Nelson Mandela Quotes On Life

1. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities.


2. Man's goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished.

3. A leader…is like a shepherd. He stays behind the flock, letting the most nimble go out ahead, whereupon the others follow, not realizing that all along they are being directed from behind.

4. Freedom would be meaningless without security in the home and in the streets.


5. Appearances matter - and remember to smile.

6. I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.

7. I am the captain of my soul.

8. It is said that no one truly knows a nation until one has been inside its jails. A nation should not be judged by how it treats its highest citizens, but its lowest ones.


9. Overcoming poverty is not a task of charity, it is an act of justice. Like Slavery and Apartheid, poverty is not natural. It is man-made and it can be overcome and eradicated by the actions of human beings. Sometimes it falls on a generation to be great. YOU can be that great generation. Let your greatness blossom.

10. I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom come responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended.

11. No one is born hating another person because of the color of his skin, or his background, or his religion. People must learn to hate, and if they can learn to hate, they can be taught to love, for love comes more naturally to the human heart than its opposite.

12. Let us give publicity to H.I.V./AIDS and not hide it, because the only way to make it appear like a normal illness like TB, like cancer, is always to come out and say somebody has died because of H.I.V./AIDS, and people will stop regarding it as something extraordinary.

13. When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw.

14. Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies.

15. I am fundamentally an optimist. Whether that comes from nature or nurture, I cannot say. Part of being optimistic is keeping one's head pointed toward the sun, one's feet moving forward. There were many dark moments when my faith in humanity was sorely tested, but I would not and could not give myself up to despair. That way lays defeat and death.

16. Our single most important challenge is therefore to help establish a social order in which the freedom of the individual will truly mean the freedom of the individual.




17. I made a mistake by being ejected from the presidency. Next time, I will choose a Cabinet which will allow me to be life President.

18. We can't afford to be killing one another.

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






20. As I walked out the door toward the gate that would lead to my freedom, I knew if I didn't leave my bitterness and hatred behind, I'd still be in prison.

21. Sometimes, I feel like one who is on the sidelines, who has missed life itself.


22. Forget the past.

23. Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.

24. Where you stand depends on where you sit.

25. As I have said, the first thing is to be honest with yourself. You can never have an impact on society if you have not changed yourself... Great peacemakers are all people of integrity, of honesty, but humility.

26. I do not deny that I planned sabotage. I did not plan it in a spirit of recklessness nor because I have any love of violence. I planned it as a result of a calm and sober assessment of the political situation that had arisen after many years of tyranny, exploitation and oppression of my people by the whites.

27. I have always regarded myself, in the first place, as an African patriot.


28. Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.

29. Unlike some politicians, I can admit to a mistake.

30. Our human compassion binds us the one to the other - not in pity or patronizingly, but as human beings who have learnt how to turn our common suffering into hope for the future.

31. I was not a messiah, but an ordinary man who had become a leader because of extraordinary circumstances.

32. I can't pretend that I'm brave and that I can beat the whole world.

33. I should tie myself to no particular system of society other than of socialism.

34. Let freedom reign. The sun never set on so glorious a human achievement.


35. Intervention only works when the people concerned seem to be keen for peace.


36. A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.

37. It is wise to persuade people to do things and make them think it was their own idea.

38. There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.





39. The titanic effort that has brought liberation to South Africa, and ensured the total liberation of Africa, constitutes an act of redemption for the black people of the world.

40. Leaders in all spheres who are living with HIV should be encouraged, not coerced, to lead by example and disclose their HIV status.

41. It is better to lead from behind and to put others in front, especially when you celebrate victory when nice things occur. You take the front line when there is danger. Then people will appreciate your leadership.





42. Where globalization means, as it so often does, that the rich and powerful now have new means to further enrich and empower themselves at the cost of the poorer and weaker, we have a responsibility to protest in the name of universal freedom.

43. I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.

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

45. If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.

46. 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.





47. If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.

48. I started to make a study of the art of war and revolution and, whilst abroad, underwent a course in military training. If there was to be guerrilla warfare, I wanted to be able to stand and fight with my people and to share the hazards of war with them.

49. It always seems impossible until its done.


50. There are many people who feel that it is useless and futile to continue talking about peace and non-violence against a government whose only reply is savage attacks on an unarmed and defenceless people.

51. My son has died of AIDS.

52. After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.

53. There is no passion to be found playing small - in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.





54. 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.

55. Never, never and never again shall it be that this beautiful land will again experience the oppression of one by another.


56. Nonviolence is a good policy when the conditions permit.

57. If the United States of America or Britain is having elections, they don't ask for observers from Africa or from Asia. But when we have elections, they want observers.


58. Does anybody really think that they didn't get what they had because they didn't have the talent or the strength or the endurance or the commitment?

59. In my country we go to prison first and then become President.

60. I cannot conceive of Israel withdrawing if Arab states do not recognize Israel, within secure borders.

61. The United States has made serious mistakes in the conduct of its foreign affairs, which have had unfortunate repercussions long after the decisions were taken.

62. Any man or institution that tries to rob me of my dignity will lose.


63. If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world, it is the United States of America.


64. There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children.

65. There is no such thing as part freedom.

66. Africans require, want, the franchise on the basis of one man one vote. They want political independence.


67. We must use time wisely and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.

68. If there are dreams about a beautiful South Africa, there are also roads that lead to their goal. Two of these roads could be named Goodness and Forgiveness.

69. I detest racialism, because I regard it as a barbaric thing, whether it comes from a black man or a white man.


70. Before I went to jail, I was active in politics as a member of South Africa's leading organization - and I was generally busy from 7 A.M. until midnight. I never had time to sit and think.

71. I dream of the realization of the unity of Africa, whereby its leaders combine in their efforts to solve the problems of this continent. I dream of our vast deserts, of our forests, of all our great wildernesses.

72. No country can really develop unless its citizens are educated.

73. Only free men can negotiate; prisoners cannot enter into contracts. Your freedom and mine cannot be separated.

74. Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all.

75. By ancestry, I was born to rule.

76. There are many people in South Africa who are rich and who can share those riches with those not so fortunate who have not been able to conquer poverty.

77. Give a child love, laughter and peace, not AIDS.


78. Money won't create success, the freedom to make it will.

79. To deny people their human rights is to challenge their very humanity.

80. I dream of an Africa which is in peace with itself.

81. Courageous people do not fear forgiving, for the sake of peace.

82. I have been influenced in my thinking by both west and east.




83. There is nothing I fear more than waking up without a program that will help me bring a little happiness to those with no resources, those who are poor, illiterate, and ridden with terminal disease.

84. Communists have always played an active role in the fight by colonial countries for their freedom, because the short-term objects of Communism would always correspond with the long-term objects of freedom movements.

85. I really wanted to retire and rest and spend more time with my children, my grandchildren and of course with my wife.




86. I am confident that nobody...will accuse me of selfishness if I ask to spend time, while I am still in good health, with my family, my friends and also with myself.

87. A good leader can engage in a debate frankly and thoroughly, knowing that at the end he and the other side must be closer, and thus emerge stronger. You don't have that idea when you are arrogant, superficial, and uninformed.

88. I stand here before you not as a prophet, but as a humble servant of you, the people.

89. I was called a terrorist yesterday, but when I came out of jail, many people embraced me, including my enemies, and that is what I normally tell other people who say those who are struggling for liberation in their country are terrorists.

90. If you are poor, you are not likely to live long.


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