When spiritual beliefs are used to build up walls between people, this is a total misunderstanding of the purpose of spirituality. Spirituality should mean coming closer to yourself. When this happens, you become closer to others, too. Spirituality and religion should dismantle discrimination and labels, not shore them up. It should break, not create, barriers between people.

17th Karmapa

from the book The Heart Is Noble: Changing the World from the Inside Out

translated by Ngodup Tsering Burkhar & Damchö Diana Finnegan


Read a random quote or see all quotes by the 17th Karmapa.

Further quotes from the book The Heart Is Noble:

• Expanding our sense of ourselves
• The Wealth of Contentment
• Reality is your teacher
• Protective Inner Wisdom
• Authentic love toward others
• Healthy relationships
• There are no fixed starting points
• A noble vision
• Open-minded
• Capacity for Change
• Finding our nobility of heart
• Taking delight in your inner nature
• Difference without Division
• My trust is a gift
• There are no fixed starting points
• Loving Responsibility
• Boxed limitless potential
• Look what he did
• Our life is vast
• Just Love