Mother Therese - Nobel Peace Prize Acceptance Speech

11 December 1979,
Oslo, Norway.

Mother Teresa receiving the Nobel Peace Prize

As we have gathered here together to thank God for the Nobel Peace Prize, I think it will be beautiful that we pray the prayer of St. Francis of Assisi which always surprises me very much . We pray this prayer every day after Holy Communion, because it is very fitting for each one of us.

And I always wonder that 400-500 years ago when St. Francis of Assisi composed this prayer, they had the same difficulties that we have today as we compose this prayer that fits very nicely for us also. I think some of you already have got it - so we pray together: Let us thank God for the opportunity that we all have together today, for this gift of peace that reminds us that we have been created to live that peace, and that Jesus became man to bring that good news to the poor.

He, being God, became man in all things like us except in sin, and he proclaimed very clearly that he had come to give the good news. The news was peace to all of good will and this is something that we all want - the peace of heart. And God loved the world so much that he gave his son - it was a giving: it is as much as if to say it hurt God to give, because he loved the world so much that he gave his son. He gave him to the Virgin Mary, and what did she do with him?

As soon as he came in her life, immediately she went in haste to give that good news, and as she came into the house of her cousin, the child - the child in the womb of Elizabeth, lept with joy. He was, that little unborn child was, the first messenger of peace. He recognized the Prince of Peace, he recognized that Christ had come to bring the good news for you and for me.

And as if that was not enough - it was not enough to become a man - he died on the cross to show that greater love, and he died for you and for me and for that leper and for that man dying of hunger and that naked person lying in the street not only of Calcutta, but of Africa, and New York, and London, and Oslo - and insisted that we love one another as he loves each one of us.

And we read that in the Gospel very clearly: "love as I have loved you; as I love you; as the Father has loved me, I love you." And the harder the Father loved him, he gave him to us, and how much we love one another, we too must give to each other until it hurts. It is not enough for us to say: "I love God, but I do not love my neighbor." Saint John says that you are a liar if you say you love God and you don't love your neighbor.

How can you love God whom you do not see, if you do not love your neighbor whom you see, whom you touch, with whom you live? And so this is very important for us to realize that love, to be true, has to hurt. It hurt Jesus to love us. It hurt him. And to make sure we remember his great love, he made himself the bread of life to satisfy our hunger for his love - our hunger for God - because we have been created for that love. We have been created in his image.

We have been created to love and to be loved, and he has become man to make it possible for us to love as he loved us. He makes himself the hungry one, the naked one, the homeless one, and he says: " You did it to me". he is hungry for our love, and this is the hunger that you and I must find. It may be in our own home. I never forget an opportunity I had in visiting a home where they had all these old parents of sons and daughters who had just put them in an institution and forgotten, maybe.

And I went there, and I saw in that home they had everything, beautiful things, but everybody was looking towards the door. And I did not see a singe one with a smile on their face. And I turned to the sister and I asked: How is that? How is that these people who have everything here, why are they all looking towards the door? Why are they not smiling? I am so used to see the smiles on our people, even the dying ones smile. And she said: "This is nearly every day.

They are expecting, they are hoping that a son or daughter will come to visit them. They are hurt because they are forgotten." And see - this is where love comes. That poverty comes right there in our own home, even neglect to love. Maybe in our own family we have somebody who is feeling lonely, who is feeling sick, who is feeling worried, and there are difficult days for everybody. Are we there?

Are we there to Receive them? Is the mother there to receive the child? I was surprised in the West to see so many young boys and girls given into drugs. And I tried to find out why. Why is it like that? And the answer was: "Because there is no one in the family to receive them." Father and mother are so busy they have no time. Young parents are in some institution and the child goes back to the street and gets involved in something.

We are talking of peace. These are things that break peace. But I feel the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a direct war, a direct killing, direct murder by the mother herself. And we read in the scripture, for God says very clearly: "Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you. I have curved you in the palm of my hand." We are curved in the palm of his hand; so close to him, that unborn child has been curved in the hand of God.

And that is what strikes me most, the beginning of that sentence, that even if a mother could forget, something impossible - but even if she could forget - I will not forget you. And today the greatest means, the greatest destroyer of peace is abortion. And we who are standing here - our parents wanted us. We would not be here if our parents would do that to us. Our children, we want them, we love them.

But what of the other millions. Many people are very, very concerned with the children of India, with the children of Africa where quite a number die, maybe of malnutrition, of hunger and so on, but millions are dying deliberately by the will of the mother. And this is what is the greatest destroyer of peace today. Because if a mother can kill her own child, what is left for me to kill you and you to kill me? There is nothing between. And this I appeal in India, I appeal everywhere - "Let us bring the child back" - and this year being the child's year: What have we done for the child?

At the beginning of the year I told, I spoke everywhere and I said: let us ensure this year that we make every single child born, and unborn, wanted. And today is the end of the year. Have we really made the children wanted? I will tell you something terrifying. We are fighting abortion by adoption. We have saved thousands of lives. We have sent word to all the clinics, to the hospitals, police stations: "Please don't destroy the child; we will take the child".

So every hour of the day and night there is always somebody - we have quite a number of unwedded mothers - tell them: "Come, we will take care of you, we will take care of the child from you, and we will get a home for the child". And we have a tremendous demand for families who have no children, that is the blessing of God for us. And also, we are doing another thing which is very beautiful. We are teaching our beggars, our leprosy patients, our slum dwellers, our people of the street, natural family planning.

And in Calcutta alone in six years - it is all in Calcutta - we have had 61 273 babies less from the families who would have had them because they practice this natural way of abstaining, of self-control, out of love for each other. We teach them the temperature method which is very beautiful, very simple. And our poor people understand. And you know what they have told me? "Our family is healthy, our family is united, and we can have a baby whenever we want".

So clear - those people in the street, those beggars - and I think that if our people can do like that how much more you and all the others who can know the ways and means without destroying the life that God has created in us. The poor people are very great people. They can teach us so many beautiful things. The other day one of them came to thank us and said: "You people who have evolved chastity; you are the best people to teach us family planning because it is nothing more than self-control out of love for each other."

And I think they said a beautiful sentence. And these are people who maybe have nothing to eat, maybe they have not a home where to live, but they are great people. The poor are very wonderful people. One evening we went out and we picked up four people from the street. And one of them was in a most terrible condition. And I told the sisters: "You take care of the other three; I will take care of this one that looks worse." So I did for her all that my love can do. I put her in bed, and there was such a beautiful smile on her face.

She took hold of my hand, as she said one word only: "thank you" - and she died. I could not help but examine my conscience before her. And I asked: "What would I say if I was in her place?" And my answer was very simple. I would have tried to draw a little attention to myself. I would have said: "I am hungry, I am dying, I am cold, I am in pain", or something. But she gave me much more - she gave me her grateful love.

And she died with a smile on her face - like that man who we picked up from the drain, half eaten with worms, and we brought him to the home - "I have lived like an animal in the street, but I am going to die like an angel, loved and cared for." And it was so wonderful to see the greatness of that man who could speak like that, who could die like that without blaming, without cursing anybody, without comparing anything. Like an angel - this is the greatness of our people.

And this is why we believe what Jesus has said: "I was hungry; I was naked, I was homeless; I was unwanted, unloved, uncared for - and you did it to me." I believe that we are not really social workers. We may be doing social work in the eyes of people. But we are really contemplatives in the heart of the world. For we are touching the body of Christ twenty-four hours. We have twenty-four hours in his presence, and so you and I. You too must try to bring that presence of God into your family, for the family that prays together stays together.

And I think that we in our family, we don't need bombs and guns, to destroy or to bring peace - just get together, love one another, bring that peace, that joy, that strength of presence of each other in the home. And we will be able to overcome all the evil that is in the world. There is so much suffering, so much hatred, so much misery, and we with our prayer, with our sacrifice are beginning at home. Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do, but how much love we put in the action that we do.

