Redundant.

Make your existence redundant
 Legitimize your existence

Give all you have got
 Give more than all you have got

Your best might not be enough
 You must give what is necessary

Existential hotspots

 

"In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"
 
- Acts 20:35
 
"But he said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me."

- Corinthians 12:9

 

"The best of people are those that bring most benefit to the rest of mankind."

- Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

"The highest person is he who is of most use to humankind."

- Ali Ibn Abi Talib

 

"Only a life lived for others is a life worthwhile."

"Life isn't worth living, unless it is lived for someone else."

- Albert Einstein

 

"Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?'''

- Martin Luther King Jr.
 
"They alone live, who live for others."

- Swami Vivekananda
 
"A life not lived for others is not a life."

 

"When you don't have anything, then you have everything."

- Mother Teresa

 

"He who gives away shall have real gain. He who subdues himself shall be free; he shall cease to be a slave of passions. The righteous man casts off evil, and by rooting out lust, bitterness, and illusion do we reach Nirvana."

- Buddha (PBUH)

 

"The two phases of this distinction in life are: First, that the man, who knows the real Self, will not be affected by anything; secondly, that that man alone can do good to the world. That man alone will have seen the real motive of doing good to others, because there is only one. It cannot be called egoistic, because that would be differentiation. It is only selflessness. It is the perception of the universal, not of the individual. Every case of love and sympathy is an assertion of this universal. 'Not I, but thou.' Help another, because you are in him and he is in you, is the philosophical way of putting it. The real Vedantist alone will give up his life for a fellow being without any compunction, because he knows he will not die. As long as there is one insect left in the world, he is living; as long as one mouth eats, he eats. So he goes on doing good to others, and is never hindered by the modern ideas of caring for the body. When a man reaches this point of abnegation, he goes beyond the moral struggle, beyond everything."

- Swami Vivekananda
 
"There is no greater pleasure than being willing to risk one’s life and make all sacrifices for the welfare of others."
 
- Radhanath Swami
 

"Liberated from the grip of egoism, like the moon (after the eclipse), full, ever blissful, self-luminous, one attains one’s essence."

- Adhyatma Upanishad

 
"He who has realized the Truth, Nirvāna, is the happiest being in the world. He is free from all 'complexes' and obsessions, … He does not repent the past, nor does he brood over the future. He lives fully in the present. … As he is free from selfish desire, hatred, ignorance, conceit, pride … , he is pure and gentle, full of universal love, compassion, kindness, sympathy, understanding and tolerance. His service to others is of the purest, for he has no thought of self. He gains nothing, accumulates nothing, not even spiritual, because he is free from the illusion of self, and the 'Thirst' for becoming."

- Walpola Rahula

"Nirvana is the ultimate being-non-being beyond human conception and not to be attained until the last shred of ego-delusion has been discarded."

- John Blofeld‎
 

"God has exalted those who strive hard with their possessions and their lives far above those who remain passive. Although God has promised the ultimate good unto all [believers], yet has God exalted those who strive hard above those who remain passive by [promising them] a mighty reward"

- The Quran
 Surah 4 An-Nisa' Ayat 95
The Women

"All gave some
 Some gave all"
  

- Sergeant Howard William Osterkamp

 

The best gave their best for others to have the best

 

It was all to bring but more joy
So why should there be anything but more joy

 

The soil under your feet I was

The soil under your feet I am

 

Selfless makes deathless

"God gives his toughest battles to his strongest soldiers"
 

"If God brings you to it,
he will bring you through it"

- English proverbs

"We always find that those who walked closest to Christ were those who had to bear the greatest trials."

- St. Teresa of Avila

 

''The wound is the place where the light enters you.''

''You have to keep breaking your heart until it opens.''

"Grief can be the garden of compassion. If you keep your heart open through everything, your pain can become your greatest ally in your life's search for love and wisdom."

