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

Intrinsically all living beings are Buddhas, just as ice and water are of the same substance.

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

The essence of Buddhism is not a belief system but a systematic investigation of our experience.

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

When one sees with wisdom that all phenomena are empty of inherent existence, one is liberated from suffering.

The practice of Buddhism is fundamentally a practice of expanding our happiness and diminishing our suffering.

Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.

The Dhamma is not a collection of doctrinal formulas but a path leading to direct insight into the nature of reality.

To live – is that not enough? To love – is that not everything?

The Buddha and all sentient beings are nothing but expressions of the one mind. There is nothing else.

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

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

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

The path of practice requires both faith and wisdom, both devotion and understanding.

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

Don't take life too seriously. No one gets out alive anyway.

Without accepting the fact that everything changes, we cannot find perfect composure.

The nature of the mind is like the sky, and our thoughts, emotions, and experiences are like clouds passing through it.

We do not "come into" this world; we come out of it, as leaves from a tree.

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 nature of everything is empty and clear, and the mind is beyond both existence and nonexistence.

Just to be alive is enough.

When you are you, Zen is Zen. Big mind is just big mind.

There is no difference at all between samsara and nirvana. There is no difference at all between nirvana and samsara.

The Buddha never taught a sectarian religion; he taught Dhamma - the way to liberation - which is universal.

Worry pretends to be necessary but serves no useful purpose.

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.

All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow; acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings in separation; births in death.

The water in the ocean can be rough or calm. It can be clear or murky. But the water itself doesn't mind.

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

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.

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.

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

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

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.

Enlightenment is like the moon reflected on the water. The moon does not get wet, nor is the water broken.

The purpose of life is to be happy, to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate. It is not to be well known, cited, or powerful.

The purpose of our lives is to be happy.

Suffering comes from our resistance to what is. Peace comes from our acceptance of what is.

The path of insight is a path of discovery, not a path of creation. We are discovering what is already there.

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

The more we understand impermanence, the more we appreciate each moment of our lives.

What Zen wants us to do is to acquire an entirely new point of view whereby to look into the mysteries of life and the secrets of nature.

Happiness is found in the simplest of things. It is not in the things you own, but in the love you share.

The more you understand impermanence, the more you appreciate every moment.

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

The root of all suffering is ignorance. The antidote to ignorance is wisdom that realizes emptiness.

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

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

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

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

All experiences are preceded by mind, having mind as their master, created by mind.

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

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

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

The more a thing tends to be permanent, the more it tends to be lifeless.

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

The realization of impermanence leads not to despair but to a deeper appreciation of the preciousness of each moment.

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