1,400 Peace Quotes

I was once asked why I don't participate in anti-war demonstrations. I said that I will never do that, but as soon as you have a pro-peace rally, I'll be there.

When I was crossing into Gaza, I was asked at the checkpost whether I was carrying any weapons. I replied: Oh yes, my prayer books.

The time has come to educate people, to cease all quarrels in the name of religion, culture, countries, different political or economic systems. Fighting is useless. Suicide.

Peace can only last where human rights are respected, where the people are fed, and where individuals and nations are free. True peace with oneself and with the world around us can only be achieved through the development of mental peace.

Sectarian feelings and criticism of other teachings or other sects is very bad, poisonous, and should be avoided.

I have always said that if Great Britain were defeated in war I hoped we should find a Hitler to lead us back to our rightful position among the nations. I am sorry, however, that he has not been mellowed by the great success that has attended him. The whole world would rejoice to see the Hitler of peace and tolerance, and nothing would adorn his name in world history so much as acts of magnanimity and of mercy and of pity to the forlorn and friendless, to the weak and poor. ... Let this great man search his own heart and conscience before he accuses anyone of being a warmonger.

We now to peace and darkness And earth and thee restore Thy creature that thou madest And wilt cast forth no more.

I think that this is the first war in history that on the morrow the victors sued for peace and the vanquished called for unconditional surrender.

Sporting chivalrous contest helps knit the bonds of peace between nations. Therefore may the Olympic flame never expire.

Thus one of Europe's most serious crises will be ended, and all of us, not only in Germany but those far beyond our frontiers, will then in this year for the first time really rejoice at the Christmas festival. It should for us all be a true Festival of Peace.

As Fuehrer of the German people and Chancellor of the Reich, I can thank God at this moment that he has so wonderfully blessed us in our hard struggle for what is our right, and beg Him that we and all other nations may find the right way, so that not only the German people but all Europe may once more be granted the blessing of peace.

Most of the people who get sent to die in wars are young men who've got a lot of energy and would probably rather, in a better world, be putting that energy into copulation rather than going over there and blowing some other young man's guts out.

We are at war between consciousness and nature, between the desire for permanence and the fact of flux. It is ourself against ourselves.

May the conscience and the common sense of the peoples be awakened, so that we may reach a new stage in the life of nations, where people will look back on war as an incomprehensible aberration of their forefathers!

War is possible only if you have a lot of enemies. If all the enemies get together and form one front - if you cut down the number of enemies - there would be no war.

The awareness that we are all human beings together has become lost in war and through politics.

Only when an ideal of peace is born in the minds of the peoples will the institutions set up to maintain this peace effectively fulfill the function expected of them.

I do not want to frighten you by telling you about the temptations life will bring. Anyone who is healthy in spirit will overcome them. But there is something I want you to realize. It does not matter so much what you do. What matters is whether your soul is harmed by what you do. If your soul is harmed, something irreparable happens, the extent of which you won't realize until it will be too late.

Constant kindness can accomplish much. As the sun makes ice melt, kindness causes misunderstanding, mistrust, and hostility to evaporate.

Accordingly, death is a harbor of peace for the just, but is believed a shipwreck for the wicked.

Peace, above all things, is to be desired, but blood must sometimes be spilled to obtain it on equable and lasting terms.

So fades a summer cloud away; So sinks the gale when storms are o'er; So gently shuts the eye of day; So dies a wave along the shore.

Any time you are with anyone or think of anyone you must say to yourself: I am dying and this person too is dying, attempting the while to experience the truth of the words you are saying. If every one of you agrees to practice this, bitterness will die out, harmony will arise.

Some people can find all the peace of mind they need in a good, satisfying conflict.

I write just because the fire of my emotion is burning. Had I not, I would not have been able to find peace.

War its thousands slays, Peace its ten thousands.

What is the use of physicians like myself trying to help parents to bring up children healthy and happy, to have them killed in such numbers for a cause that is ignoble?

War is like love, it always finds a way.

Their peace and their war Are like wind and storm. War grows from their peace.

