“Genuine love should first be directed at oneself; if we do not love ourselves, how can we love others?”

—  Tenzin Gyatso

Last update June 13, 2021. History

Help us to complete the source, original and additional information

Do you have more details about the quote "Genuine love should first be directed at oneself; if we do not love ourselves, how can we love others?" by Tenzin Gyatso?
Tenzin Gyatso photo
Tenzin Gyatso 112
spiritual leader of Tibet 1935

Related quotes

Thich Nhat Hanh photo

“If we do not know how to take care of ourselves and to love ourselves, we cannot take care of the people we love. Loving oneself is the foundation for loving another person.”

Thich Nhat Hanh (1926) Religious leader and peace activist

Source: Your True Home: The Everyday Wisdom of Thich Nhat Hanh: 365 days of practical, powerful teachings from the beloved Zen teacher

Richelle Mead photo

“How we love others is affected by how we love ourselves, and for the first time in a long time, I was whole.”

Richelle Mead (1976) American writer

Source: Succubus Revealed

François Fénelon photo

“We may be sure that it is the love of God only that can make us come out of self. If His powerful hand did not sustain us, we should not know how to take the first step in that direction.”

François Fénelon (1651–1715) Catholic bishop

Source: Dictionary of Burning Words of Brilliant Writers (1895), P. 270.

Georg Christoph Lichtenberg photo

“I am convinced we do not only love ourselves in others but hate ourselves in others too.”

Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742–1799) German scientist, satirist

F 54
Aphorisms (1765-1799), Notebook F (1776-1779)

John Irving photo

“How we love to love things for other people; how we love to have other people love things through our eyes.”

John Irving book The Cider House Rules

Source: The Cider House Rules

“The shortest distance between two points is an intention and this is certainly the case when it comes to becoming more loving to oneself and to others. We must first have the desire and then the intention and commitment to be a source of love — this means that rather than waiting for the world to be more loving, we decide that we will be the first one to reach out and act loving — no matter what!”

Richard Carlson (1961–2006) Author, psychotherapist and motivational speaker

Fill your Life with Love (2006)

Simone Weil photo

“God's love for us is not the reason for which we should love him. God's love for us is the reason for us to love ourselves.”

Simone Weil (1909–1943) French philosopher, Christian mystic, and social activist

Source: Simone Weil : An Anthology (1986), Love (1947), p. 270

Thomas Merton photo

“What we are asked to do is to love, and this love itself will render both ourselves and our neighbors worthy if anything can.”

Thomas Merton (1915–1968) Priest and author

Letter to Dorothy Day, quoted in Catholic Voices in a World on Fire (2005) by Stephen Hand, p. 180.
Context: Our job is to love others without stopping to inquire whether or not they are worthy. That is not our business and, in fact, it is nobody's business. What we are asked to do is to love, and this love itself will render both ourselves and our neighbors worthy if anything can.

Leo Buscaglia photo

“The essence of love is getting out of oneself and into others. When we care less about our feelings, our rights, our happiness, our security, etc., and begin to concern ourselves with the feelings, rights, happiness, and security of others, we will have found the true power of love.”

Leo Buscaglia (1924–1998) Motivational speaker, writer

A Magazine of People and Possibilities interview (1998)

Bhakti Tirtha Swami photo

“Fear and love do not go together. Fear is constricting, self-centered and self-conscious, whereas love is expansive, selfless and directed towards service. To become effective spiritual warriors, we must learn to cultivate genuine love, courage, and compassion and come to depend on our inner faculties rather than externals. This allows us to understand our own true nature more deeply, and to behave more like the children and servants of God that we are. Then, firmly established in a higher state of consciousness, we can serve others-and the world-from the deepest, most aware and loving aspect of ourselves during these challenging times.”

Bhakti Tirtha Swami (1950–2005) American Hindu writer

?
Books, Spiritual Warrior, Volume III: Solace for the Heart in Difficult Times (Hari-Nama Press, 2000)

Related topics