Theravada Quotes

“Many do not realize that we here must die. For those who realize this, quarrels end.”
― Anonymous, The Dhammapada

“Meditation can be a refuge, but it is not a practice in which real life is ever excluded. The strength of mindfulness is that it enables us to hold difficult thoughts and feelings in a different way—with awareness, balance, and love”
― Sharon Salzberg, Real Love: The Art of Mindful Connection

“Animosity does not eradicate animosity. Only by loving kindness is animosity dissolved. This law is ancient and eternal. (attributed to Buddha)”
― Ananda Maitreya, The Dhammapada

“Manopubbangama dhamma
manosettha manomaya
manasa ce padutthena
bhasati va karoti va
tato nam dukkhamanveti
cakkamva vahato padam.”
― Gautama Buddha, The Dhammapada

“We never really get away with anything.”
― Ajahn Chah, A Still Forest Pool: The Insight Meditation of Achaan Chah

“In Theravāda Buddhist traditions, monks represent ideal behavior to the laity. This is partly due to their unworldly aspirations (laukika), but it also has much to do with the fact that the standardized discourse on ethics, known as the Vinaya Piṭaka, is located within the monastic guidelines. This source provides rules of conduct for monks and simultaneously serves as a moral compass for the laity.”
― Michael Jerryson, If You Meet the Buddha on the Road: Buddhism, Politics, and Violence

“The Buddhist teachings on respect for other people point in two directions. First, the obvious one: respect for those ahead of you on the path. As the Buddha once said, friendship with admirable people is the whole of the holy life, for their words and examples will help get you on the path to release. This doesn’t mean that you need to obey their teachings or accept them unthinkingly. You simply owe it to yourself to give them a respectful hearing and their teachings an honest try. give them a respectful hearing and their teachings an honest try. Even— especially—when their advice is unpleasant, you should treat it with respect. As Dhammapada 76 states,

Regard him as one who
points out
treasure,
the wise one who
seeing your faults
rebukes you.
Stay with this sort of sage.
For the one who stays
with a sage of this sort,
things get better,
not worse.”
― Thanissaro Bhikkhu, The Karma of Questions