It is entirely clear that there is only one way in which great wars can be permanently prevented, and that is the establishment of an international government with a monopoly of serious armed force.

After ages during which the earth produced harmless trilobites and butterflies, evolution progressed to the point at which it generated Neros, Genghis Khans, and Hitlers. This, however, is a passing nightmare; in time the earth will become again incapable of supporting life, and peace will return.

As soon as the war ended, we located the one spot on earth that hadn't been touched by the war and blew it to hell.

Fly hence, shadows, that do keep, Watchful sorrows, charmed in sleep.

In the beginning there are those who don't quite fit in But are somehow okay. And then some morning There are places that suddenly seem wonderful: Weather and water seem wonderful, And the peaceful night sky that arrives In time to protect us, like a sword Cutting the blue cloak of a prince.

Force is no remedy.

If the Lord sends us war, we have got to face it like men, but God forbid we should manufacture war, and use it as an escape from our domestic difficulties. You can't expect a blessing on that.

They came to the Delectable Mountains.

And as a spark falling upon a wide ocean quickly disappears, so whatever events happen to the man who fears God, these, falling as it were upon an immense ocean of joy, are quenched and destroyed!

For what advantage is it, that the world enjoys profound peace, if thou art at war with thyself? This then is the peace we should keep. If we have it, nothing from without will be able to harm us. And to this end the public peace contributes no little: whence it is said, 'That we may lead a quiet and peaceable life.' But if any one is disturbed when there is quiet, he is a miserable creature. Seest thou that He speaks of this peace which I call the third (inner, ed.) kind? Therefore when he has said, 'that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life,' he does not stop there, but adds 'in all godliness and honesty.' But we cannot live in godliness and honesty, unless that peace be established. For when curious reasonings disturb our faith, what peace is there? or when spirits of uncleanness, what peace is there?

If in order to put an end to public wars, and tumults, and battles, the Priest is exhorted to offer prayers for kings and governors, much more ought private individuals to do it.

You say you want a revolution, well, you know, we all want to change the world... But when you talk about destruction, don't you know that you can count me out.

The newspapers said, 'Say, what you're doing in bed?' I said 'We're only trying to get us some peace.'

If all politicians were like Pierre Trudeau, there would be world peace.

I don't have a sense of sanctuary. I don't have a place where I think I can go. I once went to the famous Kyoto temple with the Zen garden, the gravel, the little mounds and it's, you know, it's been pictured over and over and over again. And what they don't tell you is that this little acre or some acre of serenity is surrounded by millions of people taking pictures. So it sounds like a storm of mosquitoes constantly. And it never stops. And there's no serenity. And so not even in Japan can I find sanctuary.

If the implication of his remarks is that we should sit down and talk with Mr. Adams and the Provisional IRA, I can say only that that would turn my stomach and those of most hon. Members; we will not do it. If and when there is a total ending of violence, and if and when that ending of violence is established for a significant time, we shall talk to all the constitutional parties that have people elected in their names. I will not talk to people who murder indiscriminately.

I remained, lost in oblivion; My face I reclined on the Beloved. All ceased and I abandoned myself, Leaving my cares forgotten among the lilies.

If you desire to discover peace and consolation for your soul and to serve God truly, do not find your satisfaction in what you have left behind, because in that which now concerns you you may be as impeded as you were before, or even more. But leave as well all these other things and attend to one thing alone that brings all these with it (namely, holy solitude, together with prayer and spiritual and divine reading), and persevere there in forgetfulness of all things.

'This people draws its origin from Abraham, our father in faith The very people that received from God the commandment Thou shalt not kill itself experienced in a special measure what is meant by killing. It is not permissible for anyone to pass by this inscription with indifference.'

'God of our fathers, you chose Abraham and his descendants to bring your name to the nations: We are deeply saddened by the behavior of those who in the course of history have caused these children of yours to suffer, and, asking your forgiveness, we wish to commit ourselves to genuine brotherhood with the people of the covenant.'

