Our basic nature is pure awareness that simply cognizes experience. Everything else is temporary and adventitious.

True peace is found not in the absence of experience but in the clear seeing of all experience.

Remember that sometimes not getting what you want is a wonderful stroke of luck.

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

Life is like stepping onto a boat which is about to sail out to sea and sink.

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

The essence of all phenomena is empty and clear like space. The nature of mind is awareness-emptiness like the sun and sky.

The mind that notes and the object that is noted are both impermanent. Understanding this leads to liberation.

There is no way to happiness - happiness is the way.

Our true nature is like a diamond - pure, brilliant, and indestructible. No matter how much dirt covers it, its essential nature remains unchanged.

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.

Appearances are mind, mind itself is emptiness, emptiness itself is spontaneous presence.

The truth of suffering is not to be feared but to be understood through direct observation.

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

The five aggregates are not a theoretical model but a description of lived experience to be investigated through mindfulness.

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

The deepest form of happiness comes from discovering the natural peace of our own awareness.

The teaching of the Buddha is based on two truths: conventional truth and ultimate truth. Without understanding the relationship between these two, the deeper meaning of the Buddha's teaching cannot be understood.

If you forget yourself, you become the universe.

The cultivation of loving-kindness is the thread that runs through all Buddhist teachings.

The difference between buddhas and sentient beings is that buddhas recognize their nature while sentient beings fail to recognize it.

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

The past is for learning from, not for living in.

Right View is not just a matter of intellectual understanding but of seeing things as they really are.

The biggest prison is the one we build in our own mind.

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.

The dharma is not about collecting more beliefs but about becoming free from the power of belief itself.

My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground upon which I stand.

If you want to know your past life, look at your present condition. If you want to know your future life, look at your present actions.

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

The mind that sees its own nature becomes free from all extremes.

The purpose of our lives is to be happy.

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

The true person is not anyone in particular. But like the deep blue color of the limitless sky, it is everyone, everywhere in the world.

Enlightenment is the realization that we were never really separate from one another or from all of life.

Emptiness is not nothingness. Emptiness is the space of possibility.

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

Sankharas are the seeds of consciousness that manifest as sensations. By observing sensations equanimously, we stop creating new sankharas.

Whatever precious jewel there is in the heavenly worlds, there is nothing comparable to one who is awakened.

The purpose of meditation is to gain right understanding of the true nature of mental and physical phenomena.

Recognize the emptiness of all phenomena, but do not become attached to emptiness itself.

In the beginning, nothing comes, in the middle nothing stays, in the end nothing goes.

Every being has the potential of becoming a Buddha. Our true nature is Buddha nature.

To forget the self is to be actualized by myriad things.

This is my simple religion. There is no need for temples; no need for complicated philosophy. Our own brain, our own heart is our temple; the philosophy is kindness.

The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.

Life is like a cup of tea. It's all in how you make it.

When you realize the emptiness of all phenomena, compassion will arise in your heart for all sentient beings who do not understand this truth.

Altruism is not a luxury, it is a necessity for the survival of humanity.

The most important factor in achieving happiness is the mind. Happiness and suffering are mental states and therefore depend on the mind.

You are the sky. Everything else is just the weather.

The spiritual journey begins with the recognition that beneath our surface happiness there lies a deep inner pain.

People who study a lot but don't practice are like a ladle in a soup pot. It's in the soup every day, but it doesn't know the taste of the soup.

Only one book is worth reading: the heart.

When we know the truth, we become people who don't have to think much, we become people with wisdom.

The color of the mountains is Buddha's body; the sound of running water is his great speech.

The ultimate revolution is the spiritual revolution, where we learn to see reality as it truly is.

If you want to know your past life, look into your present condition; if you want to know your future life, look into your present actions.

The victorious ones have said that emptiness is the relinquishing of all views. Those who are possessed of the view of emptiness are said to be incurable.

The root of suffering is attachment.