It is to God almighty - how much we do does not matter, because he is infinite, but how much love we put in action. How much we do to him in the person that we are serving. Some time ago in Calcutta we had great difficulty in getting sugar. And I don't know how the word got around to the children, and a little boy of four years old, a Hindu boy, went home and told his parents: "I will not eat sugar for three days.

I will give my sugar to Mother Teresa for her children." After these three days his father and mother brought him to our house. I had never met them before, and this little one could scarcely pronounce my name. But he knew exactly what he had come to do. He knew that he wanted to share his love. And this is why I have received such a lot of love from all. From the time that I have come here I have simply been surrounded with love, and with real, real understanding love.

It could feel as if everyone in India, everyone in Africa is somebody very special for to you. And I felt quite home, I was telling Sister today. If feel in the convent with the Sisters as if I am in Calcutta with my own Sisters. So completely at home here, right here. And so here I am talking with you. I want you to find the poor here, right in your own home first. And begin love there. Be that good news to your own people. And find out about your next-door neighbor.

Do you know who they are? I had the most extraordinary experience with a Hindu family who had eight children. A gentleman came to our house and said: "Mother Teresa, there is a family with eight children; they have not eaten for so long; do something". So I took some rice and I went there immediately. And I saw the children - their eyes shining with hunger. I don't know if you have ever seen hunger. But I have seen it very often.

And she took the rice, she divided the rice, and she went out. When she came back I asked her: "Where did you go, what did you do?" And she gave me a very simple answer: "They are hungry also". What struck me most was that she knew - and who are they? a Muslim family - and she knew. I didn't bring more rice that evening because I wanted them to enjoy the joy of sharing. But there were those children radiating joy, sharing the joy with their mother because she had the love to give.

And you see this is where love begins - at home. And I want you - and I am very grateful for what I have received. It has been a tremendous experience and I go back to India - I will be back by next week, the 15th I hope, and I will be able to bring your love. And I know well that you have not given from your abundance, but you have given until it has hurt you. Today the little children, they gave - I was so surprised - there is so much joy for the children that are hungry.

That the children like themselves will need love and get so much from their parents. So let us thank God that we have had this opportunity to come to know each other, and that this knowledge of each other has brought us very close. And we will be able to help the children of the whole world, because as you know our Sisters are all over the world. And with this prize that I have received as a prize of peace, I am going to try to make the home for many people that have no home.

Because I believe that love begins at home, and if we can create a home for the poor, I think that more and more love will spread. And we will be able through this understanding love to bring peace, be the good news to the poor. The poor in our own family first, in our country and in the world. To be able to do this, our Sisters, our lives have to be woven with prayer. They have to be woven with Christ to be able to understand, to be able to share. Today, there is so much suffering and I feel that the passion of Christ is being relived all over again.

Are we there to share that passion, to share that suffering of people - around the world, not only the poor countries. But I found the poverty of the West so much more difficult to remove. When I pick up a person from the street, hungry, I give him a plate of rice, a piece of bread, I have satisfied. I have removed that hunger. But a person that is shut out, that feels unwanted, unloved, terrified, the person that has been thrown out from society - that poverty is so hurtful and so much, and I find that very difficult.

Our Sisters are working amongst that kind of people in the West. So you must pray for us that we may be able to be that good news. We cannot do that without you. You have to do that here in your country. You must come to know the poor. Maybe our people her have material things, everything, but I think that if we all look into our own homes, how difficult we find it sometimes to smile at each other, and that the smile is the beginning of love.

And so let us always meet each other with a smile, for the smile is the beginning of love, and once we begin to love each other, naturally we want to do something. So you pray for our Sisters and for me and for our Brothers, and for our Co-Workers that are around the world. Pray that we may remain faithful to the gift of God, to love him and serve him in the poor together with you.

What we have done we would not have been able to do if you did not share with your prayers, with your gifts, this continual giving. But I don't want you to give me from your abundance. I want you to give me until it hurts. The other day I received $15 from a man who has been on his back for twenty years and the only part that he can move is his right hand. And the only companion that he enjoys is smoking.

And he said to me: "I do not smoke for one week, and I send you this money." It must have been a terrible sacrifice for him but see how beautiful, how he shared. And with that money I brought bread and I gave to those who are hungry with a joy on both sides. He was giving and the poor were receiving.

This is something you and I can do - it is a gift of God to us to be able to share our love with others. And let it be able to share our love with others. And let it be as it was for Jesus. Let us love one another as he loved us. Let us love him with undivided love. And the joy of loving him and each other - let us give now that Christmas is coming so close. Let us keep that joy of loving Jesus in our hearts, and share that joy with all that we come in touch with.

That radiating joy with all that we come in touch with. That radiating joy is real, for we have no reason not to be happy because we have Christ with us. Christ in our hearts, Christ in the poor that we meet, Christ in the smile that we give and the smile that we receive. Let us make that one point - that no child will be unwanted and also that we meet each other always with a smile, especially when it is difficult to smile.

I never forget some time ago about fourteen professors came from the United States from different universities. And they came to Calcutta to our house. Then we were talking about the fact that they had been to the home for the dying. (We have a home for the dying in Calcutta, where we have picked up more than 36 000 people only from the streets of and out of that big number more than 18 000 have died a beautiful death. They have just gone home to God). And they came to our house and we talked of love, of compassion.

And then one of them asked me: "Say, Mother, please tell us something that we will remember". And I said to them: "Smile at each other, make time for each other in your family. Smile at each other." And then another one asked me: "Are you married?" and I said: "Yes, and I find it sometimes very difficult to smile at Jesus because he can be very demanding sometimes". This is really something true. And there is where love comes - when it is demanding, and yet we can give it to him with joy.

Just as I have said today, I have said that if I don't go to heaven for anything else I will be going to heaven for all the publicity because it has purified me and sacrificed me and made me really ready to go to heaven. I think that this is something, that we must live life beautifully, we have Jesus with us and he loves us. If we could only remember that God loves us, and we have an opportunity to love others as he loves us, not in big things, but i small things with great love, then Norway becomes a nest of love.

And how beautiful it will be that from here a center for peace from war has been given. That from here the joy of life of the unborn child comes out. If you become a burning light of peace in the world, then really the Nobel Peace Prize is a gift of the Norwegian people.

God bless you!

Mother Teresa at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC

The following is Mother Teresa’s speech, given at the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington DC, February 3, 1994.
Its pointed words against abortion were delivered to an audience that included many prominent proabortion people, including President Clinton and Hillary.

"WHATEVER YOU DID UNTO ONE OF THE LEAST, YOU DID UNTO ME"

Blessed Mother Teresa 

On the last day, Jesus will say to those on His right hand, “Come, enter the Kingdom.  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was sick and you visited me.”  Then Jesus will turn to those on His left hand and say, “Depart from me because I was hungry and you did not feed me, I was thirsty and you did not give me to drink, I was sick and you did not visit me.”  These will ask Him, “When did we see You hungry, or thirsty or sick and did not come to Your help?”  And Jesus will answer them, “Whatever you neglected to do unto one of these least of these, you neglected to do unto Me!”

As we have gathered here to pray together, I think it will be beautiful if we begin with a prayer that expresses very well what Jesus wants us to do for the least.  St. Francis of Assisi understood very well these words of Jesus and His life is very well expressed by a prayer.  And this prayer, which we say every day after Holy Communion, always surprises me very much, because it is very fitting for each one of us.  And I always wonder whether 800 years ago when St. Francis lived, they had the same difficulties that we have today.  I think that some of you already have this prayer of peace-so we will pray it together.

Let us thank God for the opportunity He has given us today to have come here to pray together.  We have come here especially to pray for peace, joy and love.  We are reminded that Jesus came to bring the good news to the poor.  He had told us what is that good news when He said: “My peace I leave with you, My peace I give unto you.”  He came not to give the peace of the world which is only that we don’t bother each other.  He came to give the peace of heart which comes from loving-from doing good to others.