 
ای آنکه به جان این جهانی زنده
شرمت بادا چرا چنانی زنده

بی‌عشق مباش تا نباشی مرده
در عشق بمیر تا بمانی زنده

 

"You think you are alive because you breathe air?

Shame on you, that you are alive in such a limited way.

Don't be without Love, so you won't feel dead.

Die in Love and stay alive forever."

 

- Rumi

 

"Let us speak further about the wish and thereby about sufferings."
 
- Soren Kierkegaard
 
"It is by suffering that human beings become angels."

"Sorrow is a fruit. God does not make it grow on limbs too weak to bear it."

- Victor Hugo

 

"Jesus said, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.'" 
 
- Luke 23:34
 
"Do not seek vengeance against the community of Muslims under the slogan 'The Commander of the Faithful has been murdered' nor inflict any harm on anyone, save my murderer. If I should die because of his strike against me, then strike him with a sword a single time, as he did to me. Do not mutilate or torture the man, for I have heard the Prophet of God (may the peace and blessings of God be upon him and his family) say: 'Never mutilate or torture any living being, even if it be a vicious dog.'"
(Nahj al-Balagha Letter 47)
 
"Be like a flower that gives its fragrance even to the hand that crushed it."

 

- Ali Ibn Abi Talib

 

شهید قلب تاریخ است
 
"The martyr is the heart of history"

 

- Ali Shariati

 

"The tyrant dies and his rule is over, the martyr dies and his rule begins."

- Soren Kierkegaard

 

"I don't care if I fall as long as someone else picks up my gun and keeps on shooting."

 

"I know you are here to kill me. Shoot, coward, you are only going to kill a man"

- Che Guevara
 

اگر یک وقت ناچار با مرگ روبرو شدم که می‌شوم، مهم نیست

 مهم این است که زندگی یا مرگ من چه تاثیری در زندگی دیگران داشته باشد 
 
"If I at some time should unwillingly face death which I will, it is not important, what is important is what effect my life or death has on the lives of others"
 
- Samad Behrangi
 
"The greatest sign of success for a teacher… is to be able to say, 'The children are now working as if I did not exist.'"

 

- Maria Montessori

 

"There are eight levels of charity… The highest is when you strengthen a man's hand until he need no longer be dependent upon others."

"Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day; teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime."

"Anticipate charity by preventing poverty."

- Maimonides

 

تو در نماز عشق چه خواندی
 که سالهاست
 بالای دار رفتی و این شحنه های پیر
 از مرده ات
 هنوز پرهیز می‌کنند

 
"What did you pray in the prayer of love that it is years since you climbed the gallows and these old authorities still fear you even as dead"

 

- Shafiei Kadkani

 

مرغی که نوای درد راند عشق است
پيکی که زبان غيب داند عشق است
هستی که به نيستيت خواند عشق است
وآنچ از تو ترا باز رهاند عشق است

"The bird that sings the song of pain is love
The courier who knows the tongue of the Unseen is love
The existence that calls you to nonexistence is love
And that which redeems you from you is love"

- Khaqani

"What then is love? The Ocean of Nonexistence.
It is there that the foot of the intellect is broken"
 
لاابالی عشق باشد نی خرد
عقل آن جوید کز آن سودی برد
ترک تاز و تن گداز و بی حیا
در بلا چون سنگ زیر آسیاب
سخت رویی که ندارد هیچ پشت
بهره جویی را درون خویس کشت
پاک می بازد، نباشد مزد جو
آنچنان که پاک می گیرد زهو
می دهد حق هستیش بی علتی
می سپارد باز بی علت فتی
که فتوت دادن بی علتست
پاک بازی خارج هر ملتست
زآنکه ملت فضل جوید یا خلاص
پاک بازانند قربانان خاص
نی خدا را امتحانی می کنند
نی در سود و زیانی می زنند

"Love is reckless - not reason.
Reason searches for a profit.
Love comes on fiercely, scorching, melting all form, shameless.
But in despair, sturdy as a millstone.
Stone-faced, loyal, selfless.
Love is love because it’s killed all self-regard.
Love gambles itself away. It doesn’t look for payment.
It receives everything it needs
from beyond.
The absolute gives us life for no reason.
The lover gives it back again just the same.
For true devotion is giving - without cause.
Gambling yourself clean away is beyond any religion.
While religion is for seeking favour and deliverance,
Those who gamble themselves clean away are
the choicest sacrifice.
They don’t put You to the test.
Nor do they knock on the door of gain and loss.
All they want is to give
Everything."

