What does a man seek in this world? A position, or a throne? Man seeks peace of mind and the fear of Almighty God. As long as one knows that there is a judgement day, he tries to keep his conscience clear and to serve and do what he can. People’s trust is very dear, and one must be up to it, not by trying to do what pleases people everywhere on every occasion, but by doing what satisfies one’s conscience. All what we hope for is that a day will come, when we have all gone, when people will say that this man has tried, and his family tried. This is all there is to seek in this world.

Interview with Orbit Television
February 25, 1998

I have some thoughts on the succession. I have sought to produce a system that would be close to the true teachings of Islam while selecting the best available person. The House of the Prophet is a force for stability and continuity, and democratic monarchy is my ideal. When I was considerably younger and my first son was born, things were so turbulent here that I thought that if anything happened to me, he would not have the opportunity to take over. So I chose my youngest brother, which is probably an indication of the way I feel, to be crown prince. And he has done very, very well. I've brought him up as close to me as I could all these years. I've talked to him and others about a system to choose the best-qualified person from the line of sons and grandsons of Sharif Hussein. This would avoid subjecting someone who is young to exploitation. I hope sometime soon to present a system—I was thinking of a family council—that will provide for the line of my succession.

Interview with Milton Viorst
“The Hashemite Option”
Chapter 10 of In the Shadow of the Prophet, 1998

I never was one of those ambitious people craving for expansion. I believe in God and life after death. Each one of us lives his days according to the will of God. I believe also in nations and that individuals’ efforts should be dedicated for the good of nations and not for idolizing persons.

Interview with Al-Watan newspaper
December 23, 1995

I had realized from the outset that vanity was a fatal affliction and that the only life worth adhering to, was one representing a journey of struggle in the service of exalted values and noble aims, one that recognizes that every living soul will meet its destined end, for which there always is a good account. When the time comes, no hour could be postponed or brought forward. The true believer is he who has faith in the one God who has no partners, he who respects the rights and freedoms of others, he who has lived his life in submission to God's will, in gratitude for His countless blessings and in the conviction that man can only do his best by fulfilling his mission with honor and rectitude and through beseeching God, ruler of the heavens and earth, to honor him with a verdict in his favor by generations to come.

Address to the Nation
Amman
November 5, 1992

In this life struggle, here I am among you fully cognizant that a true believer has no fear of what God has ordained for him. Those who are visited by fear live only for their present, under the illusion that the world began with them and will end with their departure.

Address to the Nation
Amman
November 5, 1992

I wish to say to you that the life of an enlightened people and a vibrant nation cannot be measured by the life of an individual. A successful person is one who manages to lay down a new stone, a brick that would help firm up his nation's existence. I am ever mindful of the legacy of my grandfather, the founder of this Kingdom, who had said to me that he perceived his life as a link in a continuous chain of those who served our nation and that he expected me to be a new and strong link in the same chain. A few days later, he was chosen by the Almighty to reside by His side as a martyr on the soil of immortal Jerusalem, in the precincts of the holy Aqsa. I have recalled this statement over and over again and have remembered its intent more than any other. I have comprehended its import as it was no doubt intended.

Address to the Nation
Amman
November 5, 1992

My dearest wish is for the verdict of future generations to be for me and not against me, since I realize that shouldering responsibility at this point in time entails an acceptance of life's voyage under the most difficult circumstances, which are viciously inimical to those with a great heart and living conscience.

Address to the Nation
Amman
November 5, 1992

Real victories are those that protect human life, not those that result from its destruction or emerge from its ashes.

Address to the Nation
Amman
January 15, 1991

Above all, I believe in God. I believe, also, that I must live with myself, I must be able to face myself each morning and say: “I did my best yesterday, I will do my best again today.” Each man, low- or high-born, has the same duty each day to contribute to the good of mankind.

I have a simple philosophy about life and death. How easily it comes and how easily it can end! What man can afford to waste time? At any moment death can claim anyone, and when it does, death itself is unimportant. The only thing that matters is the work that one has accomplished.

To these two beliefs, which are my creed, I would add one more. I believe with all my heart that if a man is to give of his best he must live the fundamental life of an ordinary man. One cannot hide behind a title or a position or a throne. One can be proud of one’s responsibilities, just as I am, but one cannot use titles or position as a shield. I will never work merely to make a reputation for myself, to be popular for appearances rather than for what I am. My task is to lead my country through service.

p. 290, Uneasy Lies the Head, 1962