His music stands the test of time and his name remains remarkable through the years. The reggae pioneer who became the global symbol of Jamaican culture and identity, Bob Marley’s influence proves to be unparalleled. And if you’re a fan of his work and words, here are 180 Bob Marley quotes that will surely inspire you.
Bob Marley Quotes
1. “The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.” – Bob Marley
2. “Don’t gain the world and lose your soul, wisdom is better than silver or gold.” – Bob Marley
3. “You just can’t live in that negative way… make way for the positive day.” – Bob Marley
4. “Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don’t complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealously. Don’t bury your thoughts, put your vision to reality. Wake up and live!” – Bob Marley
5. “And no matter what game they play we got something they can never take away.” – Bob Marley
6. “Beginnings are usually scary and endings are usually sad but it’s everything in between that makes it all worth living.” – Bob Marley
7. “It’s your own conscience that is gonna remind you; that it’s your heart and nobody else’s that is gonna judge.” – Bob Marley
8. “Never expect God to do for you what you don’t do to others.” – Bob Marley
9. “As a man sow, shall he reap. and I know that talk is cheap. But the heat of the battle is as sweet as the victory.” – Bob Marley
10. “They say: only the fittest of the fittest shall survive, stay alive!” – Bob Marley
11. “Truth is the light, so you never give up the fight.” – Bob Marley
12. “The winds that sometimes take something we love, are the same that bring us something we learn to love. Therefore we should not cry about something that was taken from us, but, yes, love what we have been given. Because what is really ours is never gone forever.” – Bob Marley
13. “Love the life you live. Live the life you love.” – Bob Marley
14. “Every man got the right to decide his own destiny.” – Bob Marley
15. “My fear is my only courage.” – Bob Marley
16. “You not supposed to feel down over whatever happen to you. I mean, you’re supposed to use whatever happen to you as some type of upper, not a downer.” – Bob Marley
17. “My feet is my only carriage.” – Bob Marley
18. “You can’t find the right roads when the streets are paved.” – Bob Marley
19. “Live for yourself and you will live in vain; Live for others, and you will live again.” – Bob Marley
20. “Light up the darkness.” – Bob Marley
21. “Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery. None but ourselves can free our minds.” – Bob Marley
22. “Just because you are happy it does not mean that the day is perfect but that you have looked beyond its imperfections.” – Bob Marley
23. “The most beautiful things are not perfect, they are special” – Bob Marley
24. “Everything in life got its purpose. Find its reason in every season.” – Bob Marley
25. “They will always tell you that you can’t do what you want to do, but you can do what you want to do. You just have to believe in yourself. The system is to bring you down, but you can rise up.” – Bob Marley
26. “If you don’t start somewhere, you’re gonna go nowhere.” – Bob Marley
27. “Open your eyes, look within. Are you satisfied with the life you’re living?” – Bob Marley
28. “We know where we’re going cause we know where we’re from.” – Bob Marley
29. “You can’t run away from yourself” – Bob Marley
30. “Don’t forget your history nor your destiny” – Bob Marley
31. “Though the road’s been rocky it sure feels good to me.” – Bob Marley
32. “You’re on a positive road. You have some type of direction where you’re going, so you have to just keep on going.” – Bob Marley
33. “Get up, stand up, Stand up for your rights. Get up, stand up, Don’t give up the fight.” – Bob Marley
34. “If you know what life is worth, you will look for yours on earth.” – Bob Marley
35. “Men and people will fight you down when you see the light. Let me tell you if you are not wrong than everything is all right.” – Bob Marley
36. “Love would never leave us alone” – Bob Marley
37. “We don’t need no trouble! What we need is love!” – Bob Marley
38. “Be humble because until the sun with all its grandeur, let the moon shine.” – Bob Marley
39. “Life seems completely different, exciting and worthwhile. Your only hope and security is in knowing that they are a part of your life.” – Bob Marley
40. “Rise and take your stance once again” – Bob Marley
41. “Truth is everybody is going to hurt you: you just gotta find the ones worth suffering for.” – Bob Marley
42. “When one door is closed, don’t you know, another is open.” – Bob Marley
43. “What important is man should live in righteousness, in natural love for mankind.” – Bob Marley
44. “My future is righteousness.” – Bob Marley
45. “Better to die fighting for freedom than be a prisoner all the days of your life.” – Bob Marley
46. “When the root is strong, the fruit is sweet.” – Bob Marley
47. “Conquer the devils with a little thing called love.” – Bob Marley
48. “You say you love rain, but you use an umbrella to walk under it. You say you love sun, but you seek shelter when it is shining. You say you love wind, but when it comes you close your windows. So that’s why I’m scared when you say you love me.” – Bob Marley
49. “One love, one heart, one destiny.” – Bob Marley
50. “Keep calm and chive on.” – Bob Marley
51. “The day you stop racing is the day you win the race.” – Bob Marley
52. “Man is a universe within himself.” – Bob Marley
53. “The good times of today are the sad thoughts of tomorrow.” – Bob Marley
54. “Today, people struggle to find what’s real. Everything has become so synthetic that a lot of people, all they want is to grasp onto hope.” – Bob Marley
55. “Until the end of the world, all whys will be answered, but now, you can only ask!” – Bob Marley
56. “Some people feel the rain. Others just get wet.” – Bob Marley
57. “Don’t worry about a thing, every little thing is gonna be alright” – Bob Marley
58. “Me only have one ambition, y’know. I only have one thing I really like to see happen. I like to see mankind live together – black, white, Chinese, everyone – that’s all.” – Bob Marley
59. “Judge not before you judge yourself. Judge not if you’re not ready for judgment.” – Bob Marley
60. “Money is numbers and numbers never end. If it takes money to be happy, your search for happiness will never end.” – Bob Marley
61. “The beauty of love.
