A good pen can also remind us of the happiest moments in our lives, bring noble ideas into our dens, our blood, and our souls. It can turn tragedy into hope and victory. (/feb. 10, 1970)
In prison Mandela learned the power of words, and it was only through his poignant notes, cherished letters, or smuggled statements that he was able to free his mind from his imprisonment. My hope is that some of my words will be a blessing to my family and my friends. I know that I enjoy their comments and words of wisdom.
Some of these words have been put into a book called "Notes to the Future." I am now quoting.
It is never my custom to use words lightly. In twenty-seven years in prison have done anything to us, it was to use the silence of solitude to make us understand how precious words are and how real speech is, in its impact on the way people live and die. (July 14, 2000)
STRUGGLE
You can see that "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 mountain tops of our desires. (Sept. 21, 1953)
We should never forget those whose on whose shoulders we stand and those who paid a price for freedom. (Dec. 12, 1996)
We come from a people who, because they would not accept to be treated as subhuman, redeemed the dignity of all humanity everywhere. (from an address to the Parliament of Canada, June 18, 1990.)
It would have been immoral to keep quiet while a racist tyranny sought to reduce an entire people into a status worse than that of the beasts of the forest. (House of Congress June 26, 1990)
I detest white supremacy and will fight it with every weapon in my hands. (letter to General Du Preez, Commissioner of Prisons, July 12, 1970)
Science and experience have also shown that no race is inherently superior to others, and this myth has been equally exploided whenever blacks and whites are given equal opportunity for development.
(written on Robben Island, 1978)
Banning not only confines one physically, it imprisons one's spirit. It induces a kind of psychological claustrophobia that makes one year for not only freedom of movement but spiritual escape.
(from a Long Walk to Freedom 1994)
I consider myself neither legally nor morally bound to obey laws made by a parliament in which I have no representation. (October 22, 1962)
Death is something inevitable. When a man has done what he considers his duty to his people and his country, he can rest in peace. (1996)
Since the dawn of history, mankind has honored and respected brave and honest people. (letter to Winnie, June 23,1969)
If there is a country that has committed unspeakable atrocities in the world, it is the United States of America. (Tokyo, Jan. 2003)
The United Nations is here to promote peace in the world, and any country that acts outside the United Nations is making a serious mistake. (Sept. 30, 2002)
I strongly opposed the unilateral action taken outside of the United Nations with regards to Iraq. This has not diminished my respect for American leadership in the world or my appreciation for the role its leaders play. (John Hopkins University, Nov. 12, 2003)
Spiritual weapons can be dynamic and often have an impact difficult to appreciate in the light of experience. In a way they make prisoners free men, turn commoners into monarchs and dirt into pure gold. (Robben Island, Aug. 1, 1970)
Honesty, sincerity, simplicity, humility, pure generosity, absence of vanity, readiness to serve others-qualities that are within reach of every soul-are the foundations of one's spiritual life. (Feb. 1,1975)
No single person, no body of opinion, no political doctrine, no religious doctrine can claim a monopoly on truth. (May 26, 1992)
Freedom cannot be achieved unless the women have been emancipated from all forms of oppression.
(First State of the Union Address, Cape Town, May 24, 1994)
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. (Make poverty History, Feb. 3, 2005.
WISDOM
The anchor of all my dreams is the collective wisdom of mankind as a whole. (letter from Robben Island. August. 1, 1970)
It is what we make out of what we have been given, that separates one person from another.Peace is the greatest weapon for development that any people can have.
t is in the character of growth that we should learn from both pleasant and unpleasant experiences.
Blaming things on the past does not make them better.
We are masters of our own fate.
The relationship between a man and his God is a purely personal affair, a question of faith, not of logic.
I am interested in all attempts to discover the meaning and purpose of life. Religion is an important part of this exercise.
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