And God loved the world so much that He gave His son-it was a giving. God gave His son to the Virgin Mary, and what did she do with Him?  As soon as Jesus came into Mary’s life, immediately she went in haste to give that good news.  And as she came into the house of her cousin, Elizabeth, Scripture tells us that the unborn child-the child in the womb of Elizabeth-leapt with joy.  While still in the womb of Mary-Jesus brought peace to John the Baptist who leapt for joy in the womb of Elizabeth.

And as if that were not enough, as if it were not enough that God the Son should become one of us and bring peace and joy while still in the womb of Mary, Jesus also died on the Cross to show that greater love.  He died for you and for me, and for the leper and for that man dying of hunger and that naked person lying in the street, not only of Calcutta, but of Africa, and everywhere.  Our Sisters serve these poor people in 105 countries throughout the world.  Jesus insisted that we love one another as He loves each one of us.  Jesus gave His life to love us and He tells us that we also have to give whatever it takes to do good to one another.  And in the Gospel Jesus says very clearly: “Love as I have loved you.”

Jesus died on the Cross because that is what it took for Him to do good to us-to save us from our selfishness in sin.  He gave up everything to do the Father’s will-to show us that we too must be willing to give up everything to do God’s will-to love one another as He loves each of us. If we are not willing to give whatever it takes to do good to one another, sin is still in us.  That is why we too must give to each other until it hurts.

It is not enough for us to say: “I love God,” but I also have to love my neighbor.  St. John says that you are a liar if you say you love God and you don’t love your neighbor.  How can you love God whom you do not see, if you do not love your neighbor whom you see, whom you touch, and do not do good to him?  This requires that I be willing to give until it hurts.  Otherwise, there is not true love in me and I bring injustice, not peace, to those around me.

It hurt Jesus to love us.  We have been created in His image for greater things, to love and to be loved.  We must “put on Christ” as Scripture tells us.  And so, we have been created to love as He loves us.  Jesus makes Himself the hungry one, the naked one, the homeless one, the unwanted one, and He says, “You did it to Me.”  On the last day He will say to those on His right, “whatever you did to the least of these, you did to Me, and He will also say to those on His left, whatever you neglected to do for the least of these, you neglected to do it for Me.”

When He was dying on the Cross, Jesus said, “I thirst.”  Jesus is thirsting for our love, and this is the thirst of everyone, poor and rich alike.  We all thirst for the love of others, that they go out of their way to avoid harming us and to do good to us.  This is the meaning of true love, to give until it hurts.

I can never forget the experience I had in visiting a home where they kept all these old parents of sons and daughters who had just put them into an institution and forgotten them-maybe.  I saw that in that home these old people had everything-good food, comfortable place, television, everything, but everyone was looking toward the door.  And I did not see a single one with a smile on the face.  I turned to Sister and I asked: “Why do these people who have every comfort here, why are they all looking toward the door?  Why are they not smiling?”

I am so used to seeing the smiles on our people, even the dying ones smile. And Sister said: “This is the way it is nearly everyday.  They are expecting, they are hoping that a son or daughter will come to visit them. They are hurt because they are forgotten.”  And see, this neglect to love brings spiritual poverty.  Maybe in our own family we have somebody who is feeling lonely, who is feeling sick, who is feeling worried.  Are we there? Are we willing to give until it hurts in order to be with our families, or do we put our own interests first?  These are the questions we must ask ourselves, especially as we begin this year of the family.  We must remember that love begins at home and we must also remember that ‘the future of humanity passes through the family.’

I was surprised in the West to see so many young boys and girls given to drugs.  And I tried to find out why.  Why is it like that, when those in the West have so many more things than those in the East?  And the answer was: ‘Because there is no one in the family to receive them.’  Our children depend on us for everything-their health, their nutrition, their security, their coming to know and love God.  For all of this, they look to us with trust, hope and expectation.  But often father and mother are so busy they have no time for their children, or perhaps they are not even married or have given up on their marriage.  So their children go to the streets and get involved in drugs or other things.  We are talking of love of the child, which is were love and peace must begin.  These are the things that break peace.

<b> But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself.  And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?  </ b> How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion?  As always, we must persuade her with love and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts.  Jesus gave even His life to love us.  So, the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love, that is, to  father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world.  The father is likely to put other women into the same trouble.  So abortion just leads to more abortion.  Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want.  This is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.

Many people are very, very concerned with the children of India, with the children of Africa where quite a few die of hunger, and so on.  Many people are also concerned about all the violence in this great country of the United States.  These concerns are very good.  But often these same people are not concerned with the millions who are being killed by the deliberate decision of their own mothers.  And this is what is the greatest destroyer of peace today-abortion which brings people to such blindness.

And for this I appeal in India and I appeal everywhere-”Let us bring the child back.”  The child is God’s gift to the family.  Each child is created in the special image and likeness of God for greater things-to love and to be loved.  In this year of the family we must bring the child back to the center of our care and concern.  This is the only way that our world can survive because our children are the only hope for the future.  As older people are called to God, only their children can take their places.

But what does God say to us?  He says: “Even if a mother could forget her child, I will not forget you.  I have carved you in the palm of my hand.” We are carved in the palm of His hand; that unborn child has been carved in the hand of God from conception and is called by God to love and to be loved, not only now in this life, but forever.  God can never forget us.

I will tell you something beautiful.  We are fighting abortion by adoption-by care of the mother and adoption for her baby.  We have saved thousands of lives.  We have sent word to the clinics, to the hospitals and police stations: “Please don’t destroy the child; we will take the child.”  So we always have someone tell the mothers in trouble: “Come, we will take care of you, we will get a home for your child.”  And we have a tremendous demand from couples who cannot have a child-but I never give a child to a couple who have done something not to have a child.  Jesus said, “Anyone who receives a child in my name, receives me.”  By adopting a child, these couples receive Jesus but, by aborting a child, a couple refuses to receive Jesus.

Please don’t kill the child.  I want the child.  Please give me the child. I am willing to accept any child who would be aborted and to give that child to a married couple who will love the child and be loved by the child. From our children’s home in Calcutta alone, we have saved over 3000 children from abortion.  These children have brought such love and joy to their adopting parents and have grown up so full of love and joy.

I know that couples have to plan their family and for that there is natural family planning.  The way to plan the family is natural family planning, not contraception.  In destroying the power of giving life, through contraception, a husband or wife is doing something to self.  This turns the attention to self and so it destroys the gifts of love in him or her. In loving, the husband and wife must turn the attention to each other as happens in natural family planning, and not to self, as happens in contraception.  Once that living love is destroyed by contraception,  abortion follows very easily.

I also know that there are great problems in the world-that many spouses do not love each other enough to practice natural planning and said: “You people who have practiced chastity, you are the best people to teach us natural family planning because it is nothing more than self-control out of love for each other.”  And what this poor person said is very true.  These poor people maybe have nothing to eat, maybe they have not a home to live in, but they can still be great people when they are spiritually rich.

When I pick up a person from the street, hungry, I give him a plate of rice, a piece of bread.  But a person who is shut out, who feels unwanted, unloved, terrified, the person who has been thrown out of society-that spiritual poverty is much harder to overcome.  And abortion, which often follows from contraception, brings a people to be spiritually poor, and that is the worst poverty and the most difficult to overcome.

Those who are materially poor can be very wonderful people.  One evening we went out and we picked up four people from the street.  And one of them was in a most terrible condition.  I told the Sisters: “You take care of the other three; I will take care of the one who looks worse.”  So I did for her all that my love can do.  I put her in bed, and there was such a beautiful smile on her face.  She took hold of my hand, as she said one word only: “thank you”-and she died.

