Vegetarians

"Belief in God is a matter of personal conviction and faith."

"I consider astrology as a perfect science. But, I also believe what has to happen cannot be changed. Then what’s the use? When you know, you worry about it. That why I never consult any astrologer. Of course, many of them come to me. But, no one can say I invited him or asked any questions. But when I believe it’s a science, how can I deny it?"

"Whoever said Gandhi was against technology was wrong. I am not against industries. There are times when other things have to play a role—like food. But big industries are essential. Take electricity, or steel. These are essentially for big industries only."

"Is truth out of place today? Then we are gone. Will it ever be out of place? Is international politics based on convenience rather than ethics? That’s the malady of the world today. I tried to do things differently."

"When what I believe is the truth, I must act on it. But, I consider that you have every right to think what you think is the truth. I pay a price for adhering to my truth. I pay and do it cheerfully."

"I have even acted in a children’s film. It was a 10-minute role which I did somewhere around 1961. I had to quote from Gandhi. I spoke for 8 to 10 minutes continuously without any rehearsal, or writing, or retake. Not one word had to be changed. Because when you speak and act truthfully, you do not make a mistake. It comes naturally."

"In the early ages, I believe not much thought was given to what man is and what his real functions should be, and what is the real purpose of his life."

"The experience that I have, I think very few have. I’ve been in public life for 50 or 60 years. With this experience, a person acquires a deeper insight into life. And, if I say that and they can’t give a reply, they merely say I am out of place."

"Life at any time can become difficult: life at any time can become easy. It all depends upon how one adjusts oneself to life."

"“If charity and philanthropy is not connected with any ulterior motive, they are beneficial. But charity and conversions cannot go together. Religion prospers only when charity and philanthropy are undertaken without any motive. ... The poor and illiterate may enjoy religious freedom without any fear. We have to be particularly vigilant about the Scheduled Tribes whose protection is not only guaranteed by the laws of the land but is also enshrined in the Constitution. It is our duty to preserve every aspect of their way of life along with their religion and ways of worship. No group belonging to any creed should interfere with their religion and rituals. Other organizations are also engaged in the philanthropic work... But that work can be helpful only when it is done without any ulterior motive."

"Take life as it comes."

"For a democracy to be healthy and effective, three political parties fight elections so that they can replace one another in Governments every few years. Dictatorial governments are either communist, or fascist, or military or personal. Nothing can control the power and wealth of a dictator. History has shown that there were no benevolent dictators and even if a saint became a dictator, he would be corrupted by the unlimited power and wealth at his command, and soon become a despot and tyrant. Mahatma Gandhi, who got us freedom by the unique method of non-violent resistance against evil was an ideal democrat."

"My only interest in remaining in politics is to bring in morality."

"The Home Rule Movement had just started at that time. I used to attend many of the public meetings held under its auspices. I heard with great interest what Mrs Annie Besant whose language was so charmingly appealing and who used the silver tones of her voice with such effect that many students came under influence. After I passed my intermediate examination, in the last days of 1915, there was an annual session of Indian National Congress in Bombay which Sir Satyendra Prasanna Sanja presided."

"You are free to do any action as you want. That’s not done by destiny. What you get is destiny. Because, that’s the result of your own actions. Destiny is not given by God, one thing to one man, something else to another man. Then God would be unjust, partial and would cease to be God."

"I worked as a volunteer at that session and heard Mahatma Gandhi for the first time. I was profoundly impressed by his personality. Mahatma Gandhi was explaining his weapon of non-violent struggle for securing w:SwarajSwaraj....Mahatma Ganndhi told his young companions – May be you don’t agree today with what I say. But I am confident that within twenty five or thirty years, we will get Swaraj by this method. This purportedly proved true and just 31 years later India became independent."

"Things should be done for their own sake. I accept that I will never understand reality, so I concentrate on action, dharma [duty] and commitment."

"[becoming the Prime Minister of this country] That’s destiny. That’s not the result of my work. But, what I do as Prime Minister is a new action for which I am responsible. And whatever wrong I have done, I’ll have to pay for it."

"This country [India] has the best future. When it reached its summit, it was bound to come down. It has taken 2000 years. Yet, this is the only country which has not been destroyed in the world. All other civilizations have gone.... This is the only country whose civilization has survived to this day. Whether it is Egypt, Babylon or Sumeria, there is absolutely no indication of that in those countries at present."

"There is an inherent quality [resistant to change] in this country which doesn’t allow anybody to destroy it. Whoever tries to destroy it will himself be destroyed. Ravan was destroyed."

"The charity of the Gospel must extend to all religions and the French hospitality to all people."

