This selection of quotes on the subject of minimalism invites you to reflect on the importance of simplicity and reduction in life.
Minimalism is not just an external way of life, but an inner attitude that encourages us to recognize the essentials and free ourselves from the superfluous.
We really must understand that the lust for affluence in contemporary society is psychotic. It is psychotic because it has completely lost touch with reality. We crave things we neither need nor enjoy.
Richard Foster, author and theologian
Unpretentious and unadorned simplicity pleases.
Nicolas Boileau, French historian and author
Rich is he who has much, richer is he who needs little, richest is he who gives much.
Gerhard Tersteegen, German preacher and writer
Beauty consists in harmony, which is always closely connected with simplicity.
Giacomo Casanova, Venetian writer and adventurer
Simplicity in the choice of food promotes physical health. Simplicity in dealing with other people promotes peace of mind.
Jacques-Henri Bernardin de Saint-Pierre, French writer
My advice is therefore to force nothing and to squander and sleep away all unproductive days and hours rather than to try to do something on such days that will bring no joy later.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet
I am a minimalist. I like to say the most with the least.
Bob Newhart, comedian and actor
Minimalism is believing there is such a thing as enough.
Unknown
Remember, you probably already have more than you need.
Unknown
Many would like to lead a simpler life if the path to it were not so complicated.
Justus Jonas the Elder, German jurist, humanist, Lutheran theologian and reformer
Irony has it that when we have achieved the object of our desires, we are still not satisfied. Thus, desire never ends and is a constant source of trouble. The only antidote is contentment.
Dalai Lama / Tenzin Gyatso, Buddhist monk and head of the Tibetans
Being a minimalist means you value yourself more than material things.
Unknown
The more I threw away, the more I found.
Don DeLillo, American writer
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Unknown
Impress people with your soul, not the things you have.
Unknown
It is not the greatest, but the small things that show us the way and lead us home.
Bhuwan Thapaliya, poet and author
I no longer want to hold on to things that burden my mind and paralyze my soul. Please give me the wisdom and strength to let things go. Let me flow. Let me grow.
Bhuwan Thapaliya, poet and author
People who place a high value on gardens, buildings, clothes, jewelry, or any possessions are less sociable and pleasant; they lose sight of the people who few succeed in delighting and gathering.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet
The happiest lot is the release from doing and not doing.
Arthur Schopenhauer, German philosopher
During healing, we learn the most effective method to overcome self-limitations, become immune to adversities, make smarter decisions selectively, and directly polish our inner abilities.
Youheum Son, author and life consultant
We have far too little leisure: time in which nothing is happening. This is the time when the Einsteins, the creative researchers, make their discoveries. Routine and business are uninteresting and counterproductive.
Adolf Muschg, Swiss writer and literary scholar
Idleness is not a bad thing; indeed, one must say: a person who has no sense of it shows that they have not risen to humanity.
Søren Kierkegaard, Danish philosopher, theologian, and writer
The best way to learn what life really means is from children. No one lives life with as much energy and vitality as children. Origin, prestige – that means nothing to them. In dealing with them, we learn and experience again the simplicity and originality of thinking, feeling, and willing that we often lose and long for.
Dietrich Grönemeyer, German physician and author
The beginning will positively change our daily routines and habits, but the superficial changes are only a small reward compared to the spiritual lessons along the way.
Youheum Son, author and life consultant
Small minds deal with the extraordinary, great minds with the ordinary.
Blaise Pascal, philosopher and mathematician
Throw away so you don’t lose – that’s the best rule of life.
Friedrich Hebbel, German poet and dramatist
It is not the greatest, but the small things that show us the way and lead us home.
Bhuwan Thapaliya, poet and author
Learning the mechanism of healing and understanding the role of contrast and diversity within and around us will give us the boost we need to participate in healing.
Youheum Son, author and life consultant
It is doubly foolish to underutilize what you paid too much for.
Mokokoma Mokhonoana, writer and thinker
We need to be simply guided to be a cooperative component of healing again, instead of being an unconscious or passive healer.
Youheum Son, author and life consultant
But I deal with this by meditating and by understanding I’ve been put on the planet to serve humanity. I have to remind myself to live simply and not overindulge, which is a constant battle in a material world.
Sandra Cisneros, US-American writer, poet
There are two ways to be rich: One is by acquiring much, and the other is by desiring little.
Jackie French Koller, US-American author
One of the advantages of being born in an affluent society is that if one has any intelligence at all, one will realize that having more and more won’t solve the problem, and happiness does not lie in possessions, or even relationships: The answer lies within ourselves. If we can’t find peace and happiness there, it’s not going to come from the outside.
Tenzin Palmo, Buddhist nun and teacher
The intention of voluntary simplicity is not to dogmatically live with less. It’s a more demanding intention of living with balance. This is a middle way that moves between the extremes of poverty and indulgence.