I could not help but examine my conscience before her.  And I asked: “What would I say if I were in her place?”  And my answer was very simple.  I would have tried to draw a little attention to myself.  I would have said: “I am hungry, I am dying, I am cold, I am in pain,” or something.  But she gave me much more-she gave me her grateful love.  And she died with a smile on her face.  Then there was the man we picked up from the drain, half eaten by worms and, after we had brought him to the home, he only said, “I have lived like an animal in the street, but I am going to die as an angel, loved and cared for.”  Then, after we had removed all the worms from his body, all he said, with a big smile, was: “Sister, I am going home to God”-and he died.  It was so wonderful to see the greatness of that man who could speak like that without blaming anybody, without comparing anything.  Like an angel-this is the greatness of people who are spiritually rich even when they are materially poor.

We are not social workers.  We may be doing social work in the eyes of some people, but we must be contemplatives in the heart of the world.  For we must bring that presence of God into your family, for the family that prays together, stays together.  There is so much hatred, so much misery, and we with our prayer, with our sacrifice, are beginning at home.  Love begins at home, and it is not how much we do, but how much love we put into what we do.

If we are contemplatives in the heart of the world with all its problems, these problems can never discourage us.  We must always remember what God tells us in Scripture: “Even if a mother could forget the child in her  womb”-something impossible, but even if she could forget-”I will never forget you.”

And so here I am talking with you.  I want you to find the poor here, right in your own home first.  And begin love there.  Be that good news to your own people first.  And find out about your next-door neighbors.  Do you know who they are?

I had the most extraordinary experience of love of neighbor with a Hindu family.  A gentleman came to our house and said: “Mother Teresa, there is a family who have not eaten for so long.  Do something.”  So I took some rice and went there immediately.  And I saw the children-their eyes shining with hunger.  I don’t know if you have ever seen hunger.  But I have seen it very often.

But there were those children, radiating joy, sharing the joy and peace with their mother because she had the love to give until it hurts.  And you see this is where love begins-at home in the family.

So, as the example of this family shows, God will never forget us and there is something you and I can always do.  We can keep the joy of loving Jesus in our hearts, and share that joy with all we come in contact with.  Let us make that one point-that no child will be unwanted, unloved, uncared for, or killed and thrown away.  And give until it hurts-with a smile.

Because I talk so much of giving with a smile, once a professor from the United States asked me: “Are you married?”  And I said: “Yes, and I find it sometimes very difficult to smile at my spouse, Jesus, because He can be very demanding-sometimes.”  This is really something true.  And this is where love comes in-when it is demanding, and yet we can give it with joy.

One of the most demanding things for me is traveling everywhere-and with publicity.  I have said to Jesus that if I don’t go to heaven for anything else, I will be going to heaven for all the traveling with all the publicity, because it has purified me and sacrificed me and made me really ready to go to heaven.

If we remember that God loves us, and that we can love others as He loves us, then America can become a sign of peace for the world.  From here, a sign of care for the weakest of the weak-the unborn child-must go out to the world.  If you become a burning light of justice and peace in the world, then really you will be true to what the founders of this country stood for.
God bless you!

Blessed Mother Teresa's Address to the United Nations

Blessed Mother Teresa's Address to the United Nations
On the occasion of its 40th Anniversary
"One Strong Resolution: I Will Love"
General Assembly Hall

October 26, 1985:

We have gathered together to thank God for the 40 years of the beautiful work that the United Nations have put in for the good of the people, and as we begin the year of peace, let us say the prayer, you have all got one, we say the prayer together for peace. For works of love are works of peace. We say it together so that we may obtain peace and God can give us peace, by uniting us together.

Make us worthy Lord to serve our fellow men throughout the world,
who live and die in poverty and hunger.
Give them through our hands, this day, their daily bread
and by our understanding love give peace and joy.

Lord, make me a channel of thy peace.
That where there is hatred I may bring love,
That where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness,
That where there is discord, I may bring harmony,
That where there is error I may bring truth,
That where there is doubt I may bring faith,
That where there is despair I may bring hope,
That where there are shadows I may bring light,
That where there is sadness I may bring joy.
Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort that to be comforted,
To understand than to be understood,
To love than to be loved.
For it is by forgetting self that one finds.
It is by forgiving that one is forgiven,
it is by dying that one awakens to eternal life.
Amen.

We have asked our Lord to make us channels of peace, of joy, of love, of unity, and this is why Jesus came: to prove that love. God loved the world so much that he gave Jesus his son to come among us, to give us that good news, that God loves us. And that he wants us to love one another as he loves each one of us. That he has created us for that one reason: to love and to be loved. No other reason. We are not just a number in the world. We are children of God.

Last time I was in China they asked me “what is a communist to you?” I said “a child of God, my brother my sister.” And exactly that is what you and I are meant to be: brother, sister. Because the same loving hand of God has created you, created me, created man of the street, created that leper, that hungry man, that rich man, for that same purpose: to love and to be loved. And this is what you and I have come together today to find the means of peace.

How does peace come? Through works of love. Where does it begin? At home. How does it begin? By praying together. For family that prays together stays together. And if you stay together, you will love one another as God loves each one of you. For Prayer gives a clean heart and a clean heart can see God. And if you see God in each other, if we have the joy of seeing God in each other, we will love one another. That’s why no colour, no religion, no nationality should come between us. For we are all the same children of the same loving hand of God, created for greater things: to love and to be loved. Only we must experience that joy of loving.

I never forget, some time back, two young people came to our house and they gave me lots of money. And I asked them “where did you get so much money?” And they said “two days ago we got married. Before marriage, we decided we will not buy wedding clothes. We will not have wedding feast. We will give you that money.” And I know that in our country, in a Hindu family, what that means, not to have wedding clothes, not to have a wedding feast. So again I asked, “but why? Why did you do like that?” And they said “we loved each other so much that we wanted to share the joy of loving with the people you serve.” How do we experience the joy of loving? How do we experience that? By giving until it hurts.

When I was going to Ethiopia, little children came to me. They heard I was going there. And they came. They had come to know from the sisters how much the children are suffering in Ethiopia. And they came and each one gave something, very, very small money. And some, whatever they had, they gave. And a little boy came to me and said “I have nothing, I have no money, I have nothing. But I have this piece of chocolate. And you give that, take that with you and you give it to the children in Ethiopia.” That little child loved with great love, because I think that was the first time that he had a piece of chocolate in his hand. And he gave it. He gave it with joy to be able to share, to remove a little the suffering of someone in far Ethiopia. This is the joy of loving: to give until it hurts. It hurt Jesus to love us, for he died on the cross, to teach us how to love. And this is the way we too must love: until it hurts.

We have many beautiful people; you have seen in the pictures, our poor people, our great people. I have been with them for so many years and I have never yet heard a complaint. Some days back, I picked up a man from the streets, eaten up alive with worms. I took him to our home. And what did this man say? “I lived like an animal in the streets, but I will die like an angel. Loved, and cared.” It took us three hours to clean him, to remove every bit of those worms that were eating him alive. And not a word from him. And just before, while we were still praying with him, praying for him, he looked up at sister and said “Sister, I am going home to God.” And he died. There was such a wonderful, beautiful smile on his face. He went home to God. I’ve never seen a smile like that. And yet there was this man, eaten alive, no complaint, no cursing, and just “I am going home to God.” And what a beautiful way of going home to God. With a clean heart, with a pure heart, filled with joy. Filled with that tenderness and love that he received from the sisters who looked after him.

Yes, this is what you and I, today, if we really stand for why we have come here today, to begin that year of peace, we must begin at home, we must begin in our own family. Works of love begin at home and works of love are works of peace. We all want peace, and yet, and yet we are frightened of nuclears, we are frightened of this new disease. But we are not afraid to kill an innocent child, that little unborn child, who has been created for that same purpose: to love God and to love you and me.

