The role of Zen is neither to stand above life nor to run away from it, but to face it with a spirit of determination.

A disciplined mind leads to happiness, and an undisciplined mind leads to suffering.

The key to transformation is not to fight with our experience but to open to it with awareness.

Mindfulness is attention to life, and life itself is sacred.

When we look directly at our thoughts, they dissolve like bubbles in water.

Each moment of mindfulness is a moment of purification.

The practice of meditation requires both energy and patience, both effort and relaxation.

The more we witness our emotional reactions and understand how they work, the easier it is to refrain.

The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being becomes.

Knowledge must be stabilized by meditation. Without meditation, knowledge is like a child in battle.

Equanimity is not indifference. It is the balanced state of mind.

The development of insight is gradual, but the realization of truth is sudden.

The Noble Eightfold Path is a path of training: training in ethical conduct, training in mental discipline, and training in wisdom.

When both body and mind are at peace, all things appear as they are: perfect, complete, lacking nothing.

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

If in our daily life we can smile, if we can be peaceful and happy, not only we, but everyone will profit from it. This is the most basic kind of peace work.

The essence of Buddhist practice is to bring everything onto the path. Every experience becomes an opportunity for awakening.

The first step toward faith is to admit that we don't know everything.

Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor.

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

The practice of meditation is like tuning an instrument. Too tight, and the strings break. Too loose, and they won't play.

The highest truth cannot be taught except through the conventional truth.

In a mind clear as still water, even the waves, breaking, are reflecting its light.

Meditation is not about getting away from it all. It's about getting into it all.

The four foundations of mindfulness are not separate practices but different aspects of the same practice of clear awareness.

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

We can never obtain peace in the outer world until we make peace with ourselves.

Observe the reality as it is, not as you wish it to be.

Hasten slowly and you will soon arrive.

Wisdom is not something we have to strive to acquire. Rather, wisdom arises naturally as we open our hearts to the truth of what is.

The yogi's joy is in the solitude of mountains, where all distractions naturally dissolve into emptiness.

The practice of Zen is forgetting the self in the act of uniting with something.

We can learn to be present with whatever is happening in our lives, and in this way, we can begin to transform our relationship to difficulty.

Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals.

The object of meditation and the mind which knows it must be noted as they occur. If they are not noted, desire arises and disturbs concentration.

When we rest in awareness, we discover a peace that is always present, regardless of circumstances.

The more you give, the more you have. That's the economics of kindness.

Technical knowledge is not enough. One must transcend techniques so that the art becomes an artless art, growing out of the unconscious.

Do not follow the ideas of others, but learn to listen to the voice within yourself.

We need to learn to let our emotions pass through us like waves, without getting caught in their undertow.

Buddhist practice is not to eliminate life's problems but to grow with them patiently and with compassion.

If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything; it is open to everything.

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

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

The more you are motivated by love, the more fearless and free your actions will be.

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.

When walking, just walk. When sitting, just sit. Above all, don't wobble.

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

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

The force of the kindness of others is so strong, we can't possibly measure it.

Every morning we are born again. What we do today is what matters most.

Share your knowledge. It is a way to achieve immortality.

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

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

True love is not for the faint-hearted.

The practice of mindfulness transforms the mind from a place of suffering into an instrument of enlightenment.

Anger or hatred is like a fisherman's hook. It is very important for us to ensure that we are not caught by it.

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

Whatever we do, we should see ourselves. Reading books doesn't show us our defilements. Watch yourself. Watch your mind.