'As in the time of the swords and of the spears,so today,in the time of the missiles,before the weapon,the heart of the man kills'

The Holy Land needs bridges, not walls.

Humanity should question itself, once more, about the absurd and always unfair phenomenon of war, on whose stage of death and pain only remain standing the negotiating table that could and should have prevented it.

Violence and war can never resolve the problems of men.

For a quarter century, Pope John Paul II served as a symbol of love and faith, peace and compassion.... Our grief today is the grief of the world.

John Paul II won't stay away from us. His name became part of our history, his thoughts will be an always present inspiration to build a more fair country and a more peaceful world for all of us.

This is a man who has carried the moral weight of the world for 26 years... turning himself into the only moral reference for humanity in recent years of wars and difficulties.

Queen Elizabeth II expressed her 'deep sorrow' at the death of Pope John Paul II and remembered his efforts at promoting peace throughout the world. Prime Minister Tony Blair said that the world has lost a religious leader who was 'revered across people of all faiths and none'.

My meeting with His Holiness was one of the strongest moments in my life. He was reflecting an incredible force and a charisma admired by all . He was the Pope of the reconciliation and unit among the countries. For that, he was loved, respected and venerated by everyone. I am sad of his departure, but happy knowing that he does not suffer anymore. He leaves us with a message of courage and love. My prayers and my affection accompany him.

Climbing into bed with Sheila and doing what we call wrapping - she's only five foot, and I kind of wrap round her and immediately I feel at peace. (Asked 'What's your heaven?')

Why am I laughing? I don't know... it's incipient madness, that's what it is. I'm quite looking forward to that actually, as I drift into an unattractive middle-age. I quite like the idea of waking up one morning quite plainly mad, I mean not dangerously mad, but just mad enough to be sent off somewhere where I can just sit and watch television and eat Indian meals for the rest of my life. I should be entirely happy doing that. You know, just waking up one morning imagining that you're something like an umbrella stand or something like that, and I find it quite an attractive prospect, I must say.

'T is the brook's motion, Clear without strife, Fleeing to ocean After its life.

Only one thing is more admirable than the admirable reply of the Saxon king: that an Icelander, a man of the lineage of the vanquished, has perpetuated the reply. It is as if a Carthaginian had bequeathed to us the memory of the exploit of Regulus. Saxo Grammaticus wrote with justification in his Gesta Danorum: 'The men of Thule [Iceland] are very fond of learning and of recording the history of all peoples and they are equally pleased to reveal the excellences of others or of themselves.' Not the day when the Saxon said the words, but the day when an enemy perpetuated them, was the historic date. A date that is a prophecy of something still in the future: the day when races and nations will be cast into oblivion, and the solidarity of all mankind will be established.

Yo no hablo de venganzas ni perdones, el olvido es la unica venganza y el unico perdon.

'Mongst all these stirs of discontented strife, O, let me lead an academic life; To know much, and to think for nothing, know Nothing to have, yet think we have enow.

There is no strange and distant place That is not gladdened by His face. And every nation kneels to hail The Splendour shining through Its veil.

For, once he thrilled with high romance And tuned to love his eager voice. Like any cavalier of France He wooed the maiden of his choice. And now deep in his weary heart Are sacred flames that whitely burn. He has of Heaven's grace a part Who loves, who is beloved in turn.

O golden Silence, bid our souls be still, And on the foolish fretting of our care Lay thy soft touch of healing unaware!

The state of crisis is the real war; the equilibrium is nothing but its reflex.

Oh! England, my Lionheart! Dropped from my black Spitfire to my funeral barge. Give me one kiss in apple-blossom. Give me one wish, and I'd be wassailing In the orchard, my English rose, Or with my shepherd, who'll bring me home.

To be sung of a summer night on the water. Ooh, on the water. 'Ta, ta-ta! Hmm. Ta, ta-ta! In B, Fenby!'

He's big and pink, and not like me. He sees no light. He sees no reason for the fighting...

If they find me racing white horses, They'll not take me for a buoy. Let me be weak, Let me sleep And dream of sheep.