This is what is such a contradiction, and today I feel that abortion has become the greatest destroyer of peace. We are afraid of the nuclears, because it is touching us, but we are not afraid, the mother is not afraid to commit that terrible murder. Even when God Himself speaks of that, He says “even if mother could forget her child, I will not forget you. I have carved you on the palm of my hand, you are precious to me, I love you.” These are God’s own words to you, to me, to that little unborn child. And this is why if we really want peace, if we are sincere in our hearts that we really want peace, today, let us make that strong resolution that in our countries, in our cities, we will not allow a single child to feel unwanted, to feel unloved, to throw away a society. And let us help each other to strengthen that. That in our countries that terrible law of killing the innocents, of destroying life, destroying the presence of God, be removed from our country, from our nation, from our people, from our families.

And so that today, when we are praying, let us bring again and again prayer in our life. For prayer will give us strength. Prayer is something that will help us to see God in each other, to help us to love one another as He loves each one of us. This is something that you and I must bring to the world. The whole world is looking up at you. You have gathered here, from all the nations to find the ways and means of peace. For sure, works of love are works of peace, and they begin in our family. Much suffering, much destruction has come from the home, from the family. By destroying the unborn child, we are destroying the presence of God. We have destroyed love. We have destroyed the most sacred thing that a human being can have: the joy of loving and joy of being loved.

And so today, when we have gathered here together, let us carry in our hearts one strong resolution: I will love. I will be a carrier of God’s love. For that is what Jesus came to teach us: How to love one another. And to bring Him to love at home, in our own family, in our own... to those that are unwanted. Maybe in our own family we have the lowly.

We all speak of the terrible hunger. What I have seen in Ethiopia, what I have seen in other places, especially these days in terrible places like Ethiopia, but the people in hundreds and thousands are facing death just for a piece of bread, for a glass of water. People have died in my own hands. And yet we forget, why they and not we? Let us love again, so let us share, let us pray that this terrible suffering be removed from our people. Let us share with them the joy of loving, and where does love begin? Again I say in our family, in our home. Let us bring love, peace and joy through prayer. Let us bring prayer, pray together, for prayer will give you a clean heart. I will pray for you that you may grow in this love of God, by loving one another as He loves each one of you, and especially that through this love, you become holy. Holiness is not a luxury of the few. It’s a simple duty for each one of us. For holiness brings love, and love brings peace, and peace brings us together.

And let us not be afraid for God is with us if we allow Him, if we give Him the joy of a pure heart. Let us pray, let us pray for each other. And you pray for us also, that we may continue God’s work with great love.

You have seen those young sisters, consecrating their lives totally to the service of the poorest of the poor. These young sisters take care of 158,000 lepers, in the Middle East, in Africa and India, and so much joy, new life has come into their lives. Why? Because there is somebody who loves them, somebody who wants them, somebody who will give them tender love and care. I was asked the other day, “What are you going to do in this place? We have everything. The government gives us everything. What will you do here?” I only said “I will give tender love and care.” No money can give that. So you and I, let us begin with that tender love and care in our own home. For this is what we have been created for. This is what Jesus came to teach us, to love one another as He loves each one of us. We have many poor people around the world, but I find that the poverty of loneliness, the poverty of being unwanted unloved, uncared, just left, a throwaway of society, is a very difficult and very, very burdensome poverty, very difficult to remove.

I have picked up from the streets hungry people, and by giving them to eat, by giving them a bed to sleep, I have removed the suffering, but for the lonely, the shut-ins, the unwanted, it’s not so easy. And so there you and I must come forward, and share the joy of loving, but we cannot give what we don’t have. That’s why we need to pray. And prayer will give us a clean heart, and a clean heart will allow us to see God in each other. And if we see God in each other, we will be able to live in peace and if we live in peace, we will be able to share the joy of loving with each other and God will be with us.

God bless you.
Mother Teresa

Blessed Mother Teresa's Address to the United Nations

Blessed Mother Teresa's Address to the United Nations
On the occasion of its 40th Anniversary
"One Strong Resolution: I Will Love"
General Assembly Hall

October 26, 1985:

We have gathered together to thank God for the 40 years of the beautiful work that the United Nations have put in for the good of the people, and as we begin the year of peace, let us say the prayer, you have all got one, we say the prayer together for peace. For works of love are works of peace. We say it together so that we may obtain peace and God can give us peace, by uniting us together.

Make us worthy Lord to serve our fellow men throughout the world,
who live and die in poverty and hunger.
Give them through our hands, this day, their daily bread
and by our understanding love give peace and joy.

Lord, make me a channel of thy peace.
That where there is hatred I may bring love,
That where there is wrong, I may bring the spirit of forgiveness,
That where there is discord, I may bring harmony,
That where there is error I may bring truth,
That where there is doubt I may bring faith,
That where there is despair I may bring hope,
That where there are shadows I may bring light,
That where there is sadness I may bring joy.
Lord, grant that I may seek rather to comfort that to be comforted,
To understand than to be understood,
To love than to be loved.
For it is by forgetting self that one finds.
It is by forgiving that one is forgiven,
it is by dying that one awakens to eternal life.
Amen.

We have asked our Lord to make us channels of peace, of joy, of love, of unity, and this is why Jesus came: to prove that love. God loved the world so much that he gave Jesus his son to come among us, to give us that good news, that God loves us. And that he wants us to love one another as he loves each one of us. That he has created us for that one reason: to love and to be loved. No other reason. We are not just a number in the world. We are children of God.

Last time I was in China they asked me “what is a communist to you?” I said “a child of God, my brother my sister.” And exactly that is what you and I are meant to be: brother, sister. Because the same loving hand of God has created you, created me, created man of the street, created that leper, that hungry man, that rich man, for that same purpose: to love and to be loved. And this is what you and I have come together today to find the means of peace.

How does peace come? Through works of love. Where does it begin? At home. How does it begin? By praying together. For family that prays together stays together. And if you stay together, you will love one another as God loves each one of you. For Prayer gives a clean heart and a clean heart can see God. And if you see God in each other, if we have the joy of seeing God in each other, we will love one another. That’s why no colour, no religion, no nationality should come between us. For we are all the same children of the same loving hand of God, created for greater things: to love and to be loved. Only we must experience that joy of loving.

I never forget, some time back, two young people came to our house and they gave me lots of money. And I asked them “where did you get so much money?” And they said “two days ago we got married. Before marriage, we decided we will not buy wedding clothes. We will not have wedding feast. We will give you that money.” And I know that in our country, in a Hindu family, what that means, not to have wedding clothes, not to have a wedding feast. So again I asked, “but why? Why did you do like that?” And they said “we loved each other so much that we wanted to share the joy of loving with the people you serve.” How do we experience the joy of loving? How do we experience that? By giving until it hurts.

When I was going to Ethiopia, little children came to me. They heard I was going there. And they came. They had come to know from the sisters how much the children are suffering in Ethiopia. And they came and each one gave something, very, very small money. And some, whatever they had, they gave. And a little boy came to me and said “I have nothing, I have no money, I have nothing. But I have this piece of chocolate. And you give that, take that with you and you give it to the children in Ethiopia.” That little child loved with great love, because I think that was the first time that he had a piece of chocolate in his hand. And he gave it. He gave it with joy to be able to share, to remove a little the suffering of someone in far Ethiopia. This is the joy of loving: to give until it hurts. It hurt Jesus to love us, for he died on the cross, to teach us how to love. And this is the way we too must love: until it hurts.

We have many beautiful people; you have seen in the pictures, our poor people, our great people. I have been with them for so many years and I have never yet heard a complaint. Some days back, I picked up a man from the streets, eaten up alive with worms. I took him to our home. And what did this man say? “I lived like an animal in the streets, but I will die like an angel. Loved, and cared.” It took us three hours to clean him, to remove every bit of those worms that were eating him alive. And not a word from him. And just before, while we were still praying with him, praying for him, he looked up at sister and said “Sister, I am going home to God.” And he died. There was such a wonderful, beautiful smile on his face. He went home to God. I’ve never seen a smile like that. And yet there was this man, eaten alive, no complaint, no cursing, and just “I am going home to God.” And what a beautiful way of going home to God. With a clean heart, with a pure heart, filled with joy. Filled with that tenderness and love that he received from the sisters who looked after him.