Duane Elgin, author and speaker on voluntary simplicity
Simplicity involves unburdening your life, and living more lightly with fewer distractions that interfere with a high quality life, as defined uniquely by each individual.
Linda Breen Pierce, author and advocate of simple living
Have nothing in your homes that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.
William Morris, artist and designer
The simplest things are often the truest.
Richard Bach, author and pilot
The trouble with simple living is that, though it can be joyful, rich, and creative, it isn’t simple.
Doris Janzen Longacre, author and advocate of simple living
You have succeeded in life when all you really want is only what you really need.
Vernon Howard, spiritual teacher and author
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, spiritual leader
Smile, breathe and go slowly.
Thich Nhat Hanh, Buddhist monk and peace activist
Simplicity is an acquired taste. Mankind, left free, instinctively complicates life.
Katharine Fullerton Gerould, author and journalist
Our souls are not hungry for fame, comfort, wealth, or power. Our souls are hungry for meaning, for the sense that we have figured out how to live so that our lives matter.
Harold Kushner, rabbi and author
Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery, writer and aviator
Too many people spend money they haven’t earned, to buy things they don’t want, to impress people they don’t like.
Will Rogers, humorist and actor
Reduce the complexity of life by eliminating the needless wants of life, and the labors of life reduce themselves.
Edwin Way Teale, naturalist and author
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.
Henry David Thoreau, author and philosopher
Simplicity involves unburdening your life, and living more lightly with fewer distractions that interfere with a high quality life, as defined uniquely by each individual.
Linda Breen Pierce, author and advocate of simple living
It is preoccupation with possession, more than anything else, that prevents men from living freely and nobly.
Bertrand Russell, philosopher and activist
Perfection is achieved, not when there is nothing more to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.
Antoine de Saint-Exupery, writer and aviator
Any half-awake materialist well knows – that which you hold holds you.
Tom Robbins, author
My riches consist, not in the extent of my possessions, but in the fewness of my wants.
Joseph Brotherton, politician and reformer
Live simply so that others may simply live.
Elizabeth Ann Seton, founder of the Sisters of Charity
Real happiness is cheap enough, yet how dearly we pay for its counterfeit.
Hosea Ballou, American Universalist minister
With a few flowers in my garden, half a dozen pictures and some books, I live without envy.
Lope de Vega, playwright and poet
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
Leonardo da Vinci, polymath
Purity and simplicity are the two wings with which man soars above the earth and all temporary nature.
Thomas a Kempis, German-Dutch canon
If your mind isn’t clouded by unnecessary things, then this is the best season of your life.
Wu-Men, Zen Buddhist monk and poet
Poverty is my pride.
Muhammed, prophet of Islam
If one had taken what is necessary to cover one’s needs and had left the rest to those who are in need, no one would be rich, no one would be poor, no one would be in need.
Saint Basil, Bishop of Caesarea
Contentment comes not so much from great wealth as from few wants.
Epictetus, Greek Stoic philosopher
It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor.
Seneca, Roman Stoic philosopher
Sell your possessions and give to the poor.
Jesus Christ
The man who has two tunics is to share with him who has none; and he who has food is to do likewise.
John the Baptist, religious figure
Nothing is enough for the man to whom enough is too little.
Epicurus, Greek philosopher
The secret of happiness, you see, is not found in seeking more, but in developing the capacity to enjoy less.
Socrates, Greek philosopher
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.
Lao Tzu, Chinese philosopher
Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.
Confucius, Chinese philosopher
To live a pure unselfish life, one must count nothing as one’s own in the midst of abundance.
Buddha, founder of Buddhism
I am a minimalist. I like saying the most with the least.
Bob Newhart, American comedian and actor
Minimalism is the intentional promotion of the things we most value and the removal of anything that distracts us from it.
Joshua Becker, American author and writer
It’s not always that we need to do more but rather that we need to focus on less.
Nathan W. Morris, author
Everything is possible, but everything is not necessary.
Arvo Pärt, composer
Just because something made you happy in the past doesn’t mean you have to keep it forever.
Melva Green, psychologist
Clutter is not just the stuff on your floor. It’s anything that stands between you and the life you want to be living.
Peter Walsh, organizational consultant
My goal is no longer to get more done, but rather to have less to do.
Francine Jay, author and decluttering expert
The ability to simplify means to eliminate the unnecessary so that the necessary may speak.
Hans Hofmann, artist
Just because something made you happy in the past doesn’t mean you have to keep it forever.
Melva Green, psychologist
I’ve found that the less stuff I own, the less my stuff owns me.
Nathan W. Morris, minimalist blogger
There are two ways to be rich: One is by acquiring much, and the other is by desiring little.
Jackie French Koller, children’s book author
It is not the man who has too little, but the man who craves more, that is poor.
