--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: From a Buddhist point of view, the first…" description: "\"From a Buddhist point of view, the first thing to help is yourself, to get your own mind together. And to really understand how to benefit beings, not ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/tenzin-palmo-1431_benefits_from-a-buddhist-point-of-view-the-first_1345208.png" --- # From a Buddhist point of view, the first thing to help is… ![“From a Buddhist point of view, the first thing to help is yourself, to get your own mind together. And to really understand how to benefit beings, not just on the physical level, but on all levels. Then there are endless beings you can benefit.” quote by Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/tenzin-palmo-1431_benefits_from-a-buddhist-point-of-view-the-first_1345208.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/tenzin-palmo-1431_benefits_from-a-buddhist-point-of-view-the-first_1345208.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8c5/tenzin-palmo-1431_benefits_from-a-buddhist-point-of-view-the-first_1345208.png) > “From a Buddhist point of view, the first thing to help is yourself, to get your own mind together. And to really understand how to benefit beings, not just on the physical level, but on all levels. Then there are endless beings you can benefit.” [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Self‑cultivation is prerequisite to helping others; aligning mind enables benefit across physical and subtle realms. **In simple terms:** Help others after helping yourself. Key Takeaway Develop inner clarity before altruism. Themes compassion mindfulness self‑development Mood calm hopeful Type spiritual practical When to use this quote - meditation practice - mental health counseling - community service - environmental stewardship Key Concepts Buddhist ethics interdependence Questions to Reflect On - What inner obstacles block your compassion? - How can you balance self‑care with serving others? A Different Perspective Self‑focus can become selfish. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Buddhism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhism/) [Buddhist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhist/) [Enlightenment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enlightenment/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [Point of view](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/point-of-view/) ## Related quotes > [I don't like to take risks or jump into things before I fully understand how they can benefit me or my situation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cynthia-bailey/i-don-t-like-to-take-risks-or-jump-into-things-before-i-fully/) [Cynthia Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cynthia-bailey/) > [Environmental degradation has one cause above all others: the propensity of human beings to take the benefit and leave the costs to someone else,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-scruton/environmental-degradation-has-one-cause-above-all-others-the/) [Roger Scruton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-scruton/) > [Until time and space exist... I vow to come back for the benefit of other beings.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/until-time-and-space-exist-i-vow-to-come-back-for-the-benefit-of/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [Why are we sitting? Why are we practicing? Why are we doing anything? It's not so I can be happy. It's so I can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/why-are-we-sitting-why-are-we-practicing-why-are-we-doing-anything-it/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [Even if the hermits do not appear to benefit other beings with their presence or teachings, still they are enormously inspiring to many. Perhaps,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/even-if-the-hermits-do-not-appear-to-benefit-other-beings-with-their/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [“God wishes to move the will rather than the mind. Perfect clarity would help the mind and harm the will.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/blaise-pascal/god-wishes-to-move-the-will-rather-than-the-mind-perfect-clarity/) [Blaise Pascal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/blaise-pascal/) > [Even just thinking of sex can help the mind overcome & fight off negative thoughts that lead to anxiety and depression.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/even-just-thinking-of-sex-can-help-the-mind-overcome-fight-off/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Under pressure, it is easy to focus on the problem at hand, and feel burdened. Overwhelmed. 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But then they leave it for a while. And it's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/the-very-best-players-when-they-are-practicing-put-everything-they-ve/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [I really don't know what I could teach and don't really plan to teach.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/i-really-don-t-know-what-i-could-teach-and-don-t-really-plan-to-teach/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [If you go to any nunnery and ask them what the main obstacle is, they'll always say low self-esteem and lack of confidence. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/if-you-go-to-any-nunnery-and-ask-them-what-the-main-obstacle-is-they/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [To really be of benefit to others as the Buddha always taught, we ourselves must first get out of the swamp. 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Such efforts attack the very idea…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-green/neither-novels-or-their-readers-benefit-from-any-attempts-to-divine/) [John Green](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-green/) > [Let us think of education as the means of developing our greatest abilities, because in each of us there is a private hope and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-us-think-of-education-as-the-means-of-developing-our-greatest/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [To really be of benefit to others as the Buddha always taught, we ourselves must first get out of the swamp. One of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tenzin-palmo/to-really-be-of-benefit-to-others-as-the-buddha-always-taught-we/) [Tenzin Palmo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tenzin-palmo/) > [I won the seat of Oxley largely on an issue that has resulted in me being called a racist. 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