"They [the true instructors of the people] will accustom children to the vegetable régime. The peoples living on vegetable foods, are, of all men, the handsomest, the most vigorous, the least exposed to diseases and to passions, and they whose lives last longest. Such, in Europe, are a large proportion of the Swiss. The greater part of the peasantry who, in every country, form the most vigorous portion of the people, eat very little flesh-meat. The Russians have multiplied periods of fasting and days of abstinence, from which even the soldiers are not exempt; and yet they resist all kinds of fatigues. The negroes, who undergo so many hard blows in our colonies, live upon manioc, potatoes, and maize alone. The Brahmins of India, who frequently reach the age of one hundred years, eat only vegetable foods. It was from the Pythagorean sect that issued Epaminondas, so celebrated by for his virtues, Archytas, by his genius for mathematics and mechanics; Milo of Crotona, by his strength of body. Pythagoras himself was the finest man of his time, and, without dispute, the most enlightened, since he was the father of philosophy amongst the Greeks. Inasmuch as the non-flesh diet introduces with many virtues and excludes none, it will be well to bring up the young upon it, since it has so happy an influence upon the beauty of the body and upon the tranquillity of the mind. This regimen prolongs childhood, and, by consequence, human life."

"Specifically, in these days when brutal and murderous terrorism seeks to drive us apart, we must reiterate to ourselves – here, in the Knesset, in schools, in academia and in the halls of Torah study – that to be Jewish is democratic and democracy is Jewish. Only in this way can we know that brutal terrorism will not break us physically, or our spirit."

"For some reason the settlement enterprise is being accused of being an obstacle to peace. Personally, I explain at each possible forum that the obstacle to peace is the objection by the Arabs to it and the fact that they do not want us here."

"I have a vision that suddenly all the Jewish people [from around the world] will come to live here... And if there were 10 million Jews here, we wouldn't have to give up on anything."

"Today, almost 20 years after Oslo, we can see clearly that the idea of separating the [Israeli and Palestinian] nations failed."

"[Israeli citizens who marry Palestinians need to move to] the other side."

"Zionism from its outset was a settlement movement. If we stop going on this path, how can we justify the faith that all of Zion belongs to us?"

"There are red lines that I as a democrat, say you cannot cross. I see it as defiance against Israel and Jerusalem as its capital as well as another protest against the historical narrative, a matter already pending before the High Court. (Responding to a MK Tibi-proposed bill recognising Jerusalem as the capital of a Palestinian state)"

"The residents here [in Migron settlement] are not thieves and are not trying to banish people from their land. They came here innocently, with the encouragement of the State of Israel."

"If the Nakba is a tragedy, then the establishment of the State of Israel is a tragedy. The Palestinians experienced a catastrophe that was brought on by their leaders, but the establishment of the State of Israel is not the reason for it."

"I whole-heartedly believe that the land of Israel is ours in its entirety."

"The communities in Judea and Samaria [referring to West Bank settlements] do not threaten our existence, they guarantee our existence."

"Dividing Jerusalem will bring disaster for the city. It cannot be that every time something is built in Jerusalem, the international community censures it. This constant criticism is a mark of disgrace for the international community."

"There is no consensus in Israel regarding the two state formula. We will not, under any circumstances, allow the establishment of a neighbouring state that will be a genuine threat on our existence."

"Terrorism is trying to paralyze and silence democracies fighting against it, exactly as was manifest in the world's reaction to Israel's counter-terrorist offensive Cast Lead in light of the Goldstone Report."

"We miss [Rehavam Ze'evi's] clear, ideological voice, his leadership, his larger than life presence."

"We will not apologize – not for conquering Katamon or Jaffa or Tzfat, nor for liberating Hebron, and not for building Jerusalem our capital."

"Goodness gracious I can't seem to stop Calling it off Calling it off just to keep crawling to your arms"

"We'll be raising our hands Shining up to the sky Cause we've got the fire fire fire And we gonna let it burn"

"I had a heart then But the queen has been overthrown"

"Light is slow."

"Frankly, Neil Harbisson, freaked me the fuck out. Both inspirational and terrifying. Like seeing a benevolent witch displaying her magic: even if you’re only using your powers to grow magic daffodils, it’s an ungodly talent that’s beyond human."

"I had a very special encounter with him. Surreal and especially futuristic. He raises so many questions, so many lines of thought, that force you to think differently."

"If I have problems perceiving a color I don't know who to go to – an opthamologist, a neurologist, or a computer programmer."

"It's not the union between my head and the electronic eye what makes me feel 'cyborg', it's the union between the software and my brain."

"If salads sounded like Justin Bieber, children would eat more vegetables."

"Neil Harbisson is one of the world's first bona fide cyborgs."

"When you're a little weird, you aspire to be normal; when you're very weird, you aspire to be recognised for it."

"I don't feel that I'm using technology, I don't feel that I'm wearing technology, I feel that I am technology."