Joseph Campbell Quotes

Forgive others, forgive yourself, forgive yourself for not being perfect, and accept responsibility for your own life.

Things are not as we would like them to be. There is only one way to deal with it, namely to try and be all right oneself.

My father always said, 'Do your best and piss on the rest.' And I think there's a lot of truth to that, because if you've done your best, there's not a hell of a lot more you can do about something.

Unlike Frank Sinatra, I have no regrets in my life. Zero. Whatever hardships I have faced, or have caused myself, are moments I have to embrace in order to move forward. I have no problem coming to grips with either the highs or lows in my life.

If it is peace you want, seek to change yourself, not other people. It is easier to protect your feet with slippers than to carpet the whole of the earth.

Each of us has some change within us, we cannot change the political or the social system of the world unless we change inside of us as individuals and that’s the direction I am in now which I call spiritual.

I am inspired by positive people who have overcome difficult obstacles, motivational/spiritual books, nature, and my kids.

If I simply do my best, I cannot complain even if I am taken to hell.

So your first job is to work on yourself. The greatest thing you can do for another human being is to get your own house in order and find your true spiritual heart.

Do what you can to do what you ought, and leave hoping and fearing alone.

The first lesson of life is to burn our own smoke; that is, not to inflict on outsiders our personal sorrows and petty morbidness, not to keep thinking of ourselves as exceptional cases.

Hoping gets you nothing in life. If you want more in life it’s your job to earn it.

Rebuilding us. Isn't that what the spirit requires, when we climb over the wreckage of our lives, sometimes, we go on to make our lives our own affirmation? We are perfect expressions of perfect Love, here and now. There is no permanent injury.

To end the misery that has afflicted the human condition for thousands of years, you have to start with yourself and take responsibility for you inner state at any given moment. That means now

For the world is in a bad state, but everything will become still worse unless each of us does his best.

To grumble about the world and its unhappiness is always easier than to beat one's breast and groan over oneself.

As I look back at the entire tapestry of my life, I can see from the perspective of the present moment that every aspect of my life was necessary and perfect. Each step eventually led to a higher place, even though these steps often felt like obstacles or painful experiences.

I'm convinced that a lot of people simply don't know what's available out there and how it is possible to find a job and work your way up if you are willing to accept responsibility for your life. I know what it's like to be on the bottom. I've been broke. I've been fired seven times from jobs. And I don't even have a college degree. But I didn't blame anyone else for my problems. I knew that if I didn't try to solve them on my own or with the help of friends or family members, no one else was going to take care of me.

You're not perfect, but you're not your mistakes.

Being perfect is being flawed, accepting it, and never letting it make you feel less than your best.

Control the things you can control. As for the rest - God bless it all.

Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life.

I have done my best. That is about all the philosophy of living one needs.

You have a class of young strong men and women, and they want to give their lives to something. Advertising has these people chasing cars and clothes they don't need. Generations have been working in jobs they hate, just so they can buy what they don't really need. We don't have a great war in our generation, or a great depression, but we do, we have a great war of the spirit. We have a great revolution against the culture. The great depression is our lives. We have a spiritual depression.

When faced with demanding situations, can you keep your heart as light as a feather? Can you laugh your way through challenges and maintain an attitude freer than fear? When confronted with upsets and the poisonous projections of others, can you remember that all is well? Do you know that you are a spiritual being, not subject to the whims and caprices of earthly tides?