- Rumi

 

"Once he had completely burnt away his own self,
From his own self he was thoroughly freed."

"If Attar could totally get rid of his own self
A fraction of his living existence would be equal to the nine azure firmaments."

"I said I would pay the price of life to buy the pain of loving you,
And you sold me a whole world."

 
"Diminishing and then again diminishing: that is my religion
Non-being in being is my creed.
My condition cannot be contained in words
Read my story in my tears of blood."

"I said, 'In this mortality I’m so poor I can’t explain.'
You: 'I give an immortality … your 'I', can’t explain:
I mean, when you see you, as non-existent; I give such Existence, you’ll implore: 'I can’t explain.''"

- Attar

"When the Master governs, the people are hardly aware that he exists…
…The Master doesn't talk, he acts.
When his work is done, the people say, 'Amazing: we did it, all by ourselves!'"

 

"The best of all leaders is the one who helps people so that eventually they don’t need him."

 

"The reason why heaven and earth are able to endure and continue thus long is because they do not live of, or for, themselves."

 

"Is it not through her selflessness that she is able to perfect herself?"

 

"To be worn out is to be renewed."

 

- Lao Tzu

"True self is non-self, the awareness that the self is made only of non-self elements. There's no separation between self and other, and everything is interconnected. Once you are aware of that you are no longer caught in the idea that you are a separate entity."
 
"Fear, separation, hate and anger come from the wrong view that you and the Earth are two separate entities, the Earth is only the environment. You are in the centre and you want to do something for the Earth in order for you to survive. That is a dualistic way of seeing."

- Thich Nhat Hanh
 
आत्मौपम्येन सर्वत्र समं पश्यति योऽर्जुन |
सुखं वा यदि वा दु:खं स योगी परमो मत: ||
 
"When a person responds to the joys and sorrows of others as if they were his own, he has attained the highest state of spiritual union." (6:32)
 
- The Bhagavad Gita

 

"True Love is when you are able to see yourself in another, when you recognize that there is no separation between you and any other Being in the Universe."

- Joseph P. Kauffman

 

"Joy! Joy! I triumph! Now no more I know
Myself as simply me. I burn with love
Unto myself, and bury me in love.
The centre is within me and its wonder
Lies as a circle everywhere about me.
Joy! Joy! No mortal thought can fathom me.
I am the merchant and the pearl at once.
Lo, Time and Space lie crouching at my feet.
Joy! Joy! When I would reveal in a rapture.
I plunge into myself and all things know."

- Attar

 
"Forgetting oneself is opening oneself"
 
"To study the way is to study the self. To study the self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things. To be enlightened by all things is to remove the barriers between one’s self and others."

 

- Dogen

 

"I come to you without me,
come to me without you.
Self is the thorn in the sole of the soul.
Merge with others.
If you stay in self, you are a grain, you are a drop.
If you merge with others, you are an ocean, you are a mine."

 

- Rumi
 
You wanted you redundant
They wanted you redundant
You became redundant
They became redundant
 
"Your aim must be to take All-under-Heaven intact."
 
"For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill."

 
- Sun Tzu
 
"Who has no mercy upon inferiors will suffer from the tyranny of superiors.

Not every arm which contains strength
Breaks the hand of the weak for showing bravery.
Injure not the heart of the helpless
For thou wilt succumb to the force of a strong man."