Yes, this is what you and I, today, if we really stand for why we have come here today, to begin that year of peace, we must begin at home, we must begin in our own family. Works of love begin at home and works of love are works of peace. We all want peace, and yet, and yet we are frightened of nuclears, we are frightened of this new disease. But we are not afraid to kill an innocent child, that little unborn child, who has been created for that same purpose: to love God and to love you and me.

This is what is such a contradiction, and today I feel that abortion has become the greatest destroyer of peace. We are afraid of the nuclears, because it is touching us, but we are not afraid, the mother is not afraid to commit that terrible murder. Even when God Himself speaks of that, He says “even if mother could forget her child, I will not forget you. I have carved you on the palm of my hand, you are precious to me, I love you.” These are God’s own words to you, to me, to that little unborn child. And this is why if we really want peace, if we are sincere in our hearts that we really want peace, today, let us make that strong resolution that in our countries, in our cities, we will not allow a single child to feel unwanted, to feel unloved, to throw away a society. And let us help each other to strengthen that. That in our countries that terrible law of killing the innocents, of destroying life, destroying the presence of God, be removed from our country, from our nation, from our people, from our families.

And so that today, when we are praying, let us bring again and again prayer in our life. For prayer will give us strength. Prayer is something that will help us to see God in each other, to help us to love one another as He loves each one of us. This is something that you and I must bring to the world. The whole world is looking up at you. You have gathered here, from all the nations to find the ways and means of peace. For sure, works of love are works of peace, and they begin in our family. Much suffering, much destruction has come from the home, from the family. By destroying the unborn child, we are destroying the presence of God. We have destroyed love. We have destroyed the most sacred thing that a human being can have: the joy of loving and joy of being loved.

And so today, when we have gathered here together, let us carry in our hearts one strong resolution: I will love. I will be a carrier of God’s love. For that is what Jesus came to teach us: How to love one another. And to bring Him to love at home, in our own family, in our own... to those that are unwanted. Maybe in our own family we have the lowly.

We all speak of the terrible hunger. What I have seen in Ethiopia, what I have seen in other places, especially these days in terrible places like Ethiopia, but the people in hundreds and thousands are facing death just for a piece of bread, for a glass of water. People have died in my own hands. And yet we forget, why they and not we? Let us love again, so let us share, let us pray that this terrible suffering be removed from our people. Let us share with them the joy of loving, and where does love begin? Again I say in our family, in our home. Let us bring love, peace and joy through prayer. Let us bring prayer, pray together, for prayer will give you a clean heart. I will pray for you that you may grow in this love of God, by loving one another as He loves each one of you, and especially that through this love, you become holy. Holiness is not a luxury of the few. It’s a simple duty for each one of us. For holiness brings love, and love brings peace, and peace brings us together.

And let us not be afraid for God is with us if we allow Him, if we give Him the joy of a pure heart. Let us pray, let us pray for each other. And you pray for us also, that we may continue God’s work with great love.

You have seen those young sisters, consecrating their lives totally to the service of the poorest of the poor. These young sisters take care of 158,000 lepers, in the Middle East, in Africa and India, and so much joy, new life has come into their lives. Why? Because there is somebody who loves them, somebody who wants them, somebody who will give them tender love and care. I was asked the other day, “What are you going to do in this place? We have everything. The government gives us everything. What will you do here?” I only said “I will give tender love and care.” No money can give that. So you and I, let us begin with that tender love and care in our own home. For this is what we have been created for. This is what Jesus came to teach us, to love one another as He loves each one of us. We have many poor people around the world, but I find that the poverty of loneliness, the poverty of being unwanted unloved, uncared, just left, a throwaway of society, is a very difficult and very, very burdensome poverty, very difficult to remove.

I have picked up from the streets hungry people, and by giving them to eat, by giving them a bed to sleep, I have removed the suffering, but for the lonely, the shut-ins, the unwanted, it’s not so easy. And so there you and I must come forward, and share the joy of loving, but we cannot give what we don’t have. That’s why we need to pray. And prayer will give us a clean heart, and a clean heart will allow us to see God in each other. And if we see God in each other, we will be able to live in peace and if we live in peace, we will be able to share the joy of loving with each other and God will be with us.

God bless you.
Mother Teresa

D.Lama - Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech

Nobel Prize Acceptance Speech - D.Lama


Your Majesty, Members of the Nobel Committee, Brothers and Sisters.


I am very happy to be here with you today to receive the Nobel Prize for Peace. I feel honored, humbled and deeply moved that you should give this important prize to a simple monk from Tibet I am no one special. But I believe the prize is a recognition of the true value of altruism, love, compassion and non-violence which I try to practice, in accordance with the teachings of the Buddha and the great sages of India and Tibet


I accept the prize with profound gratitude on behalf of the oppressed everywhere and for all those who struggle for freedom and work for world peace. I accept it as a tribute to the man who founded the modern tradition of non-violent action for change Mahatma Gandhi whose life taught and inspired me. And, of course, I accept it on behalf of the six million Tibetan people, my brave countrymen and women inside Tibet, who have suffered and continue to suffer so much. They confront a calculated and systematic strategy aimed at the destruction of their national and cultural identities. The prize reaffirms our conviction that with truth, courage and determination as our weapons, Tibet will be liberated.


No matter what part of the world we come from, we are all basically the same human beings. We all seek happiness and try to avoid suffering. We have the same basic human needs and is concerns. All of us human beings want freedom and the right to determine our own destiny as individuals and as peoples. That is human nature. The great changes that are taking place everywhere in the world, from Eastern Europe to Africa are a clear indication of this.


In China the popular movement for democracy was crushed by brutal force in June this year. But I do not believe the demonstrations were in vain, because the spirit of freedom was rekindled among the Chinese people and China cannot escape the impact of this spirit of freedom sweeping many parts of the world. The brave students and their supporters showed the Chinese leadership and the world the human face of that great nation.


Last week a number of Tibetans were once again sentenced to prison terms of upto nineteen years at a mass show trial, possibly intended to frighten the population before today's event. Their only 'crime" was the expression of the widespread desire of Tibetans for the restoration of their beloved country's independence.


The suffering of our people during the past forty years of occupation is well documented. Ours has been a long struggle. We know our cause is just Because violence can only breed more violence and suffering, our struggle must remain non-violent and free of hatred. We are trying to end the suffering of our people, not to inflict suffering upon others.


It is with this in mind that I proposed negotiations between Tibet and China on numerous occasions. In 1987, I made specific proposals in a Five-Point plan for the restoration of peace and human rights in Tibet. This included the conversion of the entire Tibetan plateau into a Zone of Ahimsa, a sanctuary of peace and non-violence where human beings and nature can live in peace and harmony.


last year, I elaborated on that plan in Strasbourg, at the European Parliament I believe the ideas I expressed on those occasions are both realistic. and reasonable although they have been criticised by some of my people as being too conciliatory. Unfortunately, China's leaders have not responded positively to the suggestions we have made, which included important concessions. If this continues we will be compelled to reconsider our position.


Any relationship between Tibet and China will have to be based on the principle of equality, respect, trust and mutual benefit. It will also have to be based on the principle which the wise rulers of Tibet and of China laid down in a treaty as early as 823 AD, carved on the pillar which still stands today in front of the Jokhang, Tibet's holiest shrine, in Lhasa, that "Tibetans will live happily in the great land of Tibet, and the Chinese will live happily in the great land of China".


