” – Buddha
12. “The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart.” – Buddha
13. “Do not look for a sanctuary in anyone except your self.” – Buddha
14. “One who acts on truth is happy in this world and beyond.” – Buddha
15. “Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely.” – Buddha
16. “Radiate boundless love towards the entire world.” – Buddha
17. “If anything is worth doing, do it with all your heart.” – Buddha
18. “There is no fear for one whose mind is not filled with desires.” – Buddha
19. “Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.” -Buddha
20. “Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good.” – Buddha
21. “Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.” – Buddha
22. “Let all-embracing thoughts for all beings be yours.” – Buddha
23. “Ambition is like love, impatient both of delays and rivals.” – Buddha
24. “Kindness should become the natural way of life, not the exception.” – Buddha
25. “Stop, stop. Do not speak. The ultimate truth is not even to think.” – Buddha
26. “Whatever has the nature of arising has the nature of ceasing.” – Buddha
27. “Chaos is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence.” – Buddha
28. “Understanding is the heartwood of well-spoken words.” – Buddha
29. “People with opinions just go around bothering each other.” – Buddha
30. “If you find no one to support you on the spiritual path, walk alone.” – Buddha
31. “You yourself must strive. The Buddhas only point the way.” – Buddha
32. “Nothing can harm you as much as your own thoughts unguarded.” – Buddha
33. “Better than a thousand hollow words is one word that brings peace.” – Buddha
34. “It is in the nature of things that joy arises in a person free from remorse.” – Buddha
35. “The tongue like a sharp knife… Kills without drawing blood.” – Buddha
36. “Your body is precious. It is our vehicle for awakening. Treat it with care.” – Buddha
37. “You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.” – Buddha
38. “In whom there is no sympathy for living beings: know him as an outcast.” – Buddha
39. “Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes.” – Buddha
40. “What you are is what you have been. What you’ll be is what you do now.” – Buddha
41. “If you propose to speak always ask yourself, is it true, is it necessary, is it kind.” – Buddha
42. “He who loves 50 people has 50 woes; he who loves no one has no woes.” – Buddha
43. “Mind precedes all mental states. The mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought.” – Buddha
44. “Purity or impurity depends on oneself. No one can purify another.” – Buddha
45. “It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.” – Buddha
46. “Those who cling to perceptions and views wander the world offending people.” – Buddha
47. “Those attached to the notion ‘I am’ and to views roam the world offending people.” – Buddha
48. “Love is a gift of one’s innermost soul to another so both can be whole.” – Buddha
49. “Both formerly and now, it is only suffering that I describe, and the cessation of suffering.” – Buddha
50. “Nothing ever exists entirely alone; everything is in relation to everything else.” – Buddha
51. “Do not turn away what is given you, nor reach out for what is given to others, lest you disturb your quietness.” – Buddha
52. “I will not look at another’s bowl intent on finding fault: a training to be observed.” – Buddha
53. “I do not dispute with the world; rather it is the world that disputes with me.” – Buddha
54. “You, yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.” – Buddha
55. “She who knows life flows, feels no wear or tear, needs no mending or repair.” – Buddha
56. “Even as a solid rock is unshaken by the wind, so are the wise unshaken by praise or blame.” – Buddha
57. “Happiness comes when your work and words are of benefit to yourself and others.” – Buddha
58. “If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.” – Buddha
59. “The greatest gift is to give people your enlightenment, to share it. It has to be the greatest.” – Buddha
60. “As you walk and eat and travel, be where you are. Otherwise, you will miss most of your life.” – Buddha
61. “All experiences are preceded by mind, having mind as their master, created by the mind.” – Buddha
62. “The wise ones fashioned speech with their thought, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve.” – Buddha
63. “To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one’s own in the midst of abundance.” – Buddha
64. “Delight in meditation and solitude. Compose yourself, be happy. You are a seeker.” – Buddha
65. “One moment can change a day, one day can change a life and one life can change the world.” – Buddha
66. “Unity can only be manifested by the Binary. Unity itself and the idea of Unity are already two.” – Buddha
67. “We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.” – Buddha
68. “No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.” – Buddha
69. “Ceasing to do evil, cultivating the good, purifying the heart: this is the teaching of the Buddhas.” – Buddha
70. “An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.” – Buddha
71. “In separateness lies the world’s greatest misery; in compassion lies the world’s true strength.” – Buddha
72. “Looking deeply at life as it is in this very moment, the meditator dwells in stability and freedom.” – Buddha
73. “The true master lives in truth, in goodness and restraint, non-violence, moderation, and purity.” – Buddha
74. “Some do not understand that we must die, but those who do realize this settle their quarrels.” – Buddha
75. “Irrigators channel waters; fletchers straighten arrows; carpenters bend wood; the wise master themselves.” – Buddha
76. “If with a pure mind a person speaks or acts happiness follows him like his never-departing shadow.” – Buddha
77. “The instant we feel anger we have already ceased striving for the truth, and have begun striving for ourselves.” – Buddha
78. “Drop by drop is the water pot filled. Likewise, the wise man, gathering it little by little, fills himself with good.” – Buddha
79. “Should you find a wise critic to point out your faults, follow him as you would a guide to hidden treasure.” – Buddha
80. “One is not called noble who harms living beings. By not harming living beings one is called noble.” – Buddha
81. “Being deeply learned and skilled, being well trained, and using well-spoken words: this is good luck.” – Buddha
82. “As an elephant in the battlefield withstands arrows shot from bows all around, even so shall I endure abuse.” – Buddha
83. “Be a lamp for yourselves. Be your own refuge. Seek for no other. All things must pass. Strive on diligently. Don’t give up.” – Buddha
