With regard to selflessness, it is necessary to know what “self” is — to identify the self that does not exist. Then one can understand its opposite, selflessness. Selflessness is not a case of something that existed in the past becoming non-existent; rather, this sort of “self” is something that never did exist. What is needed is to identify as non-existent something that always was nonexistent, for due to not having made such identification, we are drawn into the afflictive emotions of desire and hatred as well as all the problems these bring.

14th Dalai Lama

from the book Kindness, Clarity, and Insight

translated by Jeffrey Hopkins


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

• How things appear and how they actually exist
• Kindness
• Actions are irreversible
• Right effort
• Same human potential
• The importance of human life
• We are all the same
• One’s best teacher
• Leading A Good Life
• 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