- Saadi Shirazi

 

حرص و حسد و کینه ز دل بیرون کن
خوی بدو اندیشه تو دیگرگون کن

انکار زیان تست زو کمتر گیر
اقرار ترا سود دهد افزون کن

"Expel greed, envy and hate from your heart
Change your mind to prevent ill character

Denial is your disadvantage use is not
Confession is you advantage use it more"

- Rumi

برون کن کینه را از سینهٔ خویش
که دود خانه از روزن برون به

ز کشت دل مده کس را خراجی
مشو ای دهخدا غارتگر ده

"Expel hate from your chest
Why smoke best depart the house from the exit

Do not break heart to tribute others
As governor do not plunder the village"

- Muhammad Iqbal Lahori
 
"Let me embrace thee, sour adversity, for wise men say it is the wisest course."

"If you prick us do we not bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? If you poison us do we not die? And if you wrong us shall we not revenge?"

- William Shakespeare

 

"Forgiveness is virtue; forgiveness is sacrifice; forgiveness is the Vedas; forgiveness is the Shruti.
Forgiveness protecteth the ascetic merit of the future; forgiveness is asceticism; forgiveness is holiness; and by forgiveness is it that the universe is held together."

 

- Mahabharata, Book 3, Vana Parva, Section XXIX

 
"Righteousness is the one highest good, forgiveness is the one supreme peace, knowledge is one supreme contentment, and benevolence, one sole happiness."

 

- Mahabharata, Book 5, Udyoga Parva, Section XXXIII

 

"Let none find fault with others; let none see the omissions and commissions of others. But let one see one’s own acts, done and undone."

"Conquer anger with non-anger. Conquer badness with goodness.
Conquer meanness with generosity. Conquer dishonesty with truth."

- Buddha (PBUH)

 

"If we haven’t forgiven, we keep creating an identity around our pain, and that is what is reborn. That is what suffers."

- Abhayagiri Buddhist Monastery

 

"Do not be concerned with the faults of other persons. Do not see others' faults with a hateful mind. There is an old saying that if you stop seeing others' faults, then naturally seniors and venerated and juniors are revered. Do not imitate others' faults; just cultivate virtue. Buddha prohibited unwholesome actions, but did not tell us to hate those who practice unwholesome actions."

- Dogen

 
和大怨, 必有餘怨,
安可以為善?
是以聖人執左契而
不責於人.
有德司契,
無德司徹.
天道無親,
常與善人.
 
"After a bitter quarrel, some resentment remains.
What can one do about it?
Being content with what you have
is always best in the end.

Someone must risk returning injury with kindness,
or hostility will never turn to goodwill.
So the wise always give without expecting gratitude.

One with true virtue always seeks a way to give.
One who lacks true virtue always seeks a way to get.
To the giver comes the fullness of life:
to the taker, just an empty hand."

- Tao Te Ching 79

"Those who cannot forgive others break the bridge over which they themselves must pass."

"The nobler sort of man emphasizes the good qualities in others, and does not accentuate the bad. The inferior does."

"Love thy neighbor as thyself: Do not do to others what thou wouldst not wish be done to thyself: Forgive injuries. Forgive thy enemy, be reconciled to him, give him assistance, invoke God in his behalf."

"The more people know, the more they forgive."

- Confucius

"Do not hate your brother in your heart."

 
- Leviticus 19:17

 
"Who is a God like You, who forgives iniquity and passes over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? He does not maintain His anger forever, for He desires loving-kindness."

 

- Micah 7:18

 

"38-42 Here’s another old saying that deserves a second look: 'Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.' Is that going to get us anywhere? Here’s what I propose: 'Don’t hit back at all.' If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, giftwrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously."

 
- Matthew 5:38-42

 

"Let anyone among you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her."

- John 8:7
 
"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you."

- Ephesians 4:32

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord,"

 

- Acts 3:19

"And when you stand praying, if you hold anything against anyone, forgive them, so that your Father in heaven may forgive you your sins."

- Mark 11:25

"Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you."

- Colossians 3:13

"14 For if you forgive other people when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. 15 But if you do not forgive others their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins."

