I truly feel that contentment is the greatest wealth. Anyone can claim it for themselves. Anyone can own it. Contentment is an incredible wealth that we don’t have to pay for, or seek anywhere outside ourselves. The natural resources to create this wealth are the inner riches of our own mind. Contentment is a wealth that gives the highest satisfaction, and we can gain it simply by mining our own resources, and knowing our own mind. We can cultivate the perspective that what we have is enough. We can see that we do not actually need more than we already have, and can be completely satisfied with that.

17th Karmapa

from the book The Heart Is Noble: Changing the World from the Inside Out

translated by Ngodup Tsering Burkhar & Damchö Diana Finnegan


Read a random quote or see all quotes by the 17th Karmapa.

Further quotes from the book The Heart Is Noble:

• Social action
• Protective Inner Wisdom
• The Wealth of Contentment
• Life in Balance
• Boxing Love with Our Expectations
• Just Love
• Nothing is intrinsically bad
• There are no fixed starting points
• Difference without Division
• Breaking barriers
• Healthy relationships
• Just not been introduced before
• Take joy in your sincere intentions
• Finding our nobility of heart
• Authentic love toward others
• Expanding our sense of ourselves
• There are no fixed starting points
• Open-minded
• Our life is vast
• Greed is a recipe for dissatisfaction