Zazen is not step-by-step meditation. Rather it is simply the easy and pleasant practice of a Buddha, the realization of the Buddha's Wisdom.

The root of all mind is your own present pure awareness. Rest in that essence without seeking elsewhere.

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

The view is like a lion - it cannot be led around by anything else. Meditation is like an eagle - it cannot be distracted by anything else. Action is like a madman - it is free from accepting and rejecting.

The practice of mindfulness is simple: whatever you experience, you observe and note it.

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

The master's introduction is direct recognition of one's own nature. Meditation is maintaining the continuity of this recognition.

The key to meditation is to recognize the nature of your mind rather than trying to change it.

Concentration and insight are like two wings of a bird: both are necessary for the flight to liberation.

Meditation is like a gym in which you develop the powerful mental muscles of calm and insight.

Meditation practice isn't about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better. It's about befriending who we are already.

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

In meditation, we're not trying to get rid of thoughts but to recognize their true nature.

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

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

Meditation is the ultimate mobile device; you can use it anywhere, anytime, unobtrusively.

Sleep is the best meditation.

The mind is like a wild monkey, jumping here and there. But through meditation, we learn to see whatever arises in our mind with more spaciousness and clarity.

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

The practice is simply this: keep coming back to your breath during the day. This will give your mind a steadiness and your life a balance.

The essence of meditation is not something complicated or exotic. It is simply taking a break from our habitual patterns.

Sankharas are the seeds of consciousness that manifest as sensations. By observing sensations equanimously, we stop creating new sankharas.

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.

Silence is so much more productive of wisdom and clarity than thinking.

The challenge in meditation is not to eliminate thinking but to understand the nature of thought itself.

Meditation is not about achieving anything. It's about letting go of everything.

The greatest obstacle to meditation is our expectation about what it should be.

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

The purpose of meditation is to gain right understanding of the true nature of mental and physical phenomena.

Meditation is like catching a fish. If you try to catch it quickly, you'll miss it. If you have patience and know how to wait, the fish will come.

Meditation is the road to happiness.

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

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

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

Meditation is not about stopping thoughts, but recognizing that we are not our thoughts.

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

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

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

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

Concentration develops naturally through continuous noting. Don't try to force concentration to arise.

Better to have one moment of genuine meditation than to perform religious activities for a thousand years.

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

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

The goal of meditation is not to reach some highest place, but to remain in the place where you already are.

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

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

The quieter you become, the more you can hear.

When thoughts arise, recognize them as the display of your own awareness, like recognizing your own children in a crowd.

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

Maintain the state of undistractedness and distractions will fly away.

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

Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your thoughts to come and go. Just don't serve them tea.

In the gap between thoughts, nonconceptual wisdom shines continuously.

In meditation, we are continuously discovering who and what we are.

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.

Meditation is not an escape from reality but a way to understand reality as it truly is.

When you run after your thoughts, you are like a dog chasing a stick. Every time a stick is thrown, you run after it. Instead, be like a lion who, rather than chasing after the stick, turns to face the thrower.

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

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