Pankaj Mishra Quotes

Varied are the ideas of what constitutes "success," e.g. money, position, power, achievement, honours, and the like. But these are not open to every man-nor do they bring what is real success, namely, happiness.

You have reached the pinnacle of success as soon as you become uninterested in money, compliments, or publicity.

The word contentment comes from the word content, which is what we hold inside - love, value, a feeling of a life that has meaning or purpose, a cause greater than yourself that you're a part of. These are the things that bring true happiness. As a culture, I think we need to redefine what it means to be happy.

More wealth doesn't fix your life. More wealth makes you more of what you already are.

Success? I don't know what that word means. I'm happy. But success, that goes back to what in somebody's eyes success means. For me, success is inner peace. That's a good day for me.

I am deeply fulfilled by all that I do.

[B]eyond poverty, beyond the point that the material needs are reasonably satisfied, only from within is peace.

I'm alive, happier than I've ever been, and I'm doing exactly what I want.

One of the marks of a life well lived has to be reaching a state of finally getting it, of not needing more, and of being able to sign off with something approaching peace of mind.

The whole purpose of life is to make yourself happy.

Success must never be measured by how much money you have.

Any fool can be happy. What I'm interested in is satisfaction. There's got to be more to life than just being happy. You've got to be fulfilled. You've got to be satisfied; philosophically satisfied is what I mean.

Life fundamentally does not change depending on work or fame or success.

I feel like I'm exactly where I should be.

I try to live by the rule do what makes you happy.

Nobody ever wins by the cavalry coming to rescue you. It isn't a question of you're happy if you get married, or you get thin, or you get rich, because I've known lots of thin, rich, married people who are absolutely miserable.

Happiness is a how; not a what. A talent, not an object.

I am living my dream every day.

Monetary success is not success. Career success is not success. Life, someone that loves you, giving to others, doing something that makes you feel complete and full. That is success. And it isn't dependent on anyone else.

I'm more liberated and happy than I've been my whole life. I'm just happy.

That should be the measure of success for everyone. It's not money, it's not fame, it's not celebrity; my index of success is happiness.

We all want to be happy. We need to expand the notion of what that means, to make it bigger and wiser.

My life is fulfilled.

I'm not really concerned with the outer success.

Let us waste no further time looking for the secret of success or the key to happiness. Already the door is open and whosoever will, may enter.