Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest.

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.

The Buddha taught that wealth does not bring happiness and security. The pursuit of wealth is a matter of living in balance.

Treat every moment as your last. It is not preparation for something else.

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

The trouble is, you think you have time.

The trick is to keep exploring and not bail out, even when we find out that something is not what we thought.

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

This is the real secret of life -- to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now. And instead of calling it work, realize it is play.

Forgiveness is letting go of the hope that the past could have been any different.

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

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

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

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

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.

The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

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

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

If you let go a little, you will have a little peace. If you let go a lot, you will have a lot of peace. If you let go completely, you will have complete peace.

We deal with our mind from morning until evening, and it can be our best friend or our worst enemy.

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

Try to be mindful and let things take their natural course. Then your mind will become still in any surroundings, like a clear forest pool.

The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth, dwelling deeply in the present moment and feeling truly alive.

Our defilements are like tame tigers. If you feed them, they're tame. If you stop feeding them, they'll eat you up.

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

True happiness comes from a sense of inner peace and contentment, which in turn must be achieved through cultivation of altruism, of love, of compassion.

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserve your love and affection.

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.

If we learn to open our hearts, anyone, including the people who drive us crazy, can be our teacher.

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

Right View is not just a matter of intellectual understanding but of seeing things as they really are.

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

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

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

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

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.

The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, the wind blows. With each step, a flower blooms.

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.

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

When you find your place where you are, practice occurs, actualizing the fundamental point.

The Buddha's path is not about becoming somebody different but about becoming more and more who you really are.

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

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

The Four Noble Truths are not mere doctrinal propositions but a framework for understanding and transforming our lives.

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

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

Don't expect or desire anything. Just keep noting whatever arises in the present moment.

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

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

Start from where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.

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

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

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

Personal experience is everything in Zen. No ideas are intelligible to those who have no backing of experience.

Radiate boundless love towards the entire world — above, below, and across — unhindered, without ill will, without enmity.

Meditation is the road to happiness.

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

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