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

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

We can learn the art of fierce compassion - redefining strength, deconstructing isolation and renewing a sense of community, practicing letting go of rigid us-vs.-them thinking.

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.

Mindfulness means keeping one's consciousness alive to the present reality.

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

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

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

When you listen to someone, you should give up all your preconceived ideas and your subjective opinions.

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

If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.

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

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

Equanimity is not indifference. It is the balanced mind that sees things clearly without reaction.

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

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

Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; this is the eternal rule.

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

Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is relax.

Short moments, many times. That is the essence of meditation practice.

The technique of self-observation is the technique of observing the reality about oneself at the experiential level.

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

May all beings be happy, be peaceful, be liberated.

Meditation is not an escape from life but a way to fully engage with life.

When things fall apart and we're on the verge of we know not what, the test of each of us is to stay on that brink and not concretize.

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 purpose of meditation is not to create a mental vacuum but to come to know one's own mind.

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

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

Every thought, every word, and every action leaves an imprint on our mind.

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

Each breath is a new beginning, a fresh opportunity to awaken.

Moment after moment, completely devote yourself to listening to your inner voice.

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

Every moment of mindfulness is a step on the path to liberation. Each step is valuable, no matter how small.

Rather than letting our negativity get the better of us, we could acknowledge that right now we feel like a piece of shit and not be squeamish about taking a good look.

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

The heart of one who practices is like the earth. No matter what they throw on it, the earth remains unchanged.

The teaching is simple: act with kindness and compassion. If you cannot do this, at least try not to harm others.

The purpose of meditation is not to create a new state of mind, but to recognize what is already present.

Don't be afraid of the future. The future is good.

The path is not about perfecting ourselves, but about perfecting our love.

The rising and falling of the abdomen is not the main object. The main object is to develop mindfulness, concentration, and insight.

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

The mind has first to be attuned to the Unconscious.

The only way to fail at meditation is to stop doing it.

When you understand one thing through and through, you understand everything. When you try to understand everything, you will not understand anything.

When you note pain, you are not trying to make it go away. You are trying to understand its true nature.

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

Zen is a way of life, not a theory or a piece of knowledge to be stored away in our minds.

When we recognize that our thoughts are just thoughts, we can choose whether or not to follow them.

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

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

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

Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible.

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.

Vipassana is the art of living. Not the art of escaping.

When you note pain, you should not dwell on the thought, "I feel pain." Simply recognize the presence of pain.

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