There are many forces surrounding us that encourage us to follow along unthinkingly wherever our greed leads us. We are bombarded by advertising designed to convince us that our happiness depends on material goods. Today’s global culture tells us that having more of these goods is a measure of our success in life, and even of our value as a person. This message comes at us in many forms and from many directions, so we need a clear awareness of how greed works in order to protect ourselves from being deceived by these forces. We can then counteract them with inner wisdom about where real success and personal value come from.
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:
- Authentic love toward others
- There are no fixed starting points
- Expanding our sense of ourselves
- Our life is vast
- Open-minded
- Greed is a recipe for dissatisfaction
- Balanced Life
- Distinguishing between wants and needs
- Disconnected from our own noble heart
- Boxed limitless potential
- A noble vision
- My trust is a gift
- The intention to work for others
- Look what he did
- Loving Responsibility
- Making healthy relationships possible
- Authentic love
- Facing Impermanence Wisely
- The kindness we receive from others
- Our relationship to the material world