“The purpose of life is to believe, to hope, and to strive.”

Without peace there can be no prosperity for any people, rich or poor. And yet, there can be no peace without erasing the harshness of the growing contrast between the rich and the poor.

You must learn to be still in the midst of activity and to be vibrantly alive in repose.

Nothing that is worthwhile is ever easy.

To bear many children is considered not only a religious blessing but also an investment. The greater their number, some Indians reason, the more alms they can beg.

what is popular need not necessarily be right or wise.

There exists no politician in India daring enough to attempt to explain to the masses that cows can be eaten.

The sterilization of men is one method of birth control. The surest, most radical method. To you it seems dreadful. To me it seems that, properly applied, it’s by no means dreadful.

I have certain objectives. They’re the same objectives my father had to give people a higher standard of living, to do away with the cancer of poverty, to eliminate the consequences of economic backwardness.

The meek may one day inherit the earth, but not the headlines.

in today’s world no country can be absolutely independent of another. It is a world of interdependence.

Until the day she died, my mother continued to fight for the rights of women. She joined all the women’s movements of the time; she stirred up a lot of revolts. She was a great woman, a great figure. Women today would like her immensely.

All my games were political games; I was, like Joan of Arc, perpetually being burned at the stake.

Rebels and non-conformists are often the pioneers and designers of change.

Without courage, you cannot practice any other virtue. You have to have courage – courage of different kinds: first, intellectual courage, to sort out different values and make up your mind about which is the one which is right for you to follow.

Every democratic system evolves its own conventions. It is not only the water but the banks which make the river.

I fall in love with anything I do and I always try to do it well.

Fools have a habit of believing that everything written by a famous author is admirable. For my part I read only to please myself and like only what suits my taste.

Shame is a tool of oppression and dehumanization. I don’t believe shame will ever be an effective social just tool. ⁣

Stop acting so small. You are the universe in ecstatic motion.

I believe that every interaction is an act of fate in some way, that we’re meant to interact with them, and it’s our job to flesh that out and experience it to the fullest and learn the lessons we’re meant to.

You never know how much you really believe anything until its truth or falsehood becomes a matter of life and death to you.

Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it.

To be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If you’re not, pretend you are.

I believe that teachers – whether in elementary schools, at the secondary level, or at colleges and universities – every teacher deserves the Nobel Peace Prize just for maintaining order in our schools!