The love of beauty.
The greener you are, the wiser you will be.”
– Bob Marley
62. “In the high tide or low tide, I’m gonna be your friend… I’m gonna be your friend!” – Bob Marley
63. “Only a foolish dog barks at a flying bird.” – Bob Marley
64. “The problem is people are being hated when they are real, and are being loved when they are fake” – Bob Marley
65. “Hate never sleeps, so neither can love!” – Bob Marley
66. “Your life is worth much more than gold.” – Bob Marley
67. “Don’t trust people whose feelings change with time. Trust people whose feelings remain the same, even when the time” – Bob Marley
68. “I no have education. I have inspiration. If I was educated I would be a damn fool.” – Bob Marley
69. “Road of life is rocky and you may stumble too, so while you talk about me, someone else is judging you.” – Bob Marley
70. “In this bright future you can’t forget your past.” – Bob Marley
71. “In the abundance of water a fool is thirsty.” – Bob Marley
72. “True friends are like stars; you can only recognize them when it’s dark around you.” – Bob Marley
73. “You never know how strong you are, until being strong is your only choice.” – Bob Marley
74. “Love, friendship, laughter… Some of the best things in life really are free.” – Bob Marley
75. “We got to fight the system, because God never made no difference between black, white, blue, pink or green. People is people, y’know. That’s the message we try to spread.” – Bob Marley
76. “God create you to be free. Free up yourself, otherwise you worthless.” – Bob Marley
77. “The stone that the builder refused, will always be the head cornerstone.” – Bob Marley
78. “You can fool people some times but you cant fool all the people all the time.” – Bob Marley
79. “Never play with people’s mind.” – Bob Marley
80. “But my hand was made strong by the hand of the Almighty.” – Bob Marley
81. “It is better to live on the house top than to live in a house full of confusion.” – Bob Marley
82. “Only once in your life, I truly believe, You find someone who can completely turn your world around.” – Bob Marley
83. “I went deep inside myself. I had time to explore my beliefs and because of that I’m stronger.” – Bob Marley
84. “I think the most beautiful people are the ones who went through the toughest situations in life but still somehow manage to keep a smile on their face, especially if they have a bright personality to go along with that smile.” – Bob Marley
85. “If you can love the wrong person that much, imagine how much you can love the right one.” – Bob Marley
86. “Being vulnerable is the only way to allow your heart to feel true pleasure that’s so real it scares you.” – Bob Marley
87. “You open your heart knowing that there’s a chance it may be broken one day and in opening your heart, you experience a love and joy that you never dreamed possible.” – Bob Marley
88. “When love is real nobody can end it. Love is a key that someone has to open your heart.” – Bob Marley
89. “To love is to risk not being loved in return. To hope is to risk pain. To try is to risk failure. But risk must be taken because the greatest hazard in my life is to risk nothing.” – Bob Marley
90. “There will never be no love at all.” – Bob Marley
91. “Things that never interested you before become fascinating because you know they are important to this person who is so special to you. You think of this person on every occasion and in everything you do. Simple things bring them to mind like a pale blue sky, gentle wind or even a storm cloud on the horizon.” – Bob Marley
92. “The people who were trying to make this world worse are not taking the day off. Why should I?” – Bob Marley
93. “If you get down and quarrel everyday, you’re saying prayers to the devil, I say.” – Bob Marley
94. “If you’re white and you’re wrong, then you’re wrong; if you’re black and you’re wrong, you’re wrong. People are people. Black, blue, pink, green – God make no rules about color; only society make rules where my people suffer, and that why we must have redemption and redemption now.” – Bob Marley
95. “It take many a year, mon, and maybe some bloodshed must be, but righteousness someday prevail.” – Bob Marley
96. “Inside of yourself there is a truth, which is God. And if you’re gonna do something, then do it for the benefit of righteousness.” – Bob Marley
97. “Until the philosophy which hold one race superior and another inferior is finally and permanently discredited and abandoned, everywhere is war.” – Bob Marley
98. “Prejudice is a chain, it can hold you. If you prejudice, you can’t move, you keep prejudice for years. Never get nowhere with that.” – Bob Marley
