The most precious gift we can offer others is our presence. When mindfulness embraces those we love, they will bloom like flowers.

The supreme path is not to fabricate anything. The supreme meditation is not to be distracted.

Just observe whatever arises. Don't try to create anything, and don't reject anything.

The most important things in our practice are our physical posture and our way of breathing.

The goal of meditation is not to achieve a blank mind, but to gain insight into the nature of mind itself.

Let go of what has passed. Let go of what may come. Let go of what is happening now. Don't try to figure anything out. Don't try to make anything happen. Relax, right now, and rest.

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

True peace comes not from controlling the world, but from letting go of control.

As long as our orientation is toward perfection or success, we will never learn about unconditional friendship with ourselves, nor will we find compassion.

The path of practice requires both faith and wisdom, both devotion and understanding.

My religion is to live and die without regret.

The basic idea of Zen is to come in touch with the inner workings of our being, and to do this in the most direct way possible, without resorting to anything external or superadded.

The truth of Zen is the truth of life, and life means to live, to move, to act, not merely to reflect.

Drop by drop is the water pot filled. Likewise, the wise man, gathering it little by little, fills himself with good.

The zazen I speak of is not meditation practice. It is simply the dharma gate of joyful ease.

In the moment of love, awareness is very strong. Use that awareness, that strength of consciousness, to look into yourself.

Though the view should be as vast as the sky, keep your conduct as fine as barley flour.

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

The only way to experience truth is to look within, to observe oneself.

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

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

The willingness to empty ourselves and then seek our true nature is an expression of great and courageous love.

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

Life and death are of supreme importance. Time swiftly passes by and opportunity is lost. Each of us should strive to awaken. Awaken! Take heed, do not squander your life.

The cultivation of loving-kindness is the thread that runs through all Buddhist teachings.

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

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

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.

Where there is great doubt, there is great awakening; small doubt, small awakening; no doubt, no awakening.

Compassion is not something we develop. It arises naturally as we see the truth of what is.

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

Breathing in, I calm body and mind. Breathing out, I smile.

The precious pot containing my riches becomes my teacher in the very moment it breaks.

As a flower that is lovely and beautiful, but is scentless, even so fruitless is the well-spoken word of one who does not practice it.

The Buddha's teaching is not a philosophical system but a practical guide to living.

Time passes unhindered. When we make ourselves better, we make the world better.

If it isn't good, let it die. If it doesn't die, make it good.

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

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

The most profound meditation is to think nothing at all.

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

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

The greatest achievement is selflessness. The greatest worth is self-mastery.

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

The best way to solve a problem is to help someone else solve their problem.

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

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

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

In the monastery of your body, the monk of your mind must stay in retreat.

Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it.

External seeking only leads to exhaustion. When you imitate others, you lose your own authenticity.

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

The noting mind and the object noted appear to occur as a pair. Through concentration they are seen to arise and vanish together.

When mindfulness is weak, defilements are strong; when mindfulness is strong, defilements are weak.

The path to liberation requires both individual effort and the support of the spiritual community.

Mindfulness is the key to the present moment. Without it we cannot see the world clearly, and we cannot make the wisest choices in our lives.

The seed of suffering in you may be strong, but don't wait until you have no more suffering before allowing yourself to be happy.

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

True love is not for the faint-hearted.