“Those who look for contradictions will be amply satisfied. The profession of a performer is full of paradoxes, and he has to learn to live with them. He has to forget himself and control himself; he has to observe the composer's wishes to the letter and create the music on the spot; he has to be part of the music market and yet retain his integrity.”

“He who conquers others is strong; he who conquers himself is mighty" - Lao-tsu
One who can control his thoughts has conquered himself.”

“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.”

“A just king must be the first to observe those laws that he has himself prescribed.”

“The man who has many answers
is often found
in the theaters of information
where he offers, graciously,
his deep findings.

While the man who has only questions,
to comfort himself, makes music.”

“Anybody who performs his necessary duties that God has obliged him perform, he himself will be one of the best worshippers of all.”

“A man has to live with himself, and he should see to it that he always has good company.”

“Why is self-control, autonomy, such a threat to authority? Because the person who controls himself, who is his own master, has no need for an authority to be his master. This, then, renders authority unemployed. What is he to do if he cannot control others? To be sure, he could mind his own business. But this is a fatuous answer, for those who are satisfied to mind their own business do not aspire to become authorities.”

“Liszt has never needed revival; his music has always been an important part of the concert repertoire. Nevertheless, he has appeared to need rehabilitation.”

“Khan saheb’s music has found its way, penetrating barriers of religion, caste and class, to the hearts of millions of our people, uniting them in a shared ecstasy…. He has never accepted that there is any contradiction between music and his religious faith, rather he sees perfect unity, a connection between the two….”