Richard Gere Quotes

Well I think on a simple ecological level that the diversity of this planet is important for our survival, that all of our different cultures, people are important to the health of the whole the same way that a species of animal should be saved and at a simple ecology level.

- Richard Gere

What we all have in common is an appreciation of kindness and compassion; all the religions have this. We all lean towards love.

- Richard Gere

My first encounter with Buddhist dharma would be in my early 20s. Like most young men, I was not particularly happy.

- Richard Gere

When His Holiness won the Nobel Peace Prize, there was a quantum leap. He is not seen as solely a Tibetan anymore; he belongs to the world.

- Richard Gere

I'm younger than I once was. Internally. Less self-conscious. Less insecure.

- Richard Gere

I have made plenty of mistakes. The key to life is to learn from them. I have been a little too introspective, but I think that stemmed from insecurity or shyness. I took a long time to grow up.

- Richard Gere

The Dalai Lama said that he thinks mother's love is the best symbol for love and compassion, because it is totally disinterested.

- Richard Gere

Meditation is such a more substantial reality than what we normally take to be reality.

- Richard Gere

Maybe the Dalai Lama is the only person who is totally honest, and even with him, he's skillful not to hurt anybody. He's skillful.

- Richard Gere

In a way, one gets stability from being able to order the rational mind.

- Richard Gere

I've stayed good friends with most of my girlfriends.

- Richard Gere

In saving Tibet, you save the possibility that we are all brothers, sisters.

- Richard Gere

When someone has a strong intuitive connection, Buddhism suggests that it's because of karma, some past connection.

- Richard Gere

Tibetan Buddhism had an enormous impact on me.

- Richard Gere

Mindfulness is a quality that's always there. It's an illusion that there's a meditation and post-meditation period, which I always find amusing, because you're either mindful or you're not.

- Richard Gere

The secret of my success is my hairspray.

- Richard Gere

It's not enough to say that the Olympics is an athletic contest outside of politics, because it's not. The Chinese clearly are using the Olympics to recreate how they are viewed in the world and how they view themselves.

- Richard Gere

I would say that the West is very young, it's very corrupt. We're not very wise. And I think we're hopeful that there is a place that is ancient and wise and open and filled with light.

- Richard Gere

I don't think that bravery is about skin. Bravery is about a willingness to show emotional need.

- Richard Gere

Even in comedies, you've got to feel safe for things to just happen in a way that is natural and free, and recognizable as human.

- Richard Gere

All of our energy should be in sacrifice and services. Suffering, at least.

- Richard Gere

I'm voting for Gore because the other is unthinkable. Which most of us will probably do. I hope all of us. I've always liked Ralph Nader and would like to see a real third party, but the thought of George Bush as president is unthinkable.

- Richard Gere

Sometimes I'm kind of spacey. I'm like Ferdinand the bull, sniffing the daisy, not aware of time, of what's going on in the real world.

- Richard Gere

I cry every chance I get.

- Richard Gere

I meet human beings who are flawed, who are mentally ill and have enormous problems, but I don't think I've ever met someone who was a totally dark energy that had no humanity or sense of love or affection for anything in their life. That's very rare.

- Richard Gere

I meditate. Daily practice is essential to my life.

- Richard Gere

Western Buddhists in many ways are much serious Buddhists than Tibetans are.

- Richard Gere

The drive for happiness is vital; it's what keeps us in motion.

- Richard Gere

Movie acting is primarily listening. If you're really engaged, that's all a movie audience wants to see is you processing what's happening in your world.

- Richard Gere

It's nice to have money, but the first thing I did with money was buy my father a snow-blower, because my job was to shovel snow, and I wasn't there to do it any more, so I was able to buy him a blower.

- Richard Gere

From a Buddhist point of view, emotions are not real. As an actor, I manufacture emotions. They're a sense of play. But real life is the same. We're just not aware of it.

- Richard Gere

There are some problems on this planet that seem to be intractable.

- Richard Gere

I've got a lot of opportunities, a lot of love in my life, a lot of things going for me. Still, it's not complete. I know this is not the whole thing. There's much more.

- Richard Gere

Everyone seems to think they know what acting techniques are. Techniques just help you get to a certain place, but if the thing is happening just by itself, you don't need those techniques.

- Richard Gere

I'm less needy about needing to express myself through acting. I have many different lives outside of this that are extremely fulfilling.

- Richard Gere

I've lived in New York when I've had nothing, and I've lived in New York when I had money, and New York changes radically depending on how much money you have. It's the texture of life.

- Richard Gere

If the work is going well and it's something that has value with some meaning to it, it gives back a lot.

- Richard Gere

I'm not that tough; I'm not that smart. I need life telling me who I am, showing me my mind constantly. I wouldn't see it in a cave.

- Richard Gere

I think life is self-examination. Certainly the voyage that one takes.

- Richard Gere

There is nothing real about film. Nothing. Even the light particles that project the film can't be proven to exist. Nothing is there.

- Richard Gere

When you work as an actor, you've got to feel safe even in what appears to be the simplest things.

- Richard Gere

I think most of our religious institutions are pretty corrupt, so they're not reliable. I think the Christian religion that I was brought up with has very little to do with Christ, really, and more an institutions that have built up around the church.

- Richard Gere

In the process of developing a character, you do, in fact, start to take him on as a personality.

- Richard Gere

Billions of people don't practice a religion at all.

- Richard Gere

I think people do want to relate their entertainment to what's going on in their lives. Not everything.

- Richard Gere

Certainly there have been better actors than me who have had no careers. Why? I don't know.

- Richard Gere

I have no sense of time, and I'm a dreamer.

- Richard Gere

I don't know any of us who are in relationships that are totally honest - it doesn't exist.

- Richard Gere

I tend to be a bit of a dreamer.

- Richard Gere

There's really one character for every actor. The voyage is to find that one character.

- Richard Gere

I can't say I have control over my emotions; I don't know my mind. I'm lost like everyone else. I'm certainly not a leader.

- Richard Gere

My life is pretty simple and normal.

- Richard Gere

Everyone responds to kindness.

- Richard Gere

When I started acting, it was really the way for me to be able to communicate.

- Richard Gere

I'm a 50 year-old guy and I'm not in shape like I was when I was 30.

- Richard Gere

I've had an interesting life.

- Richard Gere

I do think that good actors can do any part. It doesn't mean that they are the best ones to do it.

- Richard Gere

People don't understand what happiness is, so they have an idea of what will make them happy, but it never does.

- Richard Gere