84. “When watching after yourself, you watch after others. When watching after others, you watch after yourself.” – Buddha
85. “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you.” – Buddha
86. “There is nothing so disobedient as an undisciplined mind, and there is nothing so obedient as a disciplined mind.” – Buddha
87. “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.” – Buddha
88. “Should a seeker not find a companion who is better or equal, let them resolutely pursue a solitary course.” – Buddha
89. “You are a seeker. Delight in the mastery of your hands and your feet, of your words and your thoughts.” – Buddha
90. “Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines, but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes.” – Buddha
91. “As I am, so are these. As are these, so am I.’ Drawing the parallel to yourself, neither kill nor get others to kill.” – Buddha
92. “There is no fire like passion, there is no shark like hatred, there is no snare like folly, there is no torrent like greed.” – Buddha
93. “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.” – Buddha
94. “Hatred does not cease through hatred at any time. Hatred ceases through love. This is an unalterable law.” – Buddha
95. “The one who has conquered himself is a far greater hero than he who has defeated a thousand times a thousand men.” – Buddha
96. “Speak the only endearing speech, speech that is welcomed. Speech, when it brings no evil to others, is a pleasant thing.” – Buddha
97. “Just as a mother would protect her only child with her life, even so, let one cultivate a boundless love towards all beings.” – Buddha
98. “Our life is shaped by our mind; we become what we think. Joy follows a pure thought like a shadow that never leaves.” – Buddha
99. “A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again; but if he is peaceful, loving and fearless then he is in truth called wise.” – Buddha
100. “Whatever precious jewel there is in the heavenly worlds, there is nothing comparable to one who is Awakened.” – Buddha
101. “Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking and pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness.” – Buddha
102. “All tremble at violence; all fear death. Putting oneself in the place of another, one should not kill nor cause another to kill.” – Buddha
103. “Long is the night to him who is awake; long is a mile to him who is tired; long is life to the foolish who do not know the true law.” – Buddha
104. “Should a person do good, let him do it again and again. Let him find pleasure therein, for blissful is the accumulation of good.” – Buddha
105. “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.” – Buddha
106. “Silence the angry man with love. Silence the ill-natured man with kindness. Silence the miser with generosity. Silence the liar with truth.” – Buddha
107. “Like a fine flower, beautiful to look at but without scent, fine words are fruitless in a man who does not act in accordance with them.” – Buddha
108. “Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill.” – Buddha
109. “He who sits alone, sleeps alone, and walks alone, who is strenuous and subdues himself alone, will find delight in the solitude of the forest.” – Buddha
110. “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.” – Buddha
111. “Praise and blame, gain and loss, pleasure, and sorrow come and go like the wind. To be happy, rest like a giant tree in the midst of them all.” – Buddha
112. “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.” – Buddha
113. “A mind unruffled by the vagaries of fortune, from sorrow freed, from defilements cleansed, from fear liberated — this is the greatest blessing.” – Buddha
114. “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.” – Buddha
115. “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.” – Buddha
116. “Our theories of the eternal are as valuable as are those which a chick which has not broken its way through its shell might form of the outside world.” – Buddha
117. “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.” – Buddha
118. “Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forward and what holds you back, and choose the path that leads to wisdom.” – Buddha
119. “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.” – Buddha
120. “Life is like the harp string, if it is strung too tight it won’t play, if it is too lose it hangs, the tension that produces the beautiful sound lies in the middle.” – Buddha
121. “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.” – Buddha
122. “See them, floundering in their sense of mine, like fish in the puddles of a dried-up stream — and, seeing this, live with no mine, not forming attachment for states of becoming.” – Buddha
123. “Meditation brings wisdom; lack of meditation leaves ignorance. Know well what leads you forward and what hold you back, and choose the path that leads to wisdom.” – Buddha
124. “We are formed and molded by our thoughts. Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts give joy when they speak or act. Joy follows them like a shadow that never leaves them.” – Buddha
125. “Offend in neither word nor deed. Eat with moderation. Live in your heart. Seek the highest consciousness. Master yourself according to the law. This is the simple teaching of the awakened.” – Buddha
126. “Everything is based on mind, is led by mind, is fashioned by mind. If you speak and act with a polluted mind, suffering will follow you, as the wheels of the oxcart follow the footsteps of the ox.” – Buddha
127. “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.” – Buddha
128. “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.” – Buddha
129. “Transcendental intelligence rises when the intellectual mind reaches its limit and if things are to be realized in their true and essential nature, its processes of thinking must be transcended by an appeal to some higher faculty of cognition.” – Buddha
130. “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
131. “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.” – Buddha
132. “Indeed, the sage who’s fully quenched rests at ease in every way; no sense-desire adheres to him whose fires have cooled, deprived of fuel. All attachments have been severed, the heart’s been led away from pain; tranquil, he rests with the utmost ease. The mind has found its way to peace.” – Buddha
I hope this list of Buddha quotes, sayings, and proverbs was what you were looking for! I personally loved writing this article as it gives me a newfound appreciation for Buddha.
If you want to learn more about the Buddha and how to implement his teachings into your daily life, this is a really great place to start!