Found on Twitter: “Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good. — Buddha”
From time to time I’m blown away by the strange things that get passed around as Buddha quotes. This particular one is a lovely bon mot of a style completely foreign to that found in the Buddhist scriptures. If I had to guess, I’d have thought this might be by Voltaire, or Rousseau, or perhaps Montaigne. I definitely had in mind French writers of a few hundred years ago.
But actually this isn’t by a French writer. It’s straight from Don Quixote, and the words are from the Don himself:
“I am held enchanted in this cage by the envy and fraud of wicked enchanters; for virtue is more persecuted by the wicked than loved by the good.”
The irony, of course, is that in trying to stem the flow of Fake Buddha Quotes, I’m probably tilting at windmills. But at least this one hasn’t yet made it into any books that I’ve found, although it is on one quotes website. In fact, that particular site could keep me occupied for quite some time!
Remember: Buddha means “enlightened one.” It matters not whether there even was a historical person. That’s a fragile ego construct if there ever was one. Cervantes was enlightened, imho, so why not call him Buddha?
We all have Buddha nature and sometimes we say enlightened things
I’m sure that on some level you realize what a lame argument that is, Hobie.
Ive just popped open this Embracing the buddha within book and its in here on pg 39….
I had a feeling this wasn’t right. Its a little inaccurate, this book.
Oh, my gods! That’s not even the Buddha on the cover of Embracing the Buddha Within! I’d be willing to bet that most of the quotes are fake.
Can you compare them with those on the site here and let me know?