Concentration and insight are like two wings of a bird: both are necessary for the flight to liberation.

Mindfulness helps you go home to the present. And every time you go there and recognize a condition of happiness that you have, happiness comes.

When thoughts arise, recognize them as the display of your own awareness, like recognizing your own children in a crowd.

Wisdom and compassion must be developed equally and harmoniously.

Meditation is not an escape from reality but a way to understand reality as it truly is.

The teaching is simple: act with kindness and compassion. If you cannot do this, at least try not to harm others.

Dependent origination is not a theory about the origin of the world but a teaching that shows how suffering originates in dependence on our own mental processes.

In the end, just three things matter: How well we have lived, how well we have loved, how well we have learned to let go.

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.

The eye with which I see Buddha is the same eye with which Buddha sees me.

We practice to learn how to let go, not how to increase our holding on to things.

The practice of mindfulness is simply to bring awareness to what we are doing, what we are saying, and what we are thinking.

Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.

The defilements of the mind are temporary visitors. Pure awareness is your true home.

The spiritual journey is not about heaven and finally getting to a place that's really swell.

Wherever you are, you are one with the clouds and one with the sun and the stars you see. You are one with everything. That is more true than I can say, and more true than you can hear.

Only one book is worth reading: the heart.

Feelings like disappointment, embarrassment, irritation, resentment, anger, jealousy, and fear, instead of being bad news, are actually very clear moments that teach us where it is that we're holding back.

The only way to experience truth is to look within, to observe oneself.

The practice of ethics is not about following rules but about developing inner purity and freedom.

The path to liberation requires both understanding and practice, both pariyatti and patipatti.

What is the sound of one hand clapping?

The great gift of meditation is that it returns us to the simplicity of our own being.

Should a person do good, let him do it again and again. Let him find pleasure therein, for blissful is the accumulation of good.

The more precisely you note, the more clearly you understand. The more clearly you understand, the stronger your insight becomes.

Time passes unhindered. When we make mistakes, we cannot turn the clock back and try again. All we can do is use the present well.

When things fall apart and we're on the verge of we know not what, the test of each of us is to stay on that brink and not concretize.

Enlightenment is not about becoming divine. Instead, it's about becoming more fully human.

When we see the nature of the mind, we see that we are not our thoughts.

Our task is to learn to see clearly what is happening in each moment, rather than be lost in our reactions and judgments.

The planet does not need more successful people. The planet desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of all kinds.

All experiences are preceded by mind, led by mind, made by mind. Speak or act with a corrupted mind, and suffering follows as the wagon wheel follows the hoof of the ox.

The most important thing is to enjoy your life - to be happy. This is the goal of Buddhist practice.