The goal of the Buddhist path is not to add something to our existence but to discover something that has been there all along.

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

When you recognize that pain and suffering are impermanent, you become free.

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

Man suffers only because he takes seriously what the gods made for fun.

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

The Buddha's teaching is not a philosophy or a religion; it is a method of practice.

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

Reality is only a Rorschach ink-blot, you know.

The essence of the teaching is emptiness and compassion. Without emptiness, compassion can become attachment. Without compassion, emptiness can become cold and distant.

My religion is very simple. My religion is kindness.

In our struggle for freedom, truth is the only weapon we possess.

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

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

As long as you seek for something, you will get the shadow of reality and not reality itself.

Life is an art, and like perfect art it should be self-forgetting.

True freedom is a freedom from the tyranny of our own thoughts and afflictive emotions.

Enlightenment is not a state of perfection but of authenticity.

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

The Buddha's teaching is a teaching of self-reliance, of being one's own master, one's own refuge.

My father is the intrinsic awareness, Samantabhadra. My mother is the ultimate sphere of reality, Samantabhadri. I belong to the caste of non-duality of these two.

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

Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.

The truth you believe and cling to makes you unavailable to hear anything new.

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

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

We should find perfect existence through imperfect existence.

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

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

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

Only one book is worth reading: the heart.

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

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

Enlightenment is not about becoming something special, but about realizing what we already are.

There is no path to happiness: happiness is the path.

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

The Noble Eightfold Path is not a path of mere intellectual understanding but a path of practice, of inner transformation.

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

All that appears and exists, all of samsara and nirvana, has one ground, two paths, and two results. This is the magical display of awareness and unawareness.

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

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

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

The purpose of our lives is to be happy, and happiness is found in benefiting others.

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

This very body is the Buddha. And this very earth the lotus paradise.

True happiness is not found through the multiplication of desires but through their simplification.

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.

Nothing we see or hear is perfect. But right there in the imperfection is perfect reality.

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

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

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

The more we understand impermanence, the more we understand that we can't hold on to anything.

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

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

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

Looking for peace is like looking for a turtle with a mustache: you won't be able to find it. But when your heart is ready, peace will come looking for you.

Real happiness comes from having an unshakable connection to the deep wellspring of peace and happiness that is not dependent on external conditions.

What we learn about the world is colored by the way we approach it.