Wisdom Booth
conduct

Responsibility

Across spiritual traditions, responsibility encompasses accountability and stewardship. Many traditions converge on the importance of personal responsibility in spiritual growth. They diverge in emphasis and interpretation, offering unique perspectives.

840 quotes

Across traditions

Related topics

Quotes

These worlds would collapse if I did not act. I would become an agent of confusion and would thereby destroy these creatures.
Krishna
HinduTeachingActionDutySanskrit
Bhagavad Gita 3.24
For if I ever ceased to act diligently, O Partha, all human beings everywhere would follow in my footsteps.
Krishna
HinduTeachingActionExampleSanskrit
Bhagavad Gita 3.23
You should stick to your duty and gain the reward that comes from hard work and pain.
Valmiki
HinduTeachingAttainmentActionSanskrit
Ramayana of Valmiki, p. 1080
God told Prophet David, 'The servant dearest to Me is one who doesn't seek Me out of fear or hope for reward, but to fulfill their duty to My divinity.'
Al-Ghazali
SufiScriptureAttainmentContentment
Alchemy of Happiness, p. 43
Lord Krishna says in the Gita, it's better to do one's own duty, even if it lacks merit, than to perfectly do someone else's duty.
Lord Krishna
HinduScriptureOnenessAction
Practice of Karma Yoga, p. 51
It is better to perform one's own duty, even if it lacks merit, than to perform someone else's duty, no matter how well. It is better to die doing one's own duty, as doing someone else's duty is full of danger.
Swami Sivananda
HinduTeachingOnenessAction
Practice of Karma Yoga, p. 49
Whoever performs their duty honestly and sincerely is a 'Karam Yogi', a true devotee.
Baba Gurbachan Singh Ji
UniversalTeachingDevoteeHonesty
Precious Pearls, p. 26
If we ask why only our actions, whether good or bad, have consequences, it can be said that our thoughts, feelings, and actions all have corresponding outcomes. However, since actions make up the majority of our lives and are a reflection of our values, and because we are not always in control of our thoughts and feelings, we must be held accountable for our actions.
Sri Aurobindo
HinduTeachingMindMorality
The Life Divine, p. 855
The obligation of birth and death indicates that the mental being has not yet unified itself with its true supramental self and spirit, but is dwelling in ignorance and enclosed within it.
Vedic Sages
HinduTeachingMindSoul
The Upanishads — Texts, Translations and Commentaries, p. 73
By merging with Nature and aligning with the Cosmic Will, we can act with divine freedom. When we surrender our actions to the Lord, our personal responsibility disappears in His liberty.
Vedic Sages
HinduTeachingSurrenderAction
The Upanishads — Texts, Translations and Commentaries, p. 32
The earth, the monkey, and the guru represent great knowledge. Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva are partial manifestations of the Supreme Deity, responsible for the creation of one of the countless universes ruled by Rama, who represents the Supreme Deity.
Tulsidas
HinduTeachingGuruKnowledgeSanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Sundar Kand (verses 745–804), p. 25
For a hero like Agada, failing to fulfill one's duty is worse than death.
Tulsidas
HinduTeachingAttainmentContentmentSanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Kishkindha Kand (verses 711–744), p. 29
The duty of a servant is incompatible with selfishness
Tulsidas
HinduTeachingActionDutySanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Ayodhya Kand Part 6 (verses 601–646), p. 14
If I were to act as a swan and try to lift Mount Kailash, it would be a servant's duty to the guru.
Tulsidas
HinduPoetryGuruActionSanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Ayodhya Kand Part 5 (verses 564–600), p. 14
I must respectfully obey your orders; this is my paramount duty, my lord.
Bharata
HinduTeachingObedienceActionSanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Ayodhya Kand Part 4 (verses 501–563), p. 40
When one deviates from their duty due to attachment to a loved one, they lose their reputation and incur disrepute.
Tulsidas
HinduTeachingLoveOnenessSanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Ayodhya Kand Part 2 (verses 402–480), p. 19
Always worship the husband as a god, this is the main duty of a wife, for her he is the only god.
Tulsidas
HinduTeachingDevotionWorshipSanskrit
Ramcharitmanas — Bal Kand Part 2 (verses 98–165), p. 13
The Koran states, 'We offered the responsibility of free will to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, but they refused to accept it. However, humanity took it on.
Al-Ghazali
SufiScriptureToleranceActionArabic
Alchemy of Happiness (Al-Ghazali — scripture edition), p. 24
Regaining consciousness, Uttara took her child in her lap and said, 'You are the child of one who knew every duty.'
Vyasa
HinduParableMindOnenessSanskrit
Mahabharata, p. 5630
Abstaining from harming any living being is considered the most important duty. It is the highest state, free from anxiety, and a sign of holiness.
Vyasa
HinduTeachingMiraclesActionSanskrit
Mahabharata, p. 5584