As a Buddhist monk, my concern extends to all members of the human family and, indeed, to all sentient beings who suffer. I believe all suffering is caused by ignorance. People inflict pain on others in the selfish pursuit of their happiness or satisfaction. Yet true happiness comes from a sense of brotherhood and sisterhood. We need to cultivate a universal responsibility for one another and the planet we share. Although I have found my own Buddhist religion helpful in generating love and com passion, even for those we consider our enemies, I am convinced that everyone can develop a good heart and a sense of universal responsibility with or without religion.


With the ever growing impact of science on our lives, religion and spirituality have a greater role to play reminding us of our humanity. There is no contradiction between the two. Each gives us valuable insights into the other. Both science and the teachings of the Buddha tell us of the fundamental unity of all things. This understanding is crucial if we are to take positive and decisive action on the pressing global concern with the environment.


I believe all religions pursue the same goals, that of cultivating human goodness and bringing happiness to all human beings. Though the means might appear different the ends are the same.


As we enter the final decade of this century I am optimistic that the ancient values that have sustained mankind are today reaffirming themselves to prepare us for a kinder, happier twenty-first century.


I pray for all of us, oppressor and friend, that together we succeed in building a better world through human under-standing and love, and that in doing so we may reduce the pain and suffering of all sentient beings.


Thank you. 

Famous Quotes by Mr.Ratan Tata

• I am proud of my country. But we need to unite to make a unified India, free of communalism and casteism. We need to build India into a land of equal opportunity for all. We can be a truly great nation if we set our sights high and deliver to the people the fruits of continued growth, prosperity and equal opportunity.

• One of the weaknesses of Indian industry is that in many areas.. like consumer goods.. it is very fragmented. Individually, the companies might not be able to survive. What is needed is a consortium of like companies in one industry, presenting a strong front to the multinationals. The Swiss watch industry did this.

• The strong live and the weak die. There is some bloodshed, and out of it emerges a much leaner industry, which tends to survive.

• We’re responsible for the fortunes of the company but this is a bone-dry situation in terms of access to credit. Nobody can operate on that basis unless you have large cash balances, which we don’t. My concern is that the government doesn’t appear to care about manufacturing.

• I think the Tata Group’s greatest contribution to the growth of the Indian economy and Indian industry probably happened in the pre-independence era. The Group’s investments in industries such as steel, textiles, power and hotels were certainly driven by an entrepreneurial spirit, but they were driven even more, I think, by a desire to make India self-sufficient and independent of its colonial masters then.

• Some foreign investors accuse us of being unfair to shareholders by using our resources for community development. Yes, this is money that could have made for dividend payouts, but it also is money that’s uplifting and improving the quality of life of people in the rural areas where we operate and work. We owe them that.

• We are probably not doing enough to build the Tata brand globally, but we are one of the most recognisable corporate names coming out of India. Apart from size, market capitalisation and the rest, we are seen as a poster boy for ethical business, trustworthy and fair. That’s a model western companies feel comfortable with.

• One hundred years from now, I expect the Tatas to be much bigger than it is now. More importantly, I hope the Group comes to be regarded as being the best in India.. best in the manner in which we operate, best in the products we deliver, and best in our value systems and ethics. Having said that, I hope that a hundred years from now we will spread our wings far beyond India

• I’ve never believed protectionism of that kind will lead us anywhere. I think you can have certain specific rules for engaging with India.. for example, not allowing mineral resources to be taken out of the country.. but there is not a shred of doubt in my mind that when you open an economy you should do it in totality. Foreign investment adds a sense of competition; we should see this as a wake-up call to modernise and upgrade. Companies that do not will undoubtedly die.

• At Tatas, we believe that if we are not among the top three in an industry, we should look seriously at what it would take to become one of the top three players.. or think about exiting the industry

• I do not know how history will judge me, but let me say that I’ve spent a lot of time and energy trying to transform the Tatas from a patriarchal concern to an institutional enterprise. It would, therefore, be a mark of failure on my part if it were perceived that Ratan Tata epitomises the Group’s success. What I have done is establish growth mechanisms, play down individuals and play up the team that has made the companies what they are. I, for one, am not the kind who loves dwelling on the ‘I’. If history remembers me at all, I hope it will be for this transformation.

• I think the environment has become more competitive. That has made Indian industry more concerned with a) its customers, b) the quality of its products, and c) its brand image in the marketplace.

• The country is now universally recognised as a nation on the move and takes its place amongst the successful economies in the region. The future potential is enormous but the country's destiny is in our hands. The time has come to move from small increments to bold, large initiatives. The time has come to stretch the envelope and set goals which were earlier not seen to be possible. The time has come for performance to be measured and for allocated funds of the government to reach the people for whom they were intended.

Mr Ratan Tata’s address on Graduation Day April 8, 2006

Full transcript of Mr Ratan Tata’s address on Graduation Day April 8, 2006



Dean Rao, Rajat Gupta, Members of the Board, Ladies and Gentlemen, Members of the Graduating Class.


To stand before you after an overwhelming introduction makes me feel rather humble. Before I go on, I thought I would tell you a short story which depicts perhaps what some people other than Dean Rao might see what I do.


The story is of a man who goes into a shop to buy a parrot. He picks out a parrot and asks the shopkeeper how much it is. The shopkeeper says, “5000$.”


The man says, “Oh! That’s terribly expensive. What does this parrot do?”
The shopkeeper says, “Oh, he types in English with his beak.”
The man says, “That’s far too expensive. What about that parrot?”
The shopkeeper says, “Oh! That one is 10,000$ because he is proficient in 3 or 4 languages and he understands SAP.”
The man says, “Well, I really don’t want that, what about the last one there?”
The shopkeeper says, “Oh! That is 30,000$.”
The man says, “What does he do?”
The shopkeeper says, “I really don’t know, but everybody calls him Chairman.”


And that I think is what some of the people in my organization would probably feel.


It’s a great pleasure to be here with you today and to be a part of what to all of you in the graduating class must be a great moment. A great moment, because not only does it mark the termination of a curriculum that is well recognized and amongst the best in the country, but you also head into the business world in India at a time when India has certainly come into its own, and is very rewardingly been seen by the world around as a country on the move, and that you all have an opportunity to play a role in the future of this country’s development.


In many ways I can only stand here and express my sadness for not being your age at a time like this because truly it is an exhilarating moment in time. Most of you would and should look at the coming years as years of great fulfillment and great participation in what stands in the future of this country. The responsibilities that you will have will also be very great. Many of you are going to be leaders of this country in the years to come. and in that role you will not only have to excel, which I am sure you will in your careers, but you will have to demonstrate leadership to the people around you, the people who you serve and the communities in which you operate.


I would hope that most of you will in fact strive for leadership in a principled manner with values, because that would be the foundation that this country needs to have if it is to take its place in the world. I would hope that each of you would lead by example and that each of you would live by the principles that you espouse…That you will have a sense of vision, because one of the things that this country has had has been an inability to look into the future, our business leaders have sometimes been followers rather than leaders.


For this you would need determination and a sense of belief in what you are intending to do and I believe on many, many occasions you would have doubts as to what you are pursuing would be the right thing. But if you do believe in what you are trying to do and you pursue it and stay with it in a determined manner, I am quite sure that you will succeed. All of you have a special role, I think, to succeed- it is your way of proving that the investment you have made or your parents have made in your education is the most valuable investment that you would have made in your life.


I would hope that as people who might take an elite position, would be considered amongst the elite in the country, you will always display humility in the manner in which you deal with your fellowmen, both in your company and in the country and you will continue to have passion in the areas in which you will work. While all of you have a great satisfaction in the kinds of salary placements and the value that has been attached to you which is quite justified, I believe that each of us have another responsibility and that responsibility is to play our individual roles, small as it may be, to lift the quality of life of the 6 or 700 million people in the rural areas. I hope that what you do, in some way or form, will directly or indirectly touch the lives of those people because that also will lead to the future development of this country.


