We all seek a sense of peace at times. It’s hardly surprising, since our lives are busier and more hectic than ever, our to-do lists are never-ending, and there’s constant pressure to live up to societal expectations. All of this, plus our day-to-day dramas, mean we need to find pockets of peace along the way—or else? Well, we’d simply implode:
Yep, John Lennon was onto something when he urged us to give peace a chance—it’s those moments of clarity that remind us it’s okay to simply be. Need a (very gentle) push in the right direction? There are countless quotes about peace to help you tell your 100mph mind to Just. Slow. Down.
When seeking peace, some opt for tried-and-tested meditation, others listen to calming classical, paint-by-numbers, or have an uplifting chat with a good friend. And, for others, moments of peace can be found in something as simple as watering the indoor plants. No matter what your flavour, letting a few peace quotes sink into our psyche can only help us on our way to—if not complete enlightenment per se—perhaps an overall more mindful, peaceful, and wholesome life.
It’s wise to hit up the Buddhists if you’d like some wisdom and peace quotes. After all, their entire philosophy is built around finding peace with ourselves, with others, and with the world around us—no matter how flawed we, they, and it may be. If we can achieve a whisper of serenity—even for just 5 minutes in our day—the benefits are paradisical. However, if a quick trip to Nepal isn’t on the cards, we’ve got you covered with our list here.
Sound good? We think so. So, read on for our favourite peace quotes, sure to remind us all that no matter how fast the world around us accelerates, we can always find harmony within.
37 peaceful quotes
- “ Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding.”
— Albert Einstein - “Peace is a daily, a weekly, a monthly process, gradually changing opinions, slowly eroding old barriers, quietly building new structures.”
— John F. Kennedy - “Do not let the behavior of others destroy your inner peace.”
— Dalai Lama - “If you are depressed you are living in the past if you are anxious you are living in the future, if you are at peace, you are living in the present.”
— Lao Tzu - “Peace is liberty in tranquility.”
— Marcus Tullius Cicero - “Don’t hope that events will turn out the way you want, welcome events in whichever way they happen: this is the path to peace.”
— Epictetus - “Stress is a choice. So is inner peace.”
— Lewis Howes - “There is peace even in the storm.”
— Vincent Van Gogh - “I took a deep breath and listened to the old bray of my heart. I am. I am. I am.”
— Sylvia Plath - “You should feel beautiful and you should feel safe. What you surround yourself with should bring you peace of mind and peace of spirit.”
— Stacy London - “Sometimes you can find peace of mind by transferring yourself to different situations. They’re just reminders to stay … calm.”
— Yves Behar - “Don’t search for anything except peace. Try to calm the mind. Everything else will come on its own.”
— Baba Hari Das - “Peace can become a lens through which you see the world. Be it. Live it. Radiate it out. Peace is an inside job.”
— Wayne Dyer - “No person, no place, and no thing has any power over us, for ‘we’ are the only thinkers in our mind. When we create peace and harmony and balance in our minds, we will find it in our lives.”
— Louise Hay - “Let go of the thoughts that don’t make you strong.”
— Karen Salmansohn - “Peace begins with a smile.”
— Mother Teresa - “It isn’t enough to talk about peace. One must believe in it. And it isn’t enough to believe in it. One must work at it.”
— Eleanor Roosevelt - “Peace is the only battle worth waging.”
— Albert Camus - “You will find peace not by trying to escape your problems, but by confronting them courageously. You will find peace not in denial, but in victory.”
— J. Donald Walters - “Peace brings with it so many positive emotions that it is worth aiming for in all circumstances.”
— Estella Eliot - “Peace is a journey of a thousand miles and it must be taken one step at a time.”
— Lyndon B. Johnson - “ If you don’t know the guy on the other side of the world, love him anyway because he’s just like you. He has the same dreams, the same hopes and fears. It’s one world, pal. We’re all neighbors.”
— Frank Sinatra - “When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace.”
— Jimi Hendrix - “Imagine all the people living life in peace. You may say that I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one. I hope someday you’ll join us and the world will be as one.”
— John Lennon - “An eye for an eye only ends up making the whole world blind.”
— Mahatma Gandhi - “Peace is not absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.”
— Ronald Reagan - “Not one of us can rest, be happy, be at home, be at peace with ourselves, until we end hatred and division.”
— John Lewis - “Peace and friendship with all mankind is our wisest policy, and I wish we may be permitted to pursue it.”
— Thomas Jefferson - “Peace does not mean an absence of conflicts; differences will always be there. Peace means solving these differences through peaceful means; through dialogue, education, knowledge; and through humane ways.”
— Dalai Lama - “To forgive is the highest, most beautiful form of love. In return, you will receive untold peace and happiness.”
— Robert Muller - “If someone thinks that peace and love are just a cliche that must have been left behind in the 60s, that’s a problem. Peace and love are eternal.”
— John Lennon - “Being relaxed, at peace with yourself, confident, emotionally neutral loose, and free-floating — these are the keys to successful performance in almost everything.”
— Wayne Dyer - “Success is peace of mind which is a direct result of self-satisfaction in knowing you did your best to become the best you are capable of becoming.”
— John Wooden - “World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion.”
— Dalai Lama - “You cannot find peace by avoiding life.”
— Michael Cunningham - “Learning to distance yourself from all the negativity is one of the greatest lessons to achieve inner peace.”
— Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart - “Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.”
— Desmond Tutu
