Throughout history, there are a lot and countless people that spoke up their minds about resistance. It includes artists, politicians, advocates, musicians, and famous individuals. It may even include presidents and some influential ones. The quotes they have spoken up have touched different lives and some individuals through the years.
Below, we will find 32 collections of inspirational, motivational, and wise resistance quotes that you can apply this year. Some of them are proverbs, sayings, and even true feelings that have been collected through different types of sources.
1. “Everything is love, so the only thing that’s not love is our resistance to love is us trying to be separate from the world.”
Jason Mraz
It is said by an American singer and songwriter, Jason Thomas Mraz. He means that the only thing that doesn’t call love is resisting to love others. Love is essential for all people, and we can’t deny that love is the most powerful thing in the world.
2. “Move with the flow. Don’t fight the current. Resist nothing. Let life carry you. Don’t try to carry it.”
Oprah Winfrey
Said by no other than, Oprah Winfrey. It means that you should continue to stay with the flow of your life. You should not carry all the hardship in your life; instead, let it move you.
3. “Procrastination is what we often call resistance.”
William Peter Blatty
It’s true, procrastination, or postponing what you’ve started only means resistance, especially in your goals. If you have already decided on what you want or to become, reach it, achieve it, and don’t resist it.
4. “The strength and power of despotism consist wholly in fear of resistance.”
Thomas Paine
Straight to the point, it is true. Exercising power through an oppressive or cruel way can destroy a nation. Up to this date, some governments use this practice, and it’s time that they should stop it or prevent it from happening.
5. “Rise to the challenge of bringing your dreams to life! Do not be discouraged by resistance; be nourished by it. Success is the experience of rising to the level of your true greatness.”
Steve Maraboli
Said by American writer, author, radio commentator, and motivational speaker, Steve Maraboli. The saying he said only means that you should accomplish your goals and don’t let others interfere with it. You will only be successful if you follow your path and staying the way you are.
6. “Resistance is a powerful motivator precisely because it enables us to fulfill our longing to achieve our goals while letting us boldly recognize and name the obstacles to those achievements.”
Derrick Bell
Derrick Bell was a Black American professor, civil rights activist, and lawyer. He means that resistance can be a motivation for us, bringing as to achieve our goals. It will also help us to remember the hardships we’ve been through to accomplish those achievements.
7. “You got to insist on your success, resist every obstacle, and persist in times of difficulty, and you will get there.”
Israelmore Ayivor
A quote with powerful meaning said by blogger, speaker, and inspirational writer, Israelmore Ayivor. It means that you should always look back to where you came from and gain inspiration on the difficulties you’ve experienced.
8. “Resistance is essentially a form of coevolution that occurs when a given population is threatened with extinction.”
Michael Pollan
It is true, and resistance only occurs when most of us are threatened by someone who has power. Resistance has the right way on its own, and it’s necessary if there are anomalies that happen, especially in the government or raging a war with others.
9. “Whenever you feel anything less than being in ease and joy, look for where you are offering resistance. Shift your focus to love and appreciation by looking for things that make you feel good.”
Sanchita Pandey
If you have hardship or problems in life, don’t stick with it. You should provide solutions, not by force but in the right way, especially love. Appreciate it, and you will overcome it.
10. “True resistance begins with people confronting pain… and wanting to do something to change it.”
Bell Hooks
Said by the famous American author, feminist, professor, and social activist, Gloria Jean Watkins. She is known as her pen name Bell Hooks. The quote only means that those who suffer from pain are the true people who want to change. It also associated with the ongoing issues about racism that up until now is ongoing.
11. “She didn’t deserve me. She deserved a hell of a lot better than me, but so help me, I wasn’t good enough of a man to just let her go.”
Nicole R. Locker
Resisting of love or learning to let go, a true motivational yet sad truth about a relationship. A saying which you can let go of a relationship if one doesn’t give any purpose about it. It will also provide learnings about loyalty between relationships.
12. “Terrorism is vicious, ugly, and dehumanizing for its perpetrators as well as its victims. But so is war. You could say that terrorism is the privatization of war. Terrorists are the free marketeers of war. They are people who don’t believe that the state has a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence.”
Arundhati Roy
Well, the 21st century has indeed been involved in a different war, including the war on terrorism. It was indeed vicious, ugly, and dehumanizing in any form of it. Still, we should stay vigilant about what’s happening, and we should always know the truth about it.
13. “The path of least resistance will never make you proud.”
Tony Robbins
Well, it is metaphorical pathways that means less effort or going with the flow. Those who limit their choices or agree with others will not be proud of their selves. They should try their fullest, not just follow anything that they hear or see.
14. “Let us not be surprised when we have to face difficulties. When the wind blows hard on a tree, the roots stretch and grow the stronger, Let it be so with us. Let us not be weaklings, yielding to every wind that blows, but strong in spirit to resist.”
Amy Carmichael
It only means that what hardship we have gone through, it can be an inspiration to us. Difficulties in life make us stronger, and we should not let it get us down or stopping what we started.
15. “Resistance to change is always the biggest obstacle.”
Chris Paine
Well, resisting change is indeed the biggest obstacle in our lives. You may be afraid to lose anything if you change, yet it is only the reason to achieve your desired profession and accomplishing your goals.
16. “What is needed, rather than running away or controlling or suppressing or any other resistance, is understanding fear; that means, watch it, learn about it, come directly into contact with it. We are to learn about fear, not how to escape from it.”
