Minimalism Quotes … Through the Centuries | Joshua Becker, Becoming Minimalist

If one’s life is simple, contentment has to come. Simplicity is extremely important for happiness. Having few desires, feeling satisfied with what you have, is very vital: satisfaction with just enough food, clothing, and shelter to protect yourself from the elements. 

The Dalai Lama said that. It's among the quotations listed in Becker's article. Here's how Becker introduces his blog:

Voluntary simplicity (and/or minimalism) is certainly not new. In fact, it has been practiced and encouraged for thousands of years … literally. Just consider the following men and women who have advocated for a lifestyle of minimalism.

While I appreciate and strive for simplicity in my life, I especially value it in writing. Clear, concise writing is important to achieve if you want people to read things you write and respond in a desirable way. For more advice on simplicity in writing, check out these websites of mine:

• Garbl's Concise Writing Guide
• Garbl's Plain English Writing Guide

My Concise Writing Guide also includes Words of Wisdom about simplicity in writing.

Here are a few more quotations from Becker's list that I appreciated:

1936. Tom Robbins. “Any half-awake materialist well knows – that which you hold holds you.”
1911. E.F. Schumacher. “Any intelligent fool can make things bigger, more complex, and more violent. It takes a touch of genius – and a lot of courage – to move in the opposite direction.”
1900. Antoine de Saint-Exupery. “Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
1879. Albert Einstein. “Make things as simple as possible but no simpler.”
1879. Will Rogers. “Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.”
1872. Bertrand Russell. “It is preoccupation with possession, more than anything else, that prevents men from living freely and nobly.”
1828. Leo Tolstoy. “There is no greatness where there is not simplicity, goodness, and truth.”
1817. Henry David Thoreau. “Cultivate poverty like a garden herb, like sage. Do not trouble yourself much to get new things, whether clothes or friends. Things do not change, we change. Sell your clothes and keep your thoughts.”
469 BCE. Socrates. “The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.”
500 BCE. Lao Tzu. “Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”
563 BCE. Buddha. “To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one’s own in the midst of abundance.”

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This article is highlighted today (Oct. 4) in Garbl's Simple Dreams--available at the Simplicity tab above and by free email subscription.