- Matthew 6:14-15

"The LORD is slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, forgiving iniquity and transgression, but he will by no means clear the guilty."

- Numbers 14:18

"Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, 'Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.' …

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

- Romans 12:19-21

"Vengeance is Mine, and recompense;
Their foot shall slip in due time;
For the day of their calamity is at hand,
And the things to come hasten upon them."

- Deuteronomy 32:35

"Doing good for a good done to you is simply repayment, whereas doing good for an evil done to you is a tremendous virtue."

مَنْ لا يَرْحَمُ لا يُرْحَمُ وَلا يُغْفَرُ مَنْ لا يَغْفِرُ وَلا يُعْفَ عَمَّنْ لَمْ يَعْفُ وَلا يُوقَّ مَنْ لا يَتَوَقَّ

"Whoever does not show mercy will not receive mercy. Whoever does not forgive others will not be forgiven. Whoever does not pardon others will not be pardoned. Whoever does not protect others will not be protected."
(Al-Adab Al-Mufrad 366)

- Umar Ibn Al-Khattab

ثُمَّ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ لِلَّذِينَ عَمِلُوا۟ ٱلسُّوٓءَ 

بِجَهَـٰلَةٍۢ ثُمَّ تَابُوا۟ مِنۢ بَعْدِ ذَٰلِكَ وَأَصْلَحُوٓا۟ 

إِنَّ رَبَّكَ مِنۢ بَعْدِهَا لَغَفُورٌۭ رَّحِيمٌ

"As for those who commit evil ignorantly [or recklessly], then repent afterwards and mend their ways, then your Lord is surely All-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (16:119)

"And the retribution for an evil act is an evil one like it, but whoever pardons and makes reconciliation - his reward is [due] from Allah. …
And whoever is patient and forgives - indeed, that is of the matters [requiring] determination [i.e. on the part of those seeking the reward of Allah]." (42:39-43)

 

وَلْيَعْفُوا وَلْيَصْفَحُوا ۗ أَلَا تُحِبُّونَ أَن يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ ۗ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

"Let them pardon and overlook. Would you not love for Allah to forgive you? Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." (24:22)

 
الَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ فِي السَّرَّاءِ وَالضَّرَّاءِ وَالْكَاظِمِينَ الْغَيْظَ وَالْعَافِينَ عَنِ النَّاسِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُحْسِنِينَ

"The believers are those who spend in charity during ease and hardship and who restrain their anger and pardon the people, for Allah loves the doers of good." (3:134)

 
خُذِ الْعَفْوَ وَأْمُرْ بِالْعُرْفِ وَأَعْرِضْ عَنِ الْجَاهِلِينَ

"Show forgiveness, enjoin what is good, and turn away from the ignorant." (7:199)

- The Quran

 
مَا نَقَصَتْ صَدَقَةٌ مِنْ مَالٍ وَمَا زَادَ اللَّهُ عَبْدًا بِعَفْوٍ إِلاَّ عِزًّا وَمَا تَوَاضَعَ أَحَدٌ لِلَّهِ إِلاَّ رَفَعَهُ اللَّهُ

"Charity does not decrease wealth, no one forgives except that Allah increases his honor, and no one humbles himself for the sake of Allah except that Allah raises his status."
(Sahih Muslim 2588)

ارْحَمُوا تُرْحَمُوا وَاغْفِرُوا يَغْفِرْ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ

"Be merciful to others and you will receive mercy. Forgive others and Allah will forgive you."
(Musnad Ahmad 7001)

يَا عُقْبَةُ بْنَ عَامِرٍ صِلْ مَنْ قَطَعَكَ وَأَعْطِ مَنْ حَرَمَكَ وَاعْفُ عَمَّنْ ظَلَمَكَ

"O Uqbah, reconcile whoever cuts you off, give to whoever deprives you, and pardon whoever wrongs you."
(Musnad Ahmad 16999)

"He is not a believer who eats to his fill but his neighbor goes without food."

