Nelson Mandela (1918 – 2013) was a South African anti-apartheid activist who served as the first president of South Africa from 1994 to 1999. He was the country's first black head of state and the first elected in a fully representative democratic election.
His government focused on dismantling the legacy of apartheid by fostering racial reconciliation. He was the co-winner of the Nobel Peace Prize with F.W. de Klerk in 1993.
Here is a collection of Nelson Mandela most inspiring quotes: Nelson Mandela quotes about education, leadership and change. Most Motivating Quotes from Mandela. Quotes and sayings on life, love and freedom by Nelson Mandela.
Nelson Mandela Quotes and Sayings
Do not judge me by my successes, judge me by how many times I fell down and got back up again.
Resentment is like drinking poison and then hoping it will kill your enemies.
I am the captain of my soul.
As we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same.
Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.
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.
A winner is a dreamer who never gives up.
May your choices reflect your hopes, not your fears.
When a man is denied the right to live the life he believes in, he has no choice but to become an outlaw.
There is nothing like returning to a place that remains unchanged to find the ways in which you yourself have altered.
Where you stand depends on where you sit.
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.
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.
Lead from the back - and let others believe they are in front.
One of the things I learned when I was negotiating was that until I changed myself, I could not change others.
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.
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.
A good head and good heart are always a formidable combination. But when you add to that a literate tongue or pen, then you have something very special.
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.
Appearances matter - and remember to smile.
It always seems impossible until it's done.
I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.
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.
After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb.
Courage is not the absence of fear - it is inspiring others to move beyond it.
Nothing is black or white.
There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children.
Sometimes it falls upon a generation to be great, you can be that generation.
It is what we make out of what we have, not what we are given, that separates one person from another.
Live life as though nobody is watching, and express yourself as though everyone is listening.
In my country we go to prison first and then become President.
Know your enemy - and learn about his favorite sport.
We must use time creatively, and forever realize that the time is always ripe to do right.
Let there be justice for all. Let there be peace for all. Let there be work, bread, water and salt for all. Let each know that for each the body, the mind and the soul have been freed to fulfill themselves.
You will achieve more in this world through acts of mercy than you will through acts of retribution.
Tread softly, Breathe peacefully, Laugh hysterically.
What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made to the lives of others that will determine the significance of the life we lead.
The brave man is not the one who has no fears, he is the one who triumphs over his fears.
Without language, one cannot talk to people and understand them; one cannot share their hopes and aspirations, grasp their history, appreciate their poetry, or savor their songs.
It is not where you start but how high you aim that matters for success.
When the water starts boiling it is foolish to turn off the heat.
Difficulties break some men but make others. No axe is sharp enough to cut the soul of a sinner who keeps on trying, one armed with the hope that he will rise even in the end.
I like friends who have independent minds because they tend to make you see problems from all angles.
It is in the character of growth that we should learn from both pleasant and unpleasant experiences.
A good head and a good heart are always a formidable combination.
The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
I have always believed that exercise is the key not only to physical health but to peace of mind.
I detest racialism because I regard it as a barbaric thing, whether it comes from a black man or a white man.
Everyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve success if they are dedicated to and passionate about what they do.
One cannot be prepared for something while secretly believing it will not happen.
Your playing small does not serve the world. Who are you not to be great?
Freedom is indivisible; the chains on any one of my people were the chains on all of them, the chains on all of my people were the chains on me.
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.
Quitting is leading too.
And as we let our own light shine, we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.
Man's goodness is a flame that can be hidden but never extinguished.
We know too well that our freedom is incomplete without the freedom of the Palestinians.
I am the master of my fate and the captain of my destiny.
I am not an optimist, but a great believer of hope.
There is a universal respect and even admiration for those who are humble and simple by nature, and who have absolute confidence in all human beings irrespective of their social status.
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.
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.
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.
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.
During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.
I had no epiphany, no singular revelation, no moment of truth, but a steady accumulation of a thousand slights, a thousand indignities and a thousand unremembered moments produced in me an anger, a rebelliousness, a desire to fight the system that imprisoned my people. There was no particular day on which I said, Henceforth I will devote myself to the liberation of my people; instead, I simply found myself doing so, and could not do otherwise.
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