When we are trying to cultivate a capacity to feel closeness to others, we do not need to create anything new. We are cultivating a latent ability, albeit one that might have been neglected or impaired during the course of our lives. There is every indication that the ability to experience genuine closeness is an innate potential of all human beings.
17th Karmapa
from the book Interconnected: Embracing Life in Our Global Society
Read a random quote or see all quotes by the 17th Karmapa.
Further quotes from the book Interconnected:
- Naturalness
- The power of our senses
- Dismantling the walls that separate us
- Individualism or interdependence
- Extend yourself and connect
- You exist in connection with others
- The deeper common ground all living being share
- Viewing others through the lens of interdependence
- Gratitude
- The air we breathe
- Cultivating a spirit of generosity
- The imagination to see the other as free and happy
- Extending gratitude in all directions
- Interdependence always works both ways
- Thinking about the consequences of our collective actions
- A greater sense of possibility
- Acting against self-serving impulses
- Our intimate dependence on the natural environment
- The opportunity to love
- Knowing more is not a substitute for feeling more