Jiddu Krishnamurti
Fear is universal, and we all experience it. You should learn to accept it rather than running away from it. It only means that “false evidence appears real.”
17. “The resistance and the degree of the resistance to the natural phenomenon of life causes tremendous suffering.”
Hubert Selby Jr.
Resisting in your life goals or you want to become will only cause suffering for you. For some, it can be normal, but most of us know that achieving your goals will give us happiness, and not to suffer.
18. “Continued persistence overcomes almost all resistance.”
Mark Victor Hansen
A well said by American motivational and inspirational speaker, writer, and author, Mark Victor Hansen. Well, yes, we should take action even there are difficulties or hardships we face. It only gives us motivation as well as inspiration to be successful in our lives.
19. “Above all, such sports as judo, in my view, teach people to relate to each other. They teach us to respect a partner, teach us to understand that an externally weak partner can not only put up worthy resistance but, if you relax and take too much for granted, may even win.”
Vladimir Putin
Said by the President of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin. It means that respecting and understanding others is essential. However, if we fail to appreciate them, they may even take that back to us.
20. “The first resistance to social change is to say it’s not necessary.”
Gloria Steinem
The resistance of change is indeed the person who says that it is not essential. Social change is necessary; it does make us change the way we live, what we do, or what we are willing to achieve.
21. “By nonviolent resistance, the Negro can also enlist all men of goodwill in his struggle for equality.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Said by American activist and Christian minister, Martin Luther King Jr. Racism is still happening; a lot of Black Americans struggle for their equality and rights up to this year. We are all the same, we are one, and we should not belittle or defame them.
22. “Imagination is the weapon to fight off an impossibility.”
Bongha Lee
A quote that can inspire us that there are possibilities in anything if we only use our mind. Conquering what is impossible might be impossible, but if we use our brain to overcome it, we can solve it the way we want to have it.
23. “An athlete gains more & more strength by facing resistance. Similarly, in life, we only become stronger when we face the resistance of our struggles.”
Radhanath Swami
The quote focuses on the resistance of our struggles in life. It only means that we need to overcome any conflict in our lives to become stronger. We should face the problems of our lives, and we should not neglect it as it will only go worse as time passes.
24. “Every moment of resistance to temptation is a victory.”
Frederick William Faber
Well, temptations are one of the factors that can destroy us. Resisting temptations, especially if you know that is not good for you, is one thing to avoid. It will only give you hardship after it ends, and you’ll only regret it.
25. “You can’t expect to go about change – especially change of this nature when you talk about racial equality and justice – you can’t expect to go about or engage in that without resistance, and so you’re going to have some people who aren’t on board.”
Malcolm Jenkins
A quote that expresses powerful thoughts about racism, not only for American people but also in the whole globe. As 2020 started, there are still racial equality and justice that are ongoing. Whether we want to end it, it will still happen, and we don’t have any power to stop it.
26. “I do not hesitate one second to state clearly and unmistakably: I belong to the American resistance movement, which fights against American imperialism, just as the resistance movement fought against Hitler.”
Paul Robeson
Well, not to degrade the American government, but the way they do is not justifiable. Imperialism will not give the American people the right way of life, and it will only provoke a war to different countries that they involved in.
27. “If you are paralyzed with fear it’s a good sign. It shows you what you have to do.”
Steven Pressfield
As said earlier, fear is a good sign for us, humans. It will guide or show us what we have to do to overcome it. It will help us to know what we are afraid of and overcoming it to let us stronger.
28.”Resist much, obey little.”
Walt Whitman
It only means that you should not believe what the government tells you to believe. You should test it against your instincts and your sense of what is practical and what is right. You should also refuse to do what seems out of interest or reckless deeds of your own country.
29. “Freedom of life does not mean disorder of life, does not mean chaos, and just everyone doing anything he wants. That is not the freedom of life. The tree, when you give it a chance, protect it when it is young, will grow straight, because it has developed its resistance; but the moment you make it delicate, then it gets crooked.”
Jiddu Krishnamurti
Said by the famous Indian speaker, writer, and philosopher, Jiddu Krishnamurti. A powerful quote about freedom and resistance. Life doesn’t not only mean hardship or doing what we want, but also means that success is in our hands, and we should accomplish it.
30. “The resistance of a woman is not always proof of her virtue, but more frequently of her experience.”
Ninon de L’Enclos
An old quote yet has true, powerful meaning. It was said by French author, patron of the arts, and courtesan, Ninon de L’Enclos. Indeed, women are not only seen by their righteousness or goodness but also in their experience. Whether the way they live or do.
31. “As peacemakers, we must resist all the powers of war and destruction and proclaim that peace is the divine gift offered to all who affirm life. Resistance means saying ‘No’ to all the forces of death, wherever they may be.”
Henri Nouwen
Told by a Dutch professor, writer, theologian, and catholic priest, Henri Jozef Machiel Nouwen. As the threat of World War 3 is now a major topic in 2020, we, people, must have resistance to stop this threat. It will only cost many lives, families, and loved ones that most of us always avoid happening.
32. “The power of the people is much stronger than the people in power”
Wael Ghonim
Well, the power of the people is indeed stronger than those who are in control. They might have the authority, yet we are more powerful than them as we can change anything we want to do, in the right way.
All the listed resistance quotes above are chosen as they have the best meaning of how resistance in life works. There are many of them with deep sense, and some can be inspirational for you. All in all, may these words lighten up your mood and inspire you as well.
