By Elizabeth Herman
11 of my favorite stress relief quotes from world-famous spiritual teachers restore peace and calm when life is stressing you and getting overwhelming.
Do you feel extreme stress much of the time? Do you experience negative stress that affects your mental and physical health? From struggling to sleep to feeling stressed and anxious, to even struggling to relate to your nearest and dearest? If you do, you're not alone. 75% of Americans report that they do, too.
To help protect your own sense of calm, you can go online to find many experts who offer ways to reduce stress. They all have much in common. Their wisdom relates well with powerful tools and techniques that the Art of Living offers for stress relief and can be great pointers for you when it comes to managing and navigating stress.
11 inspirational quotes about relieving stress
1) One big life: “Let’s reach that state where we realize the whole universe, the whole world, is nothing but one big life, one eternal life, one undivided life force. Meditation is the way to move from one step to another.” - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Gaining a sense of unity with the rest of the world can reduce anxiety. In meditation, your individual awareness of separateness dissolves. Belongingness dawns.
By taking the step of regular meditation practice, you can feel your oneness with a bigger mind. This makes you feel less alone and become less vulnerable to stress.
2) Stillness: “Within you, there is a stillness and a sanctuary to which you can retreat at any time and be yourself.” - Hermann Hesse
Finding peace and quiet inside is an important goal of yoga and meditation. Ancient techniques, using breath, body, and mind bring you to stillness. Through retreats that teach you to use these methods of self-care at home, you can access your inner peaceful place.
This will reduce stress. A better sense of who you are can result.
3) The present moment: “Breathe. Let go. And remind yourself that this very moment is the only one you know you have for sure.” - Oprah Winfrey
Each time you breathe, your body and mind embrace a new moment of life. Keeping your attention on the present moment can stop your worry about the future. Regrets about the past also disappear. You find that letting go of your sources of stress becomes easier. This is one of the main wisdom points in the SKY Breath Meditation program.
4) Hope: “A new creation has come in and, with it, a new hope for everyone on the planet. And I am certain that we have the capacity to not only uplift ourselves but also those around us.” - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
We move forward in time every year. With hope for a better world, we can move ourselves and others with love, beyond stress and tension. Not only are people who are involved in their communities happier, but they also reduce their stress by working together. Gurudev speaks often of engaging in selfless service for the health and happiness of everyone.
5) Listening: “In times of stress, the best thing we can do for each other is to listen with our ears and our hearts.” - Fred Rogers
During Art of Living courses, participants tell each other their life stories. They cooperate on service projects. Active listening is an important part of belongingness and self-awareness.
You can create your own great relationships with loved ones in this type of interaction. Through support from and for others, yesterday's burden of stress will disappear.
6) Desires: “Slow down and everything you are chasing will come around and catch you.” - John De Paola
Desire can make us pursue modern life at a feverish, stressed out pace. But breathing, meditation, and yoga can help you let go of feverish desires.
Sri Sri Yoga classes help you slow down and practice yoga postures with patience. The physical and mental benefits bring you in line with your inner strength and goals. You reach success with less strain and effort through deep meditation practice.
7) Acceptance: “Stress is caused by being ‘here’ but wanting to be ‘there.’” - Eckhart Tolle
When you accept your situation, you can resolve to take effective action about it. Stressful circumstances in the here and now become less difficult to overcome.
You can learn to relieve the great stress of resisting your place in reality. The meditation techniques in the Art of Living can help you accept others, yourself, and the world. Positive changes will happen when you enact genuine acceptance.
8) Light and darkness: “If you are trying to get rid of darkness, your attention is on the darkness. But if you turn towards light, darkness automatically disappears. This is what you need to do: take a positive attitude.” - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Light in the face of darkness illustrates how easy it is to move beyond stress and let go of bad habits. There's a powerful choice you can make when you choose to shine a light where there was none before.
The instant you decide to look at stressful situations with hope, you’ve created relief.
Carrying the right attitude with you every day can produce fast-acting relief. You’ll notice a lasting effect on your life.
9) Perceptions: “You are braver than you believe, and stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think.” - Christopher Robin
Self-confidence comes from positive perceptions of yourself. SKY Breath Meditation can reveal abilities you never knew you had. Use a regular practice of deep breath and affirmations for clearer vision of yourself. You'll realize the treasure that you are.
10) Relaxation: “Tension is being who you think you should be. Relaxation is who you are.” - Chinese Proverb
True relaxation comes from self-acceptance. You create unnecessary stress when you judge yourself by external standards. With a silent meditation practice, judgmental voices can stop. You can be yourself and high-stress levels will reduce, benefitting your mental health, and improving your sense of well-being.
11) Inner peace: “Peace is not just an absence of conflict, it is a positive phenomenon inside of us. When our mind is quiet, our intellect becomes sharper. Our emotions become positive and lighter. Our behavior becomes much more palatable. These are the effects of finding inner peace.” - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankar
Art of Living offers many natural and easy techniques for making your mind calmer. You can improve your emotions and behavior in the same way.
To get started learning them today, join Beyond Breath - a free online session with a live instructor. You'll experience guided breathwork and meditation. You'll also learn about SKY Breath Meditation. It has helped millions of people worldwide to relieve stress and feel healthier.
Elizabeth Herman is a long time meditator, a trained yoga teacher, and a PhD in English, with concentrations in Rhetoric and Composition, and Literature. She offers writing support to clients, teaches locally, and volunteers for a better world.
