Alan Watts was a British-American philosopher, writer, and speaker. He is best known for his unique ability to explain Eastern philosophies in Western terms. His teachings have helped millions of people around the world gain clarity on topics such as life’s purpose, personal growth and spirituality.
In this article we’ll explore 35 inspirational quotes from Alan Watts that will help you find more freedom in your life.
We all desire freedom – whether it’s the freedom to live our lives according to our own beliefs or the freedom to let go of societal expectations and be true to ourselves. Whatever form it takes, an individual striving for freedom can often feel like they are up against insurmountable odds.
Fortunately, there are wise words out there that can provide guidance during these times of struggle. These quotes from Alan Watts offer insight into how to break free from what holds us back in order to truly experience that longed-for sense of liberation.
Inspiring Alan Watts Quotes
- “We seldom realize, for example, that our most private thoughts and emotions are not actually our own. For we think in terms of languages and images which we did not invent, but which were given to us by our society.”
- “The past and future are illusions, they exist only in the present, which is what there is and all there is.”
- “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”
- “The more we try to live in the world of words, the more we feel isolated and alone.”
- “We cannot be more sensitive to pleasure without being more sensitive to pain.”
- “The only Zen you find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there.”
- “The art of living… is neither careless drifting on the one hand nor fearful clinging to the past on the other. It consists in being sensitive to each moment, in regarding it as utterly new and unique, in having the mind open and wholly receptive.”
- “Man suffers only because he takes seriously what the gods made for fun.”
- “We are all human beings, and we all have the same potential to awaken to our true nature.”
- “We do not ‘come into’ this world; we come out of it, as leaves from a tree.”
- “I have realized that the past and future are real illusions, that they exist in the present, which is what there is and all there is.”
- “There will always be suffering. But we must not suffer over the suffering.”
- “We are living in a culture entirely hypnotized by the illusion of time, in which the so-called present moment is felt as nothing but an infinitesimal hairline between an all-powerfully causative past and an absorbingly important future. We have no present. Our consciousness is almost completely preoccupied with memory and expectation.”
- “The only thing that ultimately matters is to eat an ice-cream cone, play a slide trombone, plant a small tree, good God, now you’re free.”
- “We cannot be more sensitive to pleasure without being more sensitive to pain.”
- “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”
- “Waking up to who you are requires letting go of who you imagine yourself to be.”
- “You are an aperture through which the universe is looking at and exploring itself.”
- “Problems that remain persistently insoluble should always be suspected as questions asked in the wrong way.”
- “Man’s role is uncertain, undefined, and perhaps unnecessary.”
- “The more a thing tends to be permanent, the more it tends to be lifeless.”
- “The reason we have poverty is that we have no imagination. There are a great many people accumulating what they think is vast wealth, but it’s only money… they don’t know how to enjoy it, because they have no imagination.”
- “Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.”
- “The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple.”
- “This is the real secret of life – to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.”
- “You are a function of what the whole universe is doing in the same way that a wave is a function of what the whole ocean is doing.”
- “Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.”
- “No valid plans for the future can be made by those who have no capacity for living now.”
- “The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”
- “The more we try to separate ourselves from nature, the more we alienate ourselves from ourselves.”
- “Muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone.”
- “Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.”
- “The only Zen you can find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there.”
- “If you see yourself in the correct way, you are all as much extraordinary phenomena of nature as trees, clouds, the patterns in running water, the flickering of fire, the arrangement of the stars, and the form of a galaxy. You are all just like that.”
- “The only thing that we know for certain is that we know nothing for certain.”
- “It is hard indeed to notice anything for which the languages available to us have no description.”
- “The only thing that ultimately matters is to eat an ice cream cone, play a slide trombone, plant a small tree, good God, now you’re free.”
Conclusion
The wisdom of Alan Watts has been inspiring people for generations. His quotes provide guidance, solace, and challenge us to think differently about life’s most difficult questions.
Juxtaposing his words with our own lives can lead to a deeper understanding of ourselves and the world around us. We should take time each day to reflect on these wise words from Alan Watts – they may help guide our actions in times of doubt or confusion.
He reminds us that we have the power to create our own destiny, no matter how daunting it may seem at first. With this knowledge, we can live more fully and find joy even during challenging times.
