Some of the best words of wisdom commonly used in today's vernacular came from the mouth and soul of the great Mohandas Gandhi, of India. Here are a few of his great words we use and hear often:
"Be the change that you want to see in the world."
"Glory lies in the attempt to reach one's goal and not in reaching it."
"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony."
"Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever."
"Nobody can hurt me without my permission."
"The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others."
"Where love is, there God is also."
Mohandas Gandhi was a pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement. He pioneered resistance to tyranny through mass civil resistance. His philosophy was firmly founded upon nonviolence. His philosophy and leadership helped India gain independence and inspired movements for civil rights and freedom across the world.
Gandhi is often referred to as Mahatma, or "Great Soul".
Here are some more great quotes by Gandhi:
A 'No' uttered from the deepest conviction is better than a 'Yes' merely uttered to please, or worse, to avoid trouble.
A man is but the product of his thoughts what he thinks, he becomes.
A small body of determined spirits fired by an unquenchable faith in their mission can alter the course of history.
A vow is a purely religious act which cannot be taken in a fit of passion. It can be taken only with a mind purified and composed and with God as witness.
Always aim at complete harmony of thought and word and deed. Always aim at purifying your thoughts and everything will be well.
An error does not become truth by reason of multiplied propagation, nor does truth become error because nobody sees it.
An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.
An ounce of practice is worth more than tons of preaching.
Anger and intolerance are the enemies of correct understanding.
Are creeds such simple things like the clothes which a man can change at will and put on at will? Creeds are such for which people live for ages and ages.
Confession of errors is like a broom which sweeps away the dirt and leaves the surface brighter and clearer.
I feel stronger for confession.
Even if you are a minority of one, the truth is the truth.
Everyone who wills can hear the inner voice. It is within everyone.
Faith is not something to grasp, it is a state to grow into.
Freedom is never dear at any price. It is the breath of life. What would a man not pay for living?
Freedom is not worth having if it does not connote freedom to err.
God is, even though the whole world deny him.
Truth stands, even if there be no public support. It is self-sustained.
God sometimes does try to the uttermost those whom he wishes to bless.
Healthy discontent is the prelude to progress.
Honest disagreement is often a good sign of progress.
I object to violence because when it appears to do good, the good is only temporary; the evil it does is permanent.
If patience is worth anything, it must endure to the end of time. And a living faith will last in the midst of the blackest storm.
In a gentle way, you can shake the world.
Infinite striving to be the best is man's duty; it is its own reward. Everything else is in God's hands.
It is easy enough to be friendly to one's friends. But to befriend the one who regards himself as your enemy is the quintessence of true religion. The other is mere business.
It is my own firm belief that the strength of the soul grows in proportion as you subdue the flesh.
It is the quality of our work which will please God and not the quantity.
Just as the body cannot exist without blood, so the soul needs the matchless and pure strength of faith.
Man becomes great exactly in the degree in which he works for the welfare of his fellow-men.
Man can never be a woman's equal in the spirit of selfless service with which nature has endowed her.
Man should forget his anger before he lies down to sleep.
Men often become what they believe themselves to be.
If I believe I cannot do something, it makes me incapable of doing it. But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it even if I didn't have it in the beginning.
Morality is the basis of things and truth is the substance of all morality.
My imperfections and failures are as much a blessing from God as my successes and my talents and I lay them both at his feet.
My life is my message.
Non-cooperation with evil is as much a duty as is cooperation with good.
Non-violence requires a double faith, faith in God and also faith in man.
Nonviolence is the first article of my faith. It is also the last article of my creed.
Peace is its own reward.
Power is of two kinds. One is obtained by the fear of punishment and the other by acts of love. Power based on love is a thousand times more effective and permanent then the one derived from fear of punishment.
Prayer is not asking. It is a longing of the soul. It is daily admission of one's weakness.
It is better in prayer to have a heart without words than words without a heart.
Prayer is the key of the morning and the bolt of the evening.
Purity of personal life is the one indispensable condition for building up a sound education.
Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment, full effort is full victory.
Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor the served. But all other pleasures and possessions pale into nothingness before service which is rendered in a spirit of joy.
Spiritual relationship is far more precious than physical. Physical relationship divorced from spiritual is body without soul.
Strength does not come from physical capacity. It comes from an indomitable will.
Suffering cheerfully endured, ceases to be suffering and is transmuted into an ineffable joy.
That service is the noblest which is rendered for its own sake.
The difference between what we do and what we are capable of doing would suffice to solve most of the world's problem.
The good man is the friend of all living things.
The main purpose of life is to live rightly, think rightly, act rightly.
The soul must languish when we give all our thought to the body.
The only tyrant I accept in this world is the still voice within.
The real ornament of woman is her character, her purity.
The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is the attribute of the strong.
There is more to life than increasing its speed.
There is nothing that wastes the body like worry, and one who has any faith in God should be ashamed to worry about anything whatsoever.
Though we may know Him by a thousand names, He is one and the same to us all.
To believe in something, and not to live it, is dishonest.
To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer.
Truth is by nature self-evident. As soon as you remove the cobwebs of ignorance that surround it, it shines clear.
Truth stands, even if there be no public support. It is self-sustained.
Unwearied ceaseless effort is the price that must be paid for turning faith into a rich infallible experience.
We do not need to proselytize either by our speech or by our writing. We can only do so really with our lives.
Let our lives be open books for all to study.
We may have our private opinions but why should they be a bar to the meeting of hearts?
When I admire the wonders of a sunset or the beauty of the moon, my soul expands in the worship of the creator.
When restraint and courtesy are added to strength, the latter becomes irresistible.
Whenever you are confronted with an opponent, conquer him with love.
Whenever you have truth it must be given with love, or the message and the messenger will be rejected.
Where there is love there is life.
You may never know what results come of your action, but if you do nothing there will be no result.
You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.
One night I dreamed I was walking along the beach with the Lord.
