I saw this blog post prompt some time back and kept it as something I would like to do.

Quotes are something that all of us, at some point in time gravitate to. Maybe the words have meaning in your life or is something you aspire to. Some quotes keep you sane and some quotes seem to the answer that you are looking for at a point in life. Here are five quotes that really resonate with me and I’ll also say why.

karmaṇyevādhikāraste mā phaleṣu kadācana, mā karmaphalaheturbhūrmā te saṅgo’stvakarmaṇi

This first quote is from the Mahabharata, chapter 2, verse 47. It means that you should just do your duty and not think about how you will benefit from what you do. Do your duty because it is right, and the benefits will naturally accrue to you.

I loved this phrase so much that when I was working full-time, I actually printed it out and pasted it on my workstation so I am reminded of it every single time. We should do what we are paid to do and do it correctly without any expectations. The benefits or the fruits you accrue will flow naturally to you.

If you can dream it, you can do it – Walt Disney

This next quote from Walt Disney is another favourite. I like it so much that it forms part of one of my social media presence also. Why I like it is because of the promise the quote offers. If you can think and dream about something, you can and should do something about them, so you can reach those dreams. I think this quote is not only very aspirational, but it is also extremely motivating.

krodhādbhavati sammohaḥ sammohātsmṛtivibhramaḥ, smṛtibhraṃśād buddhināśo buddhināśātpraṇaśyati

The next quote also comes from the Mahabharata, from chapter 2, verse 63. What this quote means is that from anger comes delusion; from delusion, the loss of memory; from the loss of memory, you forget how to discriminate between good and bad and when that happens, you lose yourself. This quote is personally very relevant because I tend to hold on to anger. So this quote is a learning for me where I learn to release my anger. Though I am a lot better these days, I still hold some residual anger which needs to let go before I end up losing everything.

When one door of happiness closes, another opens; but often we look so long at the closed door that we do not see the one which has been opened for us. ― Helen Keller

This fourth quote I love is attributed to Helen Keller and is another very motivational one. So often we just keep looking back and thinking about the what-ifs that we don’t look for the opportunity and happiness that is there in front of us and only realise it when it may be too late. This is especially true for someone like me who always overthinks and overanalyses everything in life that I don’t really look forward, thinking perhaps that when I think of a positive or rosy future, it won’t come true. That’s the pessimistic in me thinking and this is something I am seriously working on overcoming. I will be honest and say this, it is very hard and I am taking extremely small baby steps and one day, not too far in the future, I will get there.

Life is like a book……some chapters are sad,some are happy and some are exciting, but if you never turn the page, you will never know what the next chapter has in store for you – Izuudon

I found this last quote a few years back on Pinterest and loved it so much that I screen shot it and it has remained in my phone all these years. This quote is pretty self-evident if you think about it. Life is really like a book and sadness and happiness are chapters in our life. But if you remain stuck in one chapter, you will not know what the next chapter in your life is going to look like!

So here you have it, five quotes I love and are either something that I live by or are words I try to work towards. What about you, do you have any quotes that you love and live by? Please comment as I would love to know.