Home > Quotes > Life

Life is about scaling one mountain, then facing the next one, and the one after that. Those who persevere finally succeed in conquering the highest of mountains. On the other hand, those who avoid such challenges by taking the easy route will only descend into the valleys.

The sweetness of a life well lived can only be savored when our life has a great purpose. That purpose, that goal, is our own. There is no need to compare ourselves to others. We should choose our own goal and move forward toward achieving it in our own distinct way.
If our lives are a canvas, then what kind of picture are we painting? We don’t have to be a celebrity or a genius. What’s important is to fill our canvas in our own style and to our own satisfaction.
Life contains the capacity, like flames that reach toward heaven, to transform suffering and pain into the energy of creation, into light that illuminates darkness. Like the wind traversing vast spaces unhindered, life has the power to uproot and overturn all obstacles and difficulties. Like clear flowing water, it can wash away all stains and impurities.
Life is about scaling one mountain, then facing the next one, and the one after that. Those who persevere finally succeed in conquering the highest of mountains. On the other hand, those who avoid such challenges by taking the easy route will only descend into the valleys.
The greatest tragedy in life is not to die, it is to live as if dead, to let the life within us wither. Toward what goal or achievement are we striving in life? This is the important question to ask ourselves.
Everything passes. Both soaring joys and crushing sorrows fade away like a dream. However, the knowledge of having lived one’s life to the fullest never disappears.
In life, we should not be totally absorbed with only immediate realities. We must have ideals and strive to achieve them, transcending present realities. Yet we can change nothing unless our feet are planted firmly on the ground.

Stories of Hope

The Writer's Path

Chingiz Aitmatov

Author of what has been called “the most beautiful love story in the world,” Chingiz Aitmatov underwent severe suffering in his youth.

Stories of Hope

Facing Challenges

Whilst the stark truth is that hardship and difficulties are inevitable and inescapable, the definitive question may be whether we yield under their weight or use them as an opportunity to better ourselves. Read here ...

Stories of Hope

Staying Young

Insights into staying youthful from an octogenarian who shouldn’t have lived beyond his thirties. Ikeda reminds us that our approach to aging and death will have a major impact on the quality of the final chapters of our lives. Read here ...