Most of you I imagine will be deeply engrossed in your careers and I hope that each of you will have a tremendously exhilarating and rewarding life in the business community, but it is not business alone, I would feel that a class like yours would go into the world in India or elsewhere. That you would leave your mark not only amongst your colleagues in industry, but for future generations who would look back on you and look to you at the contribution you have made that lives on after you.


I would like to wish you all the very best and great success in the life that will follow shortly.


Thank you very much.

Inaugural Speech at the Symbiosis BBA Program, Pune 23rd June, 2008 - Chetan Bhagat

Inaugural Speech for the new batch at the Symbiosis - Chetan Bhagat
June 23rd, 2008, Pune.

           Good Morning everyone and thank you for giving me this chance to speak to you. This day is about you. You, who have come to this college, leaving the comfort of your homes (or in some cases discomfort), to become something in your life. I am sure you are excited. There are few days in human life when one is truly elated. The first day in college is one of them. When you were getting ready today, you felt a tingling in your stomach. What would the auditorium be like, what would the teachers be like, who are my new classmates - there is so much to be curious about. I call this excitement, the spark within you that makes you feel truly alive today. Today I am going to talk about keeping the spark shining. Or to put it another way, how to be happy most, if not all the time.

Where do these sparks start? I think we are born with them. My 3-year old twin boys have a million sparks. A little Spiderman toy can make them jump on the bed. They get thrills from creaky swings in the park. A story from daddy gets them excited. They do a daily countdown for birthday party – several months in advance – just for the day they will cut their own birthday cake.


I see students like you, and I still see some sparks. But when I see older people, the spark is difficult to find. That means as we age, the spark fades. People whose spark has faded too much are dull, dejected, aimless and bitter. Remember Kareena in the first half of Jab We Met vs the second half? That is what happens when the spark is lost. So how to save the spark? Imagine the spark to be a lamp's flame. The first aspect is nurturing - to give your spark the fuel, continuously. The second is to guard against storms.To nurture, always have goals. It is human nature to strive, improve and achieve full potential. In fact, that is success. It is what is possible for you. It isn't any external measure - a certain cost to company pay package, a particular car or house.


Most of us are from middle class families. To us, having material landmarks is success and rightly so. When you have grown up where money constraints force everyday choices, financial freedom is a big achievement. But it isn't the purpose of life. If that was the case, Mr. Ambani would not show up for work. Shah Rukh Khan would stay at home and not dance anymore. Steve Jobs won't be working hard to make a better iPhone, as he sold Pixar for billions of dollars already. Why do they do it? What makes them come to work everyday? They do it because it makes them happy. They do it because it makes them feel alive. Just getting better from current levels feels good. If you study hard, you can improve your rank. If you make an effort to interact with people, you will do better in interviews. If you practice, your cricket will get better. You may also know that you cannot become Tendulkar, yet. But you can get to the next level. Striving for that next level is important. Nature designed with a random set of genes and circumstances in which we were born. To be happy, we have to accept it and make the most of nature's design. Are you? Goals will help you do that.


I must add, don't just have career or academic goals. Set goals to give you a balanced, successful life. I use the word balanced before successful. Balanced means ensuring your health, relationships, mental peace are all in good order. There isno point of getting a promotion on the day of your breakup. There is no fun in driving a car if your back hurts. Shopping is not enjoyable if your mind is full of tensions.


You must have read some quotes - Life is a tough race, it is a marathon or whatever. No, from what I have seen so far, life is one of those races in nursery school, where you have to run with a marble in a spoon kept in your mouth. If the marble falls, there is no point coming first. Same with life, where health and relationships are the marble. Your striving is only worth it if there is harmony in your life. Else, you may achieve the success, but this spark, this feeling of being excited and alive, will start to die.


One last thing about nurturing the spark - don't take life seriously. One of my yoga teachers used to make students laugh during classes. One student asked him if these jokes would take away something from the yoga practice. The teacher said - don't be serious, be sincere. This quote has defined my work ever since. Whether its my writing, my job, my relationships or any of my goals. I get thousands of opinions on my writing everyday. There is heaps of praise, there is intense criticism. If I take it all seriously, how will I write? Or rather, how will I live? Life is not to be taken seriously, as we are really temporary here. We are like a pre-paid card with limited validity. If we are lucky, we may last another 50 years. And 50 years is just 2,500 weekends. Do we really need to get so worked up? It's ok, bunk a few classes, goof up a few interviews, fall in love. We are people, not programmed devices.
I've told you three things - reasonable goals, balance and not taking it too seriously that will nurture the spark. However, there are four storms in life that will threaten to completely put out the flame. These must be guarded against. These are disappointment, frustration, unfairness and loneliness of purpose.
Disappointment will come when your effort does not give you the expected return. If things don't go as planned or if you face failure. Failure is extremely difficult to handle, but those that do come out stronger. What did this failure teach me? is the question you will need to ask. You will feel miserable. You will want to quit, like I wanted to when nine publishers rejected my first book. Some IITians kill themselves over low grades – how silly is that? But that is how much failure can hurt you. But it's life. If challenges could always be overcome, they would cease to be a challenge. And remember - if you are failing at something, that means you are at your limit or potential. And that's where you want to be.


Disappointment's cousin is frustration, the second storm. Have you ever been frustrated? It happens when things are stuck. This is especially relevant in India. From traffic jams to getting that job you deserve, sometimes things take so long that you don't know if you chose the right goal. After books, I set the goal of writing for Bollywood, as I thought they needed writers. I am called extremely lucky, but it took me five years to get close to a release. Frustration saps excitement, and turns your initial energy into something negative, making you a bitter person. How did I deal with it? A realistic assessment of the time involved – movies take a long time to make even though they are watched quickly, seeking a certain enjoyment in the process rather than the end result – at least I was learning how to write scripts, having a side plan – I had my third book to write and even something as simple as pleasurable distractions in your life - friends, food, travel can help you overcome it. Remember, nothing is to be taken seriously. Frustration is a sign somewhere, you took it too seriously.


Unfairness - this is hardest to deal with, but unfortunately that is how our country works. People with connections, rich dads, beautiful faces, pedigree find it easier to make it – not just in Bollywood, but everywhere. And sometimes it is just plain luck. There are so few opportunities in India, so many stars need to be aligned for you to make it happen. Merit and hard work is not always linked to achievement in the short term, but the long term correlation is high, and ultimately things do work out. But realize, there will be some people luckier than you. In fact, to have an opportunity to go to college and understand this speech in English means you are pretty damm lucky by Indian standards. Let's be grateful for what we have and get the strength to accept what we don't. I have so much love from my readers that other writers cannot even imagine it. However, I don't get literary praise. It's ok. I don't look like Aishwarya Rai, but I have two boys who I think are more beautiful than her. It's ok. Don't let unfairness kill your spark.
Finally, the last point that can kill your spark is isolation. As you grow older you will realize you are unique. When you are little, all kids want Ice cream and Spiderman. As you grow older to college, you still are a lot like your friends. But ten years later and you realize you are unique. What you want, what you believe in, what makes you feel, may be different from even the people closest to you. This can create conflict as your goals may not match with others. . And you may drop some of them. Basketball captains in college invariably stop playing basketball by the time they have their second child. They give up something that meant so much to them. They do it for their family. But in doing that, the spark dies. Never, ever make that compromise. Love yourself first, and then others.


There you go. I've told you the four thunderstorms - disappointment, frustration, unfairness and isolation. You cannot avoid them, as like the monsoon they will come into your life at regular intervals. You just need to keep the raincoat handy to not let the spark die.I welcome you again to the most wonderful years of your life. If someone gave me the choice to go back in time, I will surely choose college. But I also hope that ten years later as well, your eyes will shine the same way as they do today. That you will Keep the Spark alive, not only through college, but through the next 2,500 weekends. And I hope not just you, but my whole country will keep that spark alive, as we really need it now more than any moment in history. And there is something cool about saying - I come from the land of a billion sparks.


Thank You...