"Nothing is worse than a person who fills his stomach. It should be enough for the son of Adam to have a few bites to satisfy his hunger. If he wishes more, it should be: One-third for his food, one-third for his liquids, and one-third for his breath."

- Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

 -

-

 BEST ACTION

Give without remembering
Receive without forgetting

"He that gives should never remember, he that receives should never forget."

 

"Who gives charity in secret is greater than Moses."
 
- The Talmud

"There can be no greater gift than that of giving one’s time and energy to help others without expecting anything in return."

 

"The true meaning of life is to plant trees, under whose shade you do not expect to sit."
 
- Nelson Mandela

"It is amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit."

- Harry S. Truman

"Teach us to give and not count the cost."

- St. Ignatius de Loyola

"Love risks everything and asks for nothing."

- Rumi

"Intense love does not measure, it just gives."

 

"Do things for people not because of who they are or what they can do for you in return, but because of who you are."
 
- Mother Teresa

تو نیکی میکن و در دجله انداز
که ایزد در بیابانت دهد باز

 

"Do good and throw it in the Tigris river
So that god returns it to you in your desert"
 
- Saadi Shirazi

"Even After All this time
The Sun never says to the Earth,
'You owe me.'
Look What happens With a love like that,
It lights the whole sky."

- Daniel Ladinsky
 
"Love is not love that alters when it alteration finds."

"He that loves to be flattered is worthy o' the flatterer."

"Love sought is good, but given unsought, is better."

 

- William Shakespeare

 

"Avançons sans regret, sans calcul, sans répit. La récompense ne sera pas dans I'Histoire, elle sera dans l'avenir."

 

"Let us go forward without regret, without calculation, without respite.The reward will not be in history, it will be in the future."
 
- François Hollande
 
"The measure of love is to love without measure."

 
مقياس المحبة هو المحبة بلا مقياس

 

- St. Francis de Sales

 

"The secret to living well and longer is: eat half, walk double, laugh triple and love without measure."

- Tibetan proverb

 

"Carry out a random act of kindness, with no expectation of reward, safe in the knowledge that one day someone might do the same for you."

- Princess Diana

 

"Hide the good you do, and make known the good done to you."

 

"The best form of devotion to the service of Allah is not to make a show of it."

 

"Fulfillment of (others') needs becomes a lasting virtue in three ways: regarding it small so that it attains bigness, concealing it so that it may manifest itself, and doing it quickly so that it becomes pleasant."
 
- Ali Ibn Abi Talib

"The most generous person is the one who offers help to those who have no hope of return."

- Imam Hussein

أفضل الجود العطاء قبل الموعد أفضل الجود أن تبذل من غير مسألة

"The best generousity is giving without being asked."

أعلى الممالك ما يبنى على الأسل اعمل خيراً وارمه البحر

"Do good and throw it in sea.
Don't expect rewards for good deeds"

 

- Arabic proverbs

 

"Those whose minds are shaped by selfless thoughts give joy whenever they speak or act. Joy follows them like a shadow that never leaves them.

…

But those who are selfless rejoice here and rejoice there; they rejoice wherever they go. They rejoice and delight in the good they have done.

…

The selfless person is happy here, and he is happy there; he is happy wherever he goes. He is happy when he thinks of the good he has done. He grows in happiness as he progresses along the path of bliss."

- The Dhammapada

 
"Just practice good, do good for others, without thinking of making yourself known so that you may gain reward. Really bring benefit to others, gaining nothing for yourself. This is the primary requisite for breaking free of attachments to the Self."
 

"It is only due to a lack of heart for the Way and a lack of skill in handling their daily conduct that people become vainly tied to fame and gain."

 
"If he cannot stop the mind that seeks after fame and profit, he will spend his life without finding peace."

