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

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

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

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

Our own life has to be our message.

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

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

The superior person is like water, bringing benefit to all without competing.

In true vipassana practice, there is no room for likes and dislikes. There is only observation.

Generosity generates its own enthusiasm. We don't have to force ourselves to be generous; we just need to start.

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

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

Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness.

When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.

The Buddha's teaching challenges us to master the art of living, to live in a way that leads to the extinction of suffering.

Understanding at the intellectual level is not enough. There must be experience at the actual level.

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

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

Concentration is a cornerstone of mindfulness practice. Your mindfulness will only be as robust as your capacity to ground your attention in the present moment.

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

Maintain the state of undistractedness and distractions will fly away.

The more clearly you see the arising and passing of phenomena, the less you will be attached to them.

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

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

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.

Meditation is not just about sitting quietly, it's about transforming the mind.

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

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

The true understanding is that the practice itself is enlightenment.

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

The dharma wheel turns from the beginning. There is neither excess nor deficiency. The whole universe is moistened with nectar, and the truth is ready to harvest.

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

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.

Our practice cannot be perfect, but without being discouraged by this, we should continue it. This is the secret of practice.

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

The practice of metta begins with oneself, for only when we have developed loving-kindness towards ourselves can we truly offer it to others.

Choose to be optimistic, it feels better.

Each moment of noting is a moment of purification, a moment of cultivating the path.

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

The most profound meditation is to think nothing at all.

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

In my youth I studied, in my prime I practiced, now all my doubts are cleared.

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

The trouble is, you think you have time.

To have faith is to trust yourself to the water. When you swim you don't grab hold of the water, because if you do you will sink and drown. Instead you relax, and float.

Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future.

Compassion is the radicalism of our time.

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

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

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

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.

Wisdom arises when you see the true characteristics of phenomena through direct experience.

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

Every sensation shares the same characteristic - arising, passing. Arising, passing. Learn to observe objectively.

When we get too caught up in the busyness of the world, we lose connection with one another – and ourselves.

The way to change others' minds is with affection, and not anger.

What is the sound of one hand clapping?

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

The way to change the world is to change your own mind.

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.