For certain is death for the born, And certain is birth for the dead; Therefore over the inevitable, Thou shouldst not grieve. Bhagavad Gita (chapter 2, verse 27)

Meekness He whom the world troubles not, and who troubles not the world, who is free from the emotions of joy, wrath, and fear, is dear to Me. The man who is guileless, pure, upright, unconcerned, free from distress of mind, who renounces every enterprise and worships me, is dear to me. He who has neither delight nor aversion, who neither mourns nor desires, who renounces good and evil fortune, and worships me, is dear to me. He who is the same to friend and foe, and also in honour and dishonour, who is the same in cold and heat, pleasure and pain, who is wholly free from attatchment; To whom praise and blame are equal, who is silent, content with every fortune, home-renouncing, steadfast in mind, and worships me, that man is dear to me. Bhagavad Gita 12:15-19

Humility He who hates no single being, is friendly and compassionate, free from self-regard and vanity, the same in good and evil, patient; Contented, ever devout, subdued in soul, firm in purpose, fixed on me in heart and mind, and who worships me, is dear to me. Bhagavad Gita 12:13-14

Purity of Heart Whenever the wavering and unsteadfast heart wanders away, then so often let him subdue it and bring it back to the control of the soul; For supreme happiness comes to the Yogin whose heart is at rest, in whom passion is tranquilised, who is one with Brahma, and free from sin. The Yogin thus uniting his soul (to Brahman), who has ceased from sin, enjoys easily the boundless happiness of union with Brahman. Bhagavad Gita 6:26-29

Charity He that does everything for Me, whose supreme object I am, who worships Me, being free from attachment and without hatred to any creature, this man, Arjuna!, comes to Me. Bhagavad Gita 11:55

Yearning for Divine Edification Perseverance in (seeking to gain) the knowledge of the Supreme Spirit, and perception of the gain that comes from knowledge of the truth: This is called knowledge : all that is contrary to this is ignorance. Bhagavad Gita 13:11

Distrust of Intellect The wise who knows the Self as bodiless within the bodies, as unchanging among changing things, as great and omnipresent, does never grieve. That self cannot be gained by the Veda, nor by understanding, nor by much learning. He whom the Self chooses, by him the Self can be gained. The Self chooses him (his body) as his own. But he who has not first turned away from his wickedness, who is not tranquil, and subdued, or whose mind is not at rest, he can never obtain the Self (even) by knowledge. Katha Upanishad 1.2.22-24

Disdain for Material Things Which is as poison in the beginning, but is like nectar in the end; that is declared to be "good" pleasure, born from the serenity of one's own mind. That which is like nectar in the beginning from the connection of the sense-object with the senses, but is as poison in the end, is held to be of "passion". Bhagavad Gita 18:37-38

As a man can drink water from any side of a full tank, so the skilled theologian can wrest from any scripture that which will serve his purpose. Bhagavad Gita

Living creatures are nourished by food, and food is nourished by rain; rain itself is the water of life, which comes from selfless worship and service. Bhagavad Gita

The non-permanent appearance of happiness and distress, and their disappearance in due course, are like the appearance and disappearance of summer and winter seasons. Bhagavad Gita

He who, before he leaves his body, learns to surmount the promptings of desire and anger is a saint and is happy. Bhagavad Gita

It is better to do one's own duty, however defective it may be, than to follow the duty of another, however well one may perform it. He who does his duty as his own nature reveals it, never sins. Bhagavad Gita

Knowledge, the object of knowledge and the knower are the three factors which motivate action: The senses, the work, and the doer comprise the threefold basis of action. Bhagavad Gita

Delusion arises from anger. The mind is bewildered by delusion. Reasoning is destroyed when the mind is bewildered. One falls down when reasoning is destroyed. Bhagavad Gita

March on. Do not tarry. To go forward is to move toward perfection. March on, and fear not the thorns, or the sharp stones on life's path. Khalil Gibran

The success of love is in the loving. It is not in the result of loving. Of course it is natural in love to want the best for the other person, but whether it turns out that way or not does not determine the value of what we have done. Mother Teresa

Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity. Martin Luther King, Jr.

There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting. Buddha

Many a doctrine is like a window pane. We see truth through it, but it divides us from truth. Khalil Gibran