The archer ceases to be conscious of himself as the one who is engaged in hitting the bull's-eye which confronts him. This state of unconsciousness is realized only when, completely empty and rid of the self, he becomes one with the perfecting of his technical skill.

The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, the wind blows. With each step, a flower blooms.

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

Every moment of confusion is also a moment of wisdom, if we can learn to recognize it.

Mindfulness helps you go home to the present. And every time you go there and recognize a condition of happiness that you have, happiness comes.

Genuine happiness comes from having developed basic human qualities, such as attention, emotional balance, and generosity.

The silence between the notes is as important as the notes themselves.

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

The practice of Zen mind is beginner's mind. In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities; in the expert's mind there are few.

Liberation is found in the practice, not in the theory.

The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

Meditation is like a gym in which you develop the powerful mental muscles of calm and insight.

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

The practice of meditation is not about achieving states of bliss but about seeing things as they really are.

It is under the greatest adversity that there exists the greatest potential for doing good, both for oneself and others.

There are only two days in the year that nothing can be done. One is called yesterday and the other is called tomorrow, so today is the right day to love, believe, do and mostly live.

Concentration develops naturally through continuous noting. Don't try to force concentration to arise.

Concentration and insight are like two wings of a bird: both are necessary for the flight to liberation.

Words have the power to both destroy and heal. When words are both true and kind, they can change our world.

The trick is to keep exploring and not bail out, even when we find out that something is not what we thought.

The true understanding is that the practice itself is enlightenment.

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

Meditation is like catching a fish. If you try to catch it quickly, you'll miss it. If you have patience and know how to wait, the fish will come.

Feelings like disappointment, embarrassment, irritation, resentment, anger, jealousy, and fear, instead of being bad news, are actually very clear moments that teach us where it is that we're holding back.

The roots of all goodness lie in the soil of appreciation for goodness.

We need the courage to learn from our experience and the wisdom to be willing to change and grow.

Each moment of mindfulness is a moment of purification.

Compassion is not just about being kind to others. It's about being kind to ourselves as well.

In meditation, we're not trying to get rid of thoughts but to recognize their true nature.

Start from where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.

Study how water flows in a valley stream, smoothly and freely between the rocks.

Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.

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

The dharma is not outside of you. Looking for it elsewhere is like placing a Buddha on your head while searching for him everywhere else.

The past is gone, the future is not yet here. Live in the present moment with awareness.

When you generate negativity, you are the first victim of your negativity.

The grass is greener where you water it.

Just know what is happening in your mind - not happy or sad about it, not attached. If you suffer, see it, know it, be empty.

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.

Hasten slowly and you will soon arrive.

Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know.

The dharma is not in the books. If you want to find the dharma, look in your mind.

This is the real secret of life -- to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.

The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart.

If you love someone, the greatest gift you can give them is your presence.

Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes.

Live in joy, in love, even among those who hate. Live in joy, in health, even among the afflicted. Live in joy, in peace, even among the troubled. Look within, be still.

True happiness comes from a sense of inner peace and contentment, which in turn must be achieved through cultivation of altruism, of love, of compassion.

Hope and fear come from feeling that we lack something; they come from a sense of poverty. We can't simply relax with ourselves. We hold on to hope, and hope robs us of the present moment.

Mindfulness is not just bare attention but wise attention that leads to understanding and insight.

The mind of the beginner is empty, free of the habits of the expert, ready to accept, to doubt, and open to all the possibilities.

Don't try to change the world. First, change yourself.

When mindfulness and concentration are strong, insight into the three characteristics naturally unfolds.

Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past over and over again.

When dharma fills your body and mind, you realize that something is missing.

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

In the end, just three things matter: How well we have lived, how well we have loved, how well we have learned to let go.

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

The challenge in meditation is not to eliminate thinking but to understand the nature of thought itself.

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