Don't try to change the world. First, change yourself.

Fear is a natural reaction to moving closer to the truth.

Life is like an ever-shifting kaleidoscope - a slight change, and all patterns alter.

The more you are motivated by love, the more fearless and free your actions will be.

Meditation is not just about sitting quietly, it's about transforming the mind.

The practice of patience guards us against losing our presence of mind.

The Buddha's teaching is a middle way between all extremes, between eternalism and annihilationism, between self-indulgence and self-torture.

Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes.

The essence of the teaching is emptiness and compassion. Without emptiness, compassion can become attachment. Without compassion, emptiness can become cold and distant.

Whatever is dependently co-arisen, that is explained to be emptiness. That, being a dependent designation, is itself the middle way.

To live is enough.

The practice is like peeling an onion. Layer after layer of delusion is removed through continuous mindfulness.

In meditation, we're not trying to get rid of thoughts but to recognize their true nature.

Awareness is like the sun. When it shines on things, they are transformed.

Love is not a feeling. It's a capability.

Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.

We can learn to be present with whatever is happening in our lives, and in this way, we can begin to transform our relationship to difficulty.

Meditation in the midst of activity is a thousand times superior to meditation in stillness.

The difference between being caught in thoughts and being mindful of thoughts is like the difference between being in a movie and watching a movie.

The ultimate source of happiness is not money and power, but warm-heartedness.

Peace requires us to surrender our illusions of control.

The obstacle is the path.

The more you understand yourself, the more you understand the world.

For whom emptiness is possible, everything is possible. For whom emptiness is not possible, nothing is possible.

Suffering is not the end of the story; it is the middle of the story.

When you run after your thoughts, you are like a dog chasing a stick. Every time a stick is thrown, you run after it. Instead, be like a lion who, rather than chasing after the stick, turns to face the thrower.

Mindfulness is being aware of what's going on, not trying to control what's going on.

The door of your heart can only be opened from the inside.

When you realize how perfect everything is, you will tilt your head back and laugh at the sky.

Through understanding emptiness, one does not become proud of one's virtues, just as one does not become proud of building a castle in the sky.

The nature of mind is clearer than the sky, yet we keep looking elsewhere.

The nature of mind is not something we need to achieve - it's something we need to recognize.

Much of spiritual life is self-acceptance, maybe all of it.