When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways - either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.

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

The great gift of meditation is that it returns us to the simplicity of our own being.

Faith is not a commodity that you either have or don't have - it is an inner quality that unfolds as we learn to trust our own deepest experience.

The grass is greener where you water it.

Conquer anger with non-anger. Conquer evil with good. Conquer stinginess with giving. Conquer deceit with truth.

The entire path is a path of self-responsibility. Nobody else can walk it for you.

The door of your heart can only be opened from the inside.

There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting.

There are many ways to meditate. But at the heart of them all is mindfulness.

The cultivation of loving-kindness has the power to transform enmity into amity, hostility into hospitality.

The most profound meditation is to think nothing at all.

Every small positive change we make in ourselves repays us in confidence in the future.

Meditation is not about getting rid of thoughts; it's about changing the way we relate to them.

Meditation is not about escaping from difficulty but about meeting it with awareness.

The root of happiness is altruism — the wish to be of service to others.

Each decision we make, each action we take, is born out of an intention.

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

The problem is not the problem; the problem is your attitude about the problem.

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

Mindfulness is being aware of what's going on, not trying to control what's going on.

My religion is to live and die without regret.

The practice of patience guards us against losing our presence of mind.

The goal of meditation is not to reach some highest place, but to remain in the place where you already are.

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

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

Compassion is not mere sentiment but a powerful force that can transform both ourselves and others.

The practice of Dharma is a constant battle within oneself.

The practitioner and practice are like fire and wood. The more you practice, the more you burn.

When you see forms or hear sounds fully engaging body-and-mind, you intuit dharma intimately.

The true path is not difficult; just avoid picking and choosing.

Should a person do good, let him do it again and again. Let him find pleasure therein, for blissful is the accumulation of good.

Sensations are not your enemy. They are your teacher. Through observing them, you understand the truth of existence.

The path is not about moving from one place to another. It's about recognizing where we already are.

If you cannot find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?

The real purpose of Zen is to see things as they are, to observe things as they are, and to let everything go as it goes.

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.

Meditation is not about trying to change your experience; it's about changing your relationship to your experience.

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

Metta (loving-kindness) becomes truly effective only when it arises from a peaceful mind, a pure mind, a balanced mind.

The moment you note a thought, it disappears. The noting mind keeps the hindrances away.

Kindness is the solution to all of life's problems.

When you do something, you should burn yourself completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself.

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

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

The restraint of the senses is not a matter of suppression but of wise attention to our experience.

The cave I live in is empty and so is my mind. I live simply and at ease.

Meditation is not about achieving anything. It's about letting go of everything.

The heart is like a garden. It can grow compassion or fear, resentment or love. What seeds will you plant there?

Instead of having a deep understanding of the teaching, we need a strong confidence in our teaching, which says that originally we have Buddha nature.

Meditation is not about trying to change ourselves. Meditation is about being aware of what is.

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.

The everyday practice is simply to develop complete acceptance and openness to all situations and emotions.

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

The mind has first to be attuned to the Unconscious.

The purpose of studying Buddhism is not to study Buddhism, but to study ourselves.

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.

We practice to learn how to let go, not how to increase our holding on to things.

True love is not for the faint-hearted.

The more precisely you note, the more clearly you understand. The more clearly you understand, the stronger your insight becomes.