The 10 Best Jimi Hendrix Quotes About Politics, Spirituality, and Life

Rock legend Jimi Hendrix only lived to be 27 years old, but he was viewed by many to be wise beyond his years. The young rockstar often shared his thoughts about topics such as politics and spirituality, and many of those quotes have stood the test of time, remaining as relevant today as they were a half century ago. Read on for some highlights, as reported by Ultimate Classic Rock.

Jimi Hendrix quotes on politics

• “Politics is old hat. Anyone can go round shaking babies by the hand, and kissing the mothers, and saying that it was groove. But you see, you can’t do this in music. Music doesn’t lie. I agree it can be misinterpreted, but it cannot lie. When there are vast changes in the way the world goes, it’s usually something like art and music that changes it. Music is going to change the world next time.”
• “You know, when you’re young, most people have a little burning thing, but then you get your law degree and go into your little cellophane cage. You can do the family thing. I’ve wanted to do that at times. I’ve wanted to go into the hills sometimes, but I stayed. Some people are meant to stay and carry messages.”
• “[A]nybody can protest. … Like in records or whatever you use music for, anybody can protest but hardly anybody tries to give a decent type of solution – at least a meantime solution, you know.”
• “[T]hat’s what the establishment’s waiting for, for people to start fighting against their own selves, like for instance black against white, yellow against pink and all that. But that’s not the idea of the thing. … The idea is against the new and the old, and the establishment causes this by playing games, by turning different colors against each other to make the younger generation weak.”

Jimi Hendrix quotes on spirituality

• “I think religion is just a bunch of crap. It’s only man-made stuff, man trying to be what he can’t. And there’s so many broken-down variations, all trying to say the same thing, but they’re so cheeky, all the time adding in their own bits and pieces. Right now, I’m working on my own religion, which is life.”
• “I don’t really believe that … transcendental mediation is much more than day dreaming. If you really believe in yourself, you can think it out on your own.”

Jimi Hendrix quotes on life

• “There’s no such things as age brackets; not in my mind, ‘cause a person’s not actually old in numbers of years, but how many miles he’s traveled, you know? How he keeps his mind active and creative.”
• “I’m a little bit quiet, a little closed. Most of the time I don’t talk so much. What I have to say, I say with my guitar.”
• “I’m here to communicate. That’s my reason for being around; it’s what it’s all about. I want to turn people on, and let them know what’s happening. Even if they have 9-to-5 jobs and come to the family and TV, that’s what counts, to keep turned on.”
• “Your body’s only a physical vehicle to carry you from one place to another without getting into a lot of trouble. … People who fear death – it’s a complete case of insecurity. That’s why the world’s screwed up today, because people base things too much on what they see and not on what they feel.”