If the work is worthwhile, then whether we can complete it or not, it's worth making the attempt. That's why courage is important.

I think governments can't do much.

We have made a great effort to maintain all levels of Buddhist education; it has helped us have a kind of renaissance, really.

Great changes start with individuals; the basis of world peace is inner peace in the hearts of individuals.

We need a little more compassion, and if we cannot have it, then no politician or even a magician can save the planet.

I remain convinced that most human conflicts can be solved through genuine dialogue conducted with a spirit of openness and reconciliation.

Whether we like it or not, we have all been born into this world as part of one great human family. Rich or poor, educated or uneducated, belonging to one nation or another, to one religion or another, adhering to this ideology or that, ultimately each of is just a human being like everyone else. We all desire happiness and do not want suffering.