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


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Further quotes from the book The Heart Is Noble:

• Protective Inner Wisdom
• Taking delight in your inner nature
• Reality is your teacher
• Healthy relationships
• There are no fixed starting points
• A noble vision
• Disconnected from our own noble heart
• Authentic love toward others
• Capacity for Change
• Finding our nobility of heart
• Loving Responsibility
• Difference without Division
• Our relationship to the material world
• Open-minded
• There are no fixed starting points
• Just Love
• My trust is a gift
• Our life is vast
• Making healthy relationships possible
• Authentic love