99. “Never do they hurt your feelings or make you feel like you are not good enough, but rather they build you up and show you the things about yourself that make you special and even beautiful.” – Bob Marley
100. “One good thing about music, when it hits you, you feel no pain.” – Bob Marley
101. “Who are you to judge the life I live? I know I’m not perfect — and I don’t live to be — but before you start pointing fingers, make sure your hands are clean!” – Bob Marley
102. “If puss and dog can get together, why can’t we love one another?” – Bob Marley
103. “I don’t stand for the black man’s side, I don’t stand for the white man’s side, I stand for God’s side.” – Bob Marley
104. “Possession make you rich? I don’t have that type of richness. My richness is life, forever.” – Bob Marley
105. “It is better to win the peace and to lose the war.” – Bob Marley
106. “We should really love each other in peace and harmony, instead we’re fussing’ n fighting like we ain’t supposed to be.” – Bob Marley
107. “My music fights against the system that teaches to live and die.” – Bob Marley
108. “I’ve been here before and will come again, but I’m not going this trip through.” – Bob Marley
109. “Most people think great god will come from the skies, take away everything, and make everybody feel high. But if you know what life is worth, you will look for yours on earth.” – Bob Marley
110. “Money can’t buy life.” – Bob Marley
111. “Hey mister music, sure sounds good to me I can’t refuse it what to be got to be.” – Bob Marley
112. “Musicians must be spokespeople for the oppressed masses.” – Bob Marley
113. “My music will go on forever. Maybe it’s a fool say that, but when me know facts me can say facts. My music will go on forever.” – Bob Marley
114. “You find strength in knowing that you have a true friend and possibly a soul mate who will remain loyal to the end.” – Bob Marley
115. “God sent me on earth. He send me to do something, and nobody can stop me. If God want to stop me, then I stop. Man never can.” – Bob Marley
116. “Free speech carries with it some freedom to listen.” – Bob Marley
117. “You ain’t gonna miss your water until your well runs dry.” – Bob Marley
118. “Lets get together and feel alright.” – Bob Marley
119. “Tell the children the truth.” – Bob Marley
120. “Sun is shining. Weather is sweet. Make you wanna move your dancing feet.” – Bob Marley
121. “The things that seem insignificant to most people such as a note, song or walk become invaluable treasures kept safe in your heart to cherish forever.” – Bob Marley
122. “In their presence, there’s no need for continuous conversation, but you find you’re quite content in just having them nearby.” – Bob Marley
123. “If something can corrupt you, you’re corrupted already.” – Bob Marley
124. “Enjoy life now. This is not a rehearsal.” – Bob Marley
125. “Forget how much it hurts and try again.” – Bob Marley
126. “How many rivers do we have to cross,
Before we can talk to the boss?” – Bob Marley
127. “They gave me star treatment because I was making a lot of money. But I was just as good when I was poor.” – Bob Marley
128. “So if you are the big tree, we are the small axe. Ready to cut you down, to cut you down.” – Bob Marley
129. “Still I’ll be always laughing like a clown” – Bob Marley
130. “I wish we were all hippies and did yoga, lived in cottages, smoked weed, accepted everyone for who they are, and listened to wonderful music. I wish money didn’t make us who we are. I just wish we could redo society.” – Bob Marley
131. “Every time I plant a seed, He say kill it before it grows, he say kill it before they grow.” – Bob Marley
132. “When you smoke the herb, it reveals you to yourself.” – Bob Marley
133. “The harder the battle, the sweet of Jah victory.” – Bob Marley
134. “I don’t know how to live good. I only know how to suffer.” – Bob Marley
135. “You entertain people who are satisfied. Hungry people can’t be entertained – or people who are afraid. You can’t entertain a man who has no food.” – Bob Marley
136. “I don’t believe in death, neither in flesh nor in spirit.” – Bob Marley
137. “I didn’t change, I just found myself.” – Bob Marley
138. “Don’t let them change you or even rearrange you.” – Bob Marley
139. “Wake up and live” – Bob Marley
140. “You have to be someone.” – Bob Marley
141. “Herb is the unification of mankind.” – Bob Marley
142. “When the race gets hard to run. It means you just can’t take the peace.” – Bob Marley
143. “Tell me what you think it means.” – Bob Marley
144. “The power of philosophy floats through my head.. light like a feather, heavy as lead.” – Bob Marley
145. “Things will be OK in the end. If it’s not OK, it’s not the end.” – Bob Marley
