The period of greatest gain in knowledge and experience is the most difficult period in one's life.

Our prime purpose in this life is to help others. And if you can't help them, at least don't hurt them.

Because you are alive, everything is possible.

All beings by nature are Buddha, as ice by nature is water. Apart from water there is no ice; apart from beings, no Buddha.

Not knowing how near the truth is, we seek it far away.

Each moment of clear seeing is a moment of freedom from the illusion of permanence, satisfaction, and self.

The way is basically perfect. It is not a matter of practice or enlightenment.

Birth and death are neither two things nor one thing. Life is not an appearance, death is not a disappearance.

The farther you enter into truth, the deeper it is.

Don't be a bodhisatta; don't be an arahant; don't be anything at all. Being something makes you suffer.

Few among men are they who cross to the further shore. The others merely run up and down the bank on this side.

When we understand others, we understand ourselves. When we love others, we love ourselves.

The root of suffering is attachment.

The more you understand, the more you love; the more you love, the more you understand.

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

True happiness is born of letting go of what is unnecessary.

Just as the great ocean has one taste, the taste of salt, so also this teaching and discipline has one taste, the taste of liberation.

The real meaning of enlightenment is to gaze with undimmed eyes on all darkness.

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

Love is the wish that others be happy, and compassion is the wish that they be free from suffering.

The lamp of wisdom burns constantly, illuminating the nature of mind.

Who would then deny that when I am sipping tea in my tearoom I am swallowing the whole universe with it and that this very moment of my lifting the bowl to my lips is eternity itself transcending time and space?

Happiness is not about getting what you want, but wanting what you've got.

Do not think you will necessarily be aware of your own enlightenment.

The path of practice moves from faith through understanding to direct realization.

When you understand that all phenomena are impermanent, unsatisfactory, and non-self, attachment naturally falls away.

True freedom is not the absence of commitment but the presence of choice.

The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.

You are an aperture through which the universe is looking at and exploring itself.

Change is possible because there is nothing inherently permanent about our disturbing emotions.

The three characteristics - impermanence, suffering, and non-self - are not philosophical concepts but aspects of experience to be directly observed.

The nature of everything is illusory and ephemeral, those with dualistic perception regard suffering as happiness, like they who lick the honey from a razor's edge.

Real happiness lies within. It cannot be found in external objects or achievements.

The ultimate purpose of Buddhism is to serve and benefit humanity.

People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth.

Ethical conduct is not a constraint upon our freedom but a condition of our freedom.

The quality of every moment depends on the state of our minds.

In the spiritual world there are no time divisions such as the past, present and future; for they have contracted themselves into a single moment of the present where life quivers in its true sense.

When the iron bird flies and horses run on wheels, the Tibetan people will be scattered like ants across the face of the earth.

The path of awakening is not about becoming who we think we should be, but about unbecoming who we are not.

Without darkness, there is no light. Without the path, there is no arrival.

Life is available only in the present moment.

Neither from itself nor from another, nor from both, nor without a cause, does anything whatever, anywhere arise.

Your own treasure house contains everything you need; why search outside?

Those who cling to perceptions and views wander the world offending people.

Everything that has a beginning has an ending. Make your peace with that and all will be well.

The first noble truth of the Buddha is that life contains suffering. The second noble truth is that the cause of suffering is craving.

Don't try to push away the darkness. Just light a lamp. The darkness will disappear by itself.

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.

The Buddha's teachings are not a religion, but a science of mind.

Wisdom is not something we have to strive to acquire. Rather, wisdom arises naturally as we open our hearts to the truth of what is.

The nature of mind is the unity of awareness and emptiness.

Enlightenment is intimacy with all things.

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

To live fully is to let go and die with each step.

The purpose of Buddhist practice is not to become a Buddhist but to awaken to the nature of reality.

The Buddha's path is not about becoming somebody different but about becoming more and more who you really are.

Love is not about possession. Love is about appreciation.

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

Past thoughts are traceless, clear, and empty. Future thoughts are unborn and fresh. The present moment abides naturally and unconstructed.