 
- Dogen

 

"At the beginning of time I declared two paths for the pure heart: jnana yoga, the contemplative path of spiritual wisdom, and karma yoga, the active path of selfless service. One who shirks action does not attain freedom; no one can gain perfection by abstaining from work. Indeed, there is no one who rests for even an instant; all creatures are driven to action by their own nature.

Those who abstain from action while allowing the mind to dwell on sensual pleasure cannot be called sincere spiritual aspirants. But they excel who control their senses through the mind, using them for selfless service. Fulfill all your duties; action is better than inaction. Even to maintain your body, Arjuna, you are obliged to act. Selfish action imprisons the world. Act selflessly, without thought of personal profit."

 
दातव्यमिति यद्दानं दीयतेऽनुपकारिणे |
देशे काले च पात्रे च तद्दानं सात्विकं स्मृतम् ||
 
"A gift is pure when it is given from the heart to the right person at the right time and at the right place, and when we expect nothing in return"
 
- The Bhagavad Gita
 
"The most virtuous are those who content themselves with being virtuous without seeking to appear so." 
 
- Plato
 
"It is the way of the superior man to prefer the concealment of his virtue, while it daily becomes more illustrious, and it is the way of the mean man to seek notoriety, while he daily goes more and more to ruin."
 
- Confucius
 
"Bearing and nurturing,
Creating but not owning,
Giving without demanding,
Controlling without authority,
This is love."

 

"To bear and not to own; to act and not lay claim; to do the work and let it go: for just letting it go is what makes it stay."

 

- Lao Tzu

 

"In a word, nearness to God necessitates sacrifice of self, severance and the giving up of all to Him."

 

- Baha'u'llah (PBUH)

 

"The great secret of true success, of true happiness, is this: the man or woman who asks for no return, the perfectly unselfish person, is the most successful."
 

"Desire nothing for yourself. Do all for others. This is to live and move and have your being in God."

 

"Self-sacrifice, not self-assertion, is the law of the highest universe."

 

"The highest ideal is eternal and entire self-abnegation, where there is no 'I,' but all is 'Thou'."

 

"Who will give the world light? Sacrifice in the past has been the Law, it will be, alas, for ages to come. The earth’s bravest and best will have to sacrifice themselves for the good of many, for the welfare of all. Buddhas by the hundred are necessary with eternal love and pity."

 

"Selfishness is the devil incarnate in every man. Every bit of self, bit by bit, is devil. Take off self by one side and God enters by the other. When the self is got rid of, only God remains. Light and darkness cannot remain together."

 

- Swami Vivekananda

 

"The true measure of a man is how he treats someone who can do him absolutely no good."

 

- Samuel Johnson

 

"Help others without any reason and give without the expectation of receiving anything in return."

 

- Roy T. Bennett

 

"The most truly generous persons are those who give silently without hope of praise or reward."

 

- Carol Ryrie Brink

 

"Always give without remembering and always receive without forgetting."
 
- Brian Tracy
 
"To be kind is good. To be kind without expecting anything in return is better."
 
- Tariq Ramadan
 
"Generosity is doing something for someone else expecting nothing in return."

 

"Don't give to get. Give to inspire others to give."
 
- Simon Sinek

 
"Real love begins where nothing is expected in return."

 

"True love begins when nothing is looked for in return."

 

- Antoine de Saint-Exupery

 
"Love the people that wanna see you be successful and help you expecting nothing in return. That’s priceless. Those are real friends."

 

- Mark Patterson

 

"Anonymously perform acts of kindness, expecting nothing in return, not even a thank-you. The universal all-creating Spirit responds to acts of kindness with the response: 'How may I be kind to you?'"

 

- Wayne Dyer

 

"Anyone who loves in the expectation of being loved in return is wasting their time."

 

- Paulo Coelho

 
"Give the respect you want to receive; embody the grace you hope to encounter; and help others with no expectations whatsoever."

 

- Cory Booker

 
"When you give, expect nothing from people and everything from Allah."

 

- Omar Suleiman

 
"His love for her was a gift he gave her daily, expecting nothing in return. He walked at her side, his love for her a torch to guide her footsteps along the dark path she walked."