146. “One lifetime is not enough to live” – Bob Marley
147. “The biggest coward is a man who awakens a woman’s love with not intention of loving her.” – Bob Marley
148. “And don’t expect more than she can give. Smile when she makes you happy, let her know when she makes you mad, and miss her when she’s not there.” – Bob Marley
149. “If she’s amazing, she won’t be easy. If she’s easy, she won’t be amazing. If she’s worth it, you won’t give up. If you give up, you’re not worthy.” – Bob Marley
150. “She may not be the most popular or prettiest but if you love her and she makes you smile… what else matters?” – Bob Marley
151. “What we struggle to make of it is our sole gift to Jah. The process of what that struggle becomes, in time, the Truth.” – Bob Marley
152. “I will never regret you or say I wish I’d never met you because once upon a time, you were exactly what I needed.” – Bob Marley
153. “If you go to sleep at night, you lay your head on the pillow and fall asleep. Where are you even just during this time? Nevertheless, you open your eyes again.” – Bob Marley
154. “Make love and not war! ‘Cause we don’t need no trouble. What we need is love to guide and protect us on.” – Bob Marley
155. “Love hard when there is love to be had.” – Bob Marley
156. “Nothing is wrong if it makes you happy.” – Bob Marley
157. “You share hopes for the future, dreams that will never come true, goals that were never achieved and the many disappointments life has thrown at you. When something wonderful happens, you can’t wait to tell them about it, knowing they will share in your excitement.” – Bob Marley
158. “There is never any pressure, jealousy or competition but only a quiet calmness when they are around. You can be yourself and not worry about what they will think of you because they love you for who you are.” – Bob Marley
159. “He’s not perfect. You aren’t either, and the two of you will never be perfect. But if he can make you laugh at least once, causes you to think twice, and if he admits to being human and making mistakes, hold onto him and give him the most you can.” – Bob Marley
160. “Man can’t do without God. Just like you’re thirsty, you have to drink water. You just can’t go without God.” – Bob Marley
161. “Babylon is everywhere. You have wrong and you have right. Wrong is what we call Babylon, wrong things. That is what Babylon is to me. I could have born in England, I could have born in America, it makes no difference where me born because there is Babylon everywhere.” – Bob Marley
162. “Forget your troubles and dance.” – Bob Marley
163. “The mind replays what the heart can’t delete.” – Bob Marley
164. “Have no fear for atomic energy, ’cause none of them can stop the time.” – Bob Marley
165. “Everything is political. I will never be a politician or even think political. I just deal with life and nature. That is the greatest thing to me.” – Bob Marley
166. “Two thousand years of history Black History could not be wiped away so easily.” – Bob Marley
167. “People want to listen to a message, word from Jah. This could be passed through me or anybody. I am not a leader. Messenger. The words of the songs, not the person, is what attracts people.” – Bob Marley
168. “And what has been hidden from the wise and the prudent been revealed in the mouth of the toddlers” – Bob Marley
169. “I is a common sense man. That means when me explain things, me explain it in a very simple way; that means if I explain it to a baby, the baby will understand too, you know.” – Bob Marley
170. “Some will hate you pretend they love you now than behind they try to eliminate you.” – Bob Marley
171. “A hungry mob is an angry mob.” – Bob Marley
172. “Rastafari not a culture, it’s a reality.” – Bob Marley
173. “Look like barbie, Smoke like Marley.” – Bob Marley
174. “Life and Jah are one in the same. Jah is the gift of existence. I am in some way eternal, I will never be duplicated. The singularity of every man and woman is Jah’s gift. What we struggle to make of it is our sole gift to Jah. The process of what that struggle becomes, in time, the Truth.” – Bob Marley
175. “No man can lead man, we have to have unity.” – Bob Marley
176. “Your worst enemy could be your best friend, and your best friend your worst enemy.” – Bob Marley
177. “I pledged to work for righteousness. God’s given me inspiration. God’s the boss, he tell me what to do.” – Bob Marley
178. “Well, me don’t swim too tough so me don’t go in the water too deep.” – Bob Marley
179. “I like to see you move with the rhythm; I Like to see when you’re dancing’ from within.” – Bob Marley
180. “Oh Mockingbird have you ever heard words that I’ve never heard.” – Bob Marley
