Quotes About Perspective

Most people believe that happiness and fun are virtually identical. Ask them, for example, to imagine a scene of happy people. Most people immediately conjure up a picture of people having fun (e.g. laughing, playing games, drinking at a party). Few people imagine a couple raising children, a couple married thirty years, someone reading a great book, or people doing any of the other things that really do bring happiness.

given my view that tragedy is normal, I try to be happy unless something happens that makes me unhappy, rather than unhappy unless something makes me happy. Most people go through life waiting for something wonderful to happen to make them happy. My attitude is so long as nothing terrible is happening to us, we ought to be happy.

Most people believe if God performed a miracle—just one miracle—for them, they would surely and permanently believe in God. But, as explained in the commentary to Exodus 16:2, human nature doesn't work that way. The power of witnessing a miracle wears off quickly, and most individuals soon need (or merely want) another miracle. Over time, most people's attitude toward those who have done something good for them is: "What have you done for me lately?

In my view, both opinions are valid. But I side with the minority. It is extremely difficult to be decent when living among indecent people. Few people have the moral courage to reject their environment.

needs to be emphasized because many people see fear of God as onerous rather than liberating.

Why within limits? You apparently consider levitation impossible, but wouldn't you have considered wireless impossible if you had been living fifty years ago and somebody had endeavoured to convince you of it?

His decisive split with the world in which he grew rich and famous is a modern example of alchemical Separation, in which the initiate is forced to take an objective look at his life from the highest perspective and get rid of that which does not serve the deeper purpose of his existence.

I thought of the many people who had said to me, 'You're young; you've got plenty of time to recover.' This seemed the coldest comfort, the grimmest fact of all.

He taught us that everyone has a good story and the more of others you understand, the better your grasp of human nature, a gift given great weight in my family (73). - Bill Clinton, Paying Attention

Success? I don't know what that word means. I'm happy. But success, that goes back to what in somebody's eyes success means. For me, success is inner peace. That's a good day for me.

Success? I don't know what that word means. I'm happy. But success, that goes back to what in somebody's eyes success means. For me, success is inner peace. That's a good day for me.

Similarly, forcing your beliefs onto someone else damages your relationship. The damage may not be easy to spot at first, like tiny cracks in a wooden wheel, but it's just a matter of time before the wheel splits apart.

The self or wealth, which is greater? Gain or loss, which is more painful?

Every dark cloud has a silver lining—conversely, the silver lining frames a dark cloud. Or as chapter 58 of Tao Te Ching expresses it: Misfortune is what fortune depends upon Fortune is where misfortune hides beneath Yin contains yang; yang contains yin. Every failure harbors the hidden seed of future success; every triumph contains the covert cause of future defeat. Thus, Sai Ong's father isn't mortified by bad news—but neither is he overelated

many of the problems we encounter in life come from the mind within, rather than the external world. To solve such problems, we need to stop blaming outside forces that we have no control over, and instead take a long hard look at ourselves. When we realize that we are the cause of our own misfortunes, we can begin to adjust our thinking at a fundamental level, and start to create real changes.

The assignment of more importance to wealth can actually lead to gain being more painful.

My life seemed like a glass tunnel, through which I was moving faster every year, and at the end of which there was darkness. When I changed my view, the walls of my glass tunnel disappeared. I now live in the open air.

Philosophers should not only interpret our beliefs; when they are false, they should change them.

Even a brief glimpse of what we were is valuable to help understand what we are

Keeping one's patience is really a question of remembering one's place in the universe.

We are always at our best when compassion enables us to recognize the unique pressures and singular stories of the people on the other side of our conflicts.

The way to understand any enemy is to realize that, from his perspective, he is not a villain but a hero.

There is a story. . . which is fairly well known, told about when missionaries came to Africa, that they had the Bible and we, the natives, had the land. And then they said, "Let us pray," and we dutifully shut our eyes. And when we opened them, why, they now had the land and we had the Bible.

Each of us has the capacity to commit the wrongs against others that were committed against us. Although I might say, "I would never . . ." genuine humility will answer, "Never say never." Rather say, "I hope that, given the same set of circumstances, I would not . . ." But can we ever really know?