 

- Margaret Weis

 
"Fame is temporary, make it longterm by putting smiles on people's hearts and helping others by expecting nothing in return. Be famous and unforgettable for your Unconditional Love."

 

- Arsi Nami
 
"If you disclose your Sadaqaat (almsgiving), it is well; but if you conceal them and give them to the poor, that is better for you." (2:271)

 

"Those who spend their money in the night and in the day, secretly and openly, they will have their reward with their Lord, there is no fear over them nor will they grieve." (2:274)

 

"Those who spend their wealth for increase in self-purification, And have in their minds No favour from anyone For which a reward Is expected in return, But only the desire To seek for the Countenance Of their Lord Most High; And soon will they Attain (complete) satisfaction." (92:18-21)

 

"O my people! I ask of you no reward for this (Message). My reward is from none but Him who created me: Will ye not then understand?" (11:51)

 

"Obey those who ask no reward of you (for themselves), and who have themselves received Guidance." (36:21)

 

"Those who spend their substance in the cause of God, and follow not up their gifts with reminders of their generosity or with injury, for them their reward is with their Lord: on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve." (2:262)

 

"O ye who believe! cancel not your charity by reminders of your generosity or by injury, like those who spend their substance to be seen of men, but believe neither in God nor in the Last Day. They are in parable like a hard, barren rock, on which is a little soil: on it falls heavy rain, which leaves it (Just) a bare stone. They will be able to do nothing with aught they have earned. And God guideth not those who reject faith. And the likeness of those who spend their substance, seeking to please God and to strengthen their souls, is as a garden, high and fertile: heavy rain falls on it but makes it yield a double increase of harvest, and if it receives not Heavy rain, light moisture sufficeth it. God seeth well whatever ye do." (2:264-265)

 

"Not those who spend of their substance, to be seen of men, but have no faith in God and the Last Day: If any take the Evil One for their intimate, what a dreadful intimate he is!" (4:38)

 

"And do not confer favor to acquire more" (74:6)

 

"We feed you only for the sake of Allah, seeking neither reward nor thanks from you." (76:9)

 

- The Quran

 

"The Prophet said: 'Allah loves the God-fearing rich man [who gives much in charity but still] remains obscure and uncelebrated.'"
(Muslim)

"There are seven whom Allah will shade on the Day of Judgement…
 …A man who gives in charity and hides it, such that his left hand does not know what his right hand gives in charity; and a man who remembered Allah in private and so his eyes shed tears."
(Abu Hurairah, Saheeh Al-Bukhari, Saheeh Muslim)

- Prophet Muhammad (PBUH)

 

"But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you." 

- Matthew 6:3-4

"But love ye your enemies, and do good and lend, hoping for nothing in return; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest; for He is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil."
 
- Luke 6:35
 
"If your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you, you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a sojourner, and he shall live with you. Take no interest from him or profit, but fear your God, that your brother may live beside you. You shall not lend him your money at interest, nor give him your food for profit."
 
- Leviticus 25:35-37
 
"12 Then Jesus said to his host, 'When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. 13 But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.'"
 
- Luke 14:12-14

 

"Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil."

 
- Matthew 6:9-13

 
"Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread; and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us; and lead us not into temptation."

 
- Luke 11:2-4
 
"12 And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, 13 And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves."

- Matthew 21:12-13

"13 The Passover of the Jews was near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. 14 In the temple he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and the money changers seated at their tables. 15 Making a whip of cords, he drove all of them out of the temple, both the sheep and the cattle. He also poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. 16 He told those who were selling the doves, 'Take these things out of here! Stop making my Father’s house a marketplace!'"

 

- John 2:13-16

"And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward."

- Matthew 6:5

 

"I will raise up Cyrus in my righteousness: I will make all his ways straight. He will rebuild my city and set my exiles free, but not for a price or reward, says God Almighty."

- Isaiah 45:13

 

-