Pico Iyer Quotes

To be without some of the things you want is an indispensable part of happiness.

I used to desire many, many things, but now I have just one desire, and that's to get rid of all my other desires.

Those who are possessed by nothing possess everything.

Renouncing things is less difficult than people believe: it's all a matter of getting started. Once you've succeeded in dispensing with something you thought essential, you realize you can also do without something else, then without many other things.

The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.

It is the privilege of the gods to want nothing, and of godlike men to want little.

If thou wilt make a man happy, add not unto his riches but take away from his desires.

A table, a chair, a bowl of fruit and a violin; what else does a man need to be happy?

O ye gods, grant unto me to have little and to want nothing.

I have learned to seek my happiness by limiting my desires, rather than in attempting to satisfy them.

I see what happens when one gets very attached to material things. That's just not what my life is.

With renunciation life begins.

I don't like to attach myself to material things.

Happiness consists not in having much, but in being content with little.

The only truly affluent are those who do not want more than they have.

I'm not attached to things at all. I'm very lucky to have quite a few beautiful things, but if I look back at my life, I was often happiest when I had very little.

You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need.

Enjoy doing nothing, and you can enjoy doing anything. Enjoy having nothing, and you can enjoy whatever you have.

The secret of happiness is to admire without desiring. And that is not happiness.

I love the idea of living a life that is completely humble and quiet.

The more you learn to live without, the more you'll have to live with.

Man must do his part and detach himself from created things.

A man is rich in proportion to the number of things he can afford to let alone.

I don't like possessions.

I don't have a desire for material things. As long as I'm happy, I'm good, man.