All the banners stop waving And the flags stop flying And the silence comes over Thousands of soldiers...

Could be in a dream Our clothes are on the beach These prints of our feet Lead right up to the sea No one, no one is here No one, no one is here We stand in the Atlantic We become panoramic...

You can't bomb for a humane reason. What we should do is just Mother Teresa them to death with love. It's that old hippie nonsense but it's still the best stuff there is.

'My face and your faces shall not be masked; our hand shall hold neither sword nor sceptre, and our subjects shall love us in peace and shall not be in fear of us.' Thus spoke Jesus, and unto all the kingdoms of the earth I was blinded, and unto all the cities of walls and towers; and it was in my heart to follow the Master to His kingdom.

'And now let us play our reeds together.' And they played together. And their music smote heaven and earth, and a terror struck all living things. I heard the bellow of beasts and the hunger of the forest. And I heard the cry of lonely men, and the plaint of those who long for what they know not. I heard the sighing of the maiden for her lover, and the panting of the luckless hunter for his prey. And then there came peace into their music, and the heavens and the earth sang together. All this I saw in my dream, and all this I heard.

Your thought advocates fame and show. Mine counsels me and implores me to cast aside notoriety and treat it like a grain of sand cast upon the shore of eternity. Your thought instills in your heart arrogance and superiority. Mine plants within me love for peace and the desire for independence. Your thought begets dreams of palaces with furniture of sandalwood studded with jewels, and beds made of twisted silk threads. My thought speaks softly in my ears, 'Be clean in body and spirit even if you have nowhere to lay your head.' Your thought makes you aspire to titles and offices. Mine exhorts me to humble service.

Let Saigons be bygones / Don't you blow this world in two.

All this is forcing the USSR to fortify the nation's defences. The Soviet people want no arms build-up. What they want is arms reduction on both sides. But we are compelled to see to our country's essential security and also to that of our friends and allies. That is exactly what is being done. And we want everybody to remember that no adventure-seekers will ever succeed in catching us unawares, that no potential aggressor has the slightest chance of escaping a devastating retaliatory strike.

Wars would be a lot better, I think, if guys would say to themselves sometimes 'Jesus - I'm not going to do that to the enemy. That's too much.'

'My government's aim for Fiji is not to return to where we once were but to journey forward together to a place we have not yet been, a Fiji of lasting peace and harmony, where nobody is left behind or goes without.'

'We must learn to respect each other's views and to differ without anger or ill will.' (14 July 2005)

'With a resounding yes I say we can reconcile and that it really is a matter of the heart.' (27 July 2005)

'We encircle the globe with a chain of love, faith and trust, knowing that He (God) is listening.'

'Two thousand and five is our Year of Forgiveness in Fiji. Again, we are seeking God's help in reconciliation and in making the country whole. Each of the great religions teaches forgiveness. That is a golden thread that links them.'

'Christianity took Ratu Cakobau and the Fijians from the way of the club, to the way of peace. Our islands were transformed forever.'

'Reconciliation between our communities, following all the hurt and distress of 2000, is a critical part of the reconstruction of the country.'

'Let us respect each other and avoid causing unnecessary hurt to those with beliefs and faiths different from ours.' (Pacific Magazine)

The Quakers sent me books, from which I learnt how they had, years ago, established beyond doubt the duty for a Christian of fulfilling the command of non-resistance to evil by force, and had exposed the error of the Church's teaching in allowing war and capital punishment.

William Lloyd Garrison took part in a discussion on the means of suppressing war in the Society for the Establishment of Peace among Men, which existed in 1838 in America. He came to the conclusion that the establishment of universal peace can only be founded on the open profession of the doctrine of non-resistance to evil by violence (Matt. v. 39), in its full significance, as understood by the Quakers, with whom Garrison happened to be on friendly relations. Having come to this conclusion, Garrison thereupon composed and laid before the society a declaration, which was signed at the time--in 1838--by many members.

If the people of India are enslaved by violence it is only because they themselves live and have lived by violence, and do not recognize the eternal law of love inherent in humanity.