U Thant quotes

U Thant was a Burmese diplomat and statesman who served as the third Secretary-General of the United Nations. His tenure was marked by efforts to promote peace and mediate conflicts during a turbulent era in world affairs. He is remembered for his commitment to international cooperation and peaceful resolution of disputes. Here are 7 of his quotes:

Wars begin in the minds of men, and in those minds, love and compassion would have built the defenses of peace. (U Thant)
The war we have to wage today has only one goal and that is to make the world safe for diversity. View quote
U Thant
Every human being, of whatever origin, of whatever station, deserves respect. We must each respect others even as we respect ourselves. View quote
U Thant
As a Buddhist, I was trained to be tolerant of everything except intolerance. View quote
U Thant
It is far from my intention to claim that I have reached a very high stage on the path to attainment of the highest wisdom, or that I have attained complete "inner peace." However, I can claim that I practice bhavana every day. View quote
U Thant
I am afraid (if the present trend in Vietnam continues) that direct confrontation, first of all between Washington and Peking, is inevitable. View quote
U Thant
It is far from my intention to claim that I have reached a very high stage on the path to attainment of the highest wisdom, or that I have attained complete "inner peace." However, I can claim that I practice bhavana every day. I try to cultivate the ethical aspects of Buddhism, and I believe that I have attained a greater degree of emotional equilibrium than most people. This explains why the tragic news of the sudden death (in a traffic accident) of my only son, Tin Maung Thant, on May 21, 1962, with minimal emotional reaction. For are not birth and death the two phases of the same life process? According to the Buddha, birth is followed by death, but death, in turn, is followed by rebirth. View quote
U Thant