Since all things are empty of inherent existence, anything is possible. If things had inherent existence, nothing would be possible.

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

To think in terms of either pessimism or optimism oversimplifies the truth. The problem is to see reality as it is.

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

Wisdom arises when you see the true characteristics of phenomena through direct experience.

The experience of emptiness engenders compassion.

What we call "I" is just a swinging door which moves when we inhale and when we exhale.

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

The future is completely open, and we are writing it moment to moment.

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

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

The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.

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

The menu is not the meal.

Impermanence, suffering, and non-self are not philosophical concepts but realities to be directly perceived through mindfulness practice.

The reason we struggle with insecurity is because we compare our behind-the-scenes with everyone else's highlight reel.

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

Awareness is always with us. We don't need to create it or achieve it - we just need to recognize what's already there.

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

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

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

The dharma wheel turns from the beginning. There is neither excess nor deficiency. The whole universe is moistened with nectar, and the truth is ready to harvest.

If you want to know the past, look at the present. If you want to know the future, look at the present.

The mind is the root from which all things grow. If you can understand the mind, everything else is included.

Emptiness which is conceptually liable to be mistaken for sheer nothingness is in fact the reservoir of infinite possibilities.

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

The practice of vipassana is the study of the self. When you study physical and mental phenomena, you are studying the truth about yourself.

The essence of mind is empty like space; yet it contains all things, like a mirror.

The Buddha taught us to leave alone the things that don't lead to awakening.

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

The Dhamma unfolds in accordance with a definite sequence: faith, virtue, learning, generosity, wisdom, and insight.

Loving-kindness is not something we need to manufacture. It's a natural expression of our awakened nature.

Happiness is not something ready-made. It comes from your own actions.

Only one book is worth reading: the heart.

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

The Four Noble Truths are not mere doctrinal propositions but a framework for understanding and transforming our lives.

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

The heart of the path is quite simple. No need for long explanations. Give up clinging to love and hate, just rest with things as they are.

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

Enlightenment is not a state of perfection but of authenticity.

For things to reveal themselves to us, we need to be ready to abandon our views about them.

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

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

When we understand that peace is not dependent on external conditions, we can find it in the midst of any circumstance.

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

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 Buddha's teaching is not about belief but about investigation, not about accepting but about examining.

Real freedom is not about controlling our experience, but about being free within our experience.

The basic teaching of Buddhism is the teaching of transiency, or change.

My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.

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

Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.

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.

Enlightenment is not the end of change but the end of resistance to change.

The law of nature is the law of cause and effect. As you sow, so shall you reap.

The secret of happiness lies not in getting what we want, but in learning to want what we already have.

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

Everybody has the light of Buddha within, but they don't look for it.

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

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?