I have observed a strange idea of love that many people seem to have: they see love as a kind of gift that has to be given back. Someone says, “I love you,” and if the other person does not reply with an “I love you, too,” the first person gets upset. But love doesn’t always have to be reciprocated. We can just love. If love doesn’t come back to you, it is still love that you give and that you feel. We do not always have to look to get something back for what we give, do we?

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
• Authentic love
• Our life is vast