Countless rebirths lie ahead, both good and bad. The effects of karma (actions) are inevitable, and in previous lifetimes we have accumulated negative karma which will inevitably have its fruition in this or future lives. Just as someone witnessed by police in a criminal act will eventually be caught and punished, so we too must face the consequences of faulty actions we have committed in the past, there is no way to be at ease; those actions are irreversible; we must eventually undergo their effects.

14th Dalai Lama

from the book Kindness, Clarity, and Insight

translated by Jeffrey Hopkins


Read a random quote or see all quotes by the 14th Dalai Lama.

Further quotes from the book Kindness, Clarity, and Insight:

• The importance of human life
• We are all the same
• How things appear and how they actually exist
• Kindness
• Right effort
• Same human potential
• One’s best teacher
• Leading A Good Life
• Selflessness and no-self
• Realizing emptiness
• A good heart is needed
• The very purpose of religion
• Practice in daily life
• No need to worry
• The importance of a good heart