Not creating delusions is enlightenment.
BodhidharmaRead
The ignorant mind, with its infinite afflictions, passions, and evils, is rooted in the three poisons. Greed, anger, and delusion.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Ignorance breeds negative emotions like greed, anger, and delusion.
This quote by Bodhidharma speaks to the root causes of human suffering—greed, anger, and delusion—which stem from an ignorant mind. It highlights how these 'three poisons' perpetuate a cycle of afflictions and negative passions, suggesting that true understanding and awareness are essential for overcoming such suffering and achieving a more enlightened state of being.
Themes
IgnoranceGreedAngerDelusionSuffering
In practice
Example use cases
During a speech about personal growth, you can use this quote to emphasize the importance of self-awareness in overcoming negative traits.
More from Bodhidharma
All quotes →The Way is basically perfect. It doesn't require perfecting.
BodhidharmaRead
Buddhas move freely through birth and death, appearing and disappearing at will.
BodhidharmaRead
If we should be blessed by some great reward, such as fame or fortune, it's the fruit of a seed planted by us in the past.
BodhidharmaRead
Freeing oneself from words is liberation.
BodhidharmaRead
The Dharma is the truth that all natures are pure.
BodhidharmaRead
Similar quotes
I have had many successes and many failures in my life. My successes have always been for different reasons, but my failures have always been for the same reason: I said yes when I meant no.
Moss HartRead
Smart people believe weird things because they are skilled at defending beliefs they arrived at for non-smart reasons.
Michael ShermerRead
To be clever enough to get all that money, one must be stupid enough to want it.
Gilbert K. ChestertonRead
Unlike a fountain that circulates the same water in an enclosed, perpetually recycling system, a human being circulates thoughts in an unlimited reservoir of self. Don't limit yourself to being a mere fountain when you contain an ocean.
Vera NazarianRead
Rise above the deceptions and temptations of the mind. This is your duty. You are born for this only; all other duties are self-created and self-imposed owing to ignorance.
SivanandaRead
By and large a good rule for finding out is this: the kind of work God usually calls you to is the kind of work a) that you need most to do and b) the world most needs to have done. If you really get a kick out of your work, you've presumably met requirement a), but if your work is writing TV deodorant commercials, the chances are you've missed requirement b).
Frederick BuechnerRead