Seneca, Roman Stoic philosopher
Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.
William Golding, author
Happiness is very simple and minimal.
Tablo, musician and author
Good asparagus needs minimal treatment and is best eaten with few other ingredients.
Yotam Ottolenghi, chef and author
I tend to lean toward a more minimal aesthetic, so when I use wallpapers in my interiors, I like for one or two prints to be the star of the show. I would recommend being careful in your use of strong prints so the room doesn’t get too busy. Use one print that dominates and one as an accent.
Bobby Berk, interior designer
My skincare routine is pretty minimal. My must-have products are rose water, witch hazel, Embryolisse Creme, and Dr. Colbert’s Eye Cream.
Kenza Fourati, model
I would say I’m pretty minimal. Comfort is key. So during the day, it’s usually, like, jeans and a sweater. But for evening wear, I’ll dress up a bit.
Amanda Hearst, fashion model and activist
I take a lot of satisfaction in trying to make my land as self-contained as possible, its own little mini environment. Minimal outputs; minimal inputs.
John Grogan, author
I can’t write anything if I don’t know where it’s set, where the events are happening – even if the details of setting are minimal.
Laura van den Berg, author
I definitely follow fashion and trends and will sporadically add them to my wardrobe in an organic way. But my style, at its core, is a minimal, clean, and timeless look.
Julian Edelman, professional American football player
I like the French kind of style because it’s simple and minimal. I have blonde hair and big lips, and when I do too much I think sometimes I don’t look very well, you know?
Joanna Kulig, actress and singer
I am allergic to metals, so, I am minimal on accessories. Also, I don’t wear watches.
Soha Ali Khan, actress
Through my years of traveling, I’ve become a pretty incredible packer and great at staying minimal.
Camille Rowe, model and actress
I love simple dresses and use only minimal makeup.
Shamna Kasim, actress and model
Our needs are minimal.
Saira Banu, actress
I think barefaced, minimal makeup happens mostly on editorial shoots. And I’ve taken a swing at minimal makeup here and there, but I think a lot of what drag celebrates is the opposite of that. I think the inauthenticity and the hyperfemininity is part of why it’s so celebrated.
Violet Chachki, drag queen and singer
Capitalism means the dominance of the present over the future.
Harald Welzer, German social psychologist
Quality not quantity.
Unknown
There is a life outside the shopping mall. When you understand that, you will understand sustainability.
Abhijit Naskar, neuroscientist and author
Calm, quiet, sofa, and a cup of tea are better than anything.
Theodor Fontane, German writer
Everyday life is like programming, I think. If you love something, you can add beauty to it.
Donald Knuth, computer scientist and author
Don’t just declutter, de-own.
Unknown
I always come to the conclusion that English poets waste too much energy on “words, words, words”.
Yoné Noguchi, poet and literary critic
The most complicated skill is to be simple.
Dejan Stojanovic, Austrian-North Macedonian footbal player
Minimalism. Because the best things in life aren’t things.
Unknown
Owning more is better than organising more.
Unknown
Forget sale price. Everything is 100% off when you don’t buy it.
Unknown
Only own what you use.
Unknown
Never organize what you can discard.
Unknown
Strive not to get more done, but to have less to do.
Francine Jay, author
People seek wealth. But if they saw clearly what they lose by wealth, they would make as much effort to free themselves from it as they now do to acquire it.
Leo Tolstoy, Russian writer
Abstinence is the pleasure of things we can’t get. So live moderately, think wisely, who needs nothing, has enough.
Wilhelm Busch, German poet and cartoonist
Buy less, choose well.
Vivienne Westwood, fashion designer
Collect moments not things.
Unknown
If it does not matter, get rid of it.
Unknown
The less I needed, the better I felt.
Charles Bukowski, American writer, poet
Don’t carry what you don’t need.
Unknown
Haste is general, because everyone is fleeing from themselves, and so is the shy concealment of this haste, because one wants to seem content and deceive the keen-eyed spectators about one’s misery, and the need for new clanging word-bells, with which life should gain a noisy-festive aspect.
Friedrich Nietzsche, German philosopher and classical philologist
“More is better” proves to be a formula for dissatisfaction. If you live to have everything, what you have is never enough.
Joe Dominguez & Vicki Robin, authors and financial advisors
Some people slammed their doors, others didn’t,” he told me in his acquired, patient tone. “I had to deal with a lot of rejection in a way I never had before.
Stephen Hunter, American author and critic
The consumption society has made us feel that happiness lies in having things, and has failed to teach us the happiness of not having things.
Elise Boulding, American sociologist
I’ve learned that minimalism isn’t about what you own, it’s about why you own it.
Brian Gardner, American mastering engineer
All you need is less.
Unknown
Minimalism is about intentionality, not deprivation.
Unknown
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