Nelson Mandela Quotes

“Forgiveness liberates the soul. It removes fear. That is why it is such a powerful weapon.”

“When we can sit in the face of insanity or dislikes and be free from the need to make it different, then we are free.”

“When the water starts boiling it is foolish to turn off the heat.”

“Hope is a powerful weapon, and (one) no one power on earth can deprive you of.”

“I had no epiphany, no singular revelation, no moment of truth, but a steady accumulation of a thousand slights, a thousand indignities and a thousand unremembered moments produced in me an anger, a rebelliousness, a desire to fight the system that imprisoned my people. There was no particular day on which I said, Henceforth I will devote myself to the liberation of my people; instead, I simply found myself doing so, and could not do otherwise.”

“The freedom we enjoy is a richly textured gift handcrafted by ordinary folk”

“There is no easy walk to freedom anywhere, and many of us will have to pass through the valley of the shadow of death again and again before we reach the mountaintop of our desires.”

“No one in my family had ever attended school [...] On the first day of school my teacher, Miss Mdingane, gave each of us an English name. This was the custom among Africans in those days and was undoubtedly due to the British bias of our education. That day, Miss Mdingane told me that my new name was Nelson. Why this particular name I have no idea.”

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

“Each of us, as citizens, has a role to play in creating a better world for our children”

“We should never forget those on whose shoulders we stand and those who paid the supreme price for freedom.”

“Therefore, we must not look at the African people, even before they met whites, as if they had something unique, which was not to be found in other societies.”

“It always seems impossible until it's done.”

“We need to exert ourselves that much more, and break out of the vicious cycle of dependence imposed on us by the financially powerful: those in command of immense market power and those who dare to fashion the world in their own image.”

“The question of education has nothing to do with the question of the vote. On numerous occasions it has been proved in history that people can enjoy the vote even if they have no education.”

“The more informed you are, the less arrogant and aggressive you are.”

“There is nothing more important in life than giving. Tolerance is forged when people look beyond their own desires”

“In countries where innocent people are dying, the leaders are following their blood rather than their brains.”

“There is nothing like a fixed, steady aim, with an honorable purpose. It dignifies your nature, and insures your success.”

“I went as an observer, not a participant, for I do not think that I ever spoke. I wanted to understand the issues under discussion, evaluate the arguments, see the calibre of the men involved.”

“The truth is that we are not yet free; we have merely achieved the freedom to be free, the right not to be oppressed. We have not taken the final step of our journey, but the first step on a longer and even more difficult road. For to be free is not merely to cast off one's chains, but to live in a way that respects and enhances the freedom of others. The true test of our devotion to freedom is just beginning.”

“As long as women are bound by poverty and as long as they are looked down upon, human rights will lack substance.”

“The USA is a threat to world peace. Who are they to pretend that they are the policemen of the world, the ones that should decide for the people of Iraq what should be done with their government and their leadership. All that [the USA] wants is Iraqi oil. [Blair is] simply the foreign minister of the United States. He is no longer prime minister of Britain.”

“No one is born hating another person because of the colour of his skin, or his background, or his religion.”

“The calm and tolerant atmosphere that prevailed during the elections depicts the type of South Africa we can build. It set the tone for the future. We might have our differences, but we are one people with a common destiny in our rich variety of culture, race and tradition.”