The practice of mindfulness leads naturally to concentration. Concentration leads naturally to wisdom.

The truth you believe and cling to makes you unavailable to hear anything new.

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

The goal of the Buddhist path is not to add something to our existence but to discover something that has been there all along.

The lamp of wisdom burns constantly, illuminating the nature of mind.

Trees, mountains, and vines all exist in nature according to their own truth. They are born and die following their nature. They remain this way because that's what they are. They don't practice meditation or do anything special.

The more a thing tends to be permanent, the more it tends to be lifeless.

The obstacle is the path.

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

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

Don't try to push away the darkness. Just light a lamp. The darkness will disappear by itself.

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

Awareness is always with us. We don't need to create it or achieve it - we just need to recognize what's already there.

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

When we understand others, we understand ourselves. When we love others, we love ourselves.

The most difficult times for many of us are the ones we give ourselves.

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

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

Enlightenment is the realization that we were never really separate from one another or from all of life.

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.

Time passes unhindered. When we make mistakes, we cannot turn the clock back and try again. All we can do is use the present well.

Because you are alive, everything is possible.

The mind is intrinsically empty. It's empty of all that we perceive as being intrinsically "me" and "mine."

Like a fine flower, beautiful to look at but without scent, fine words are fruitless in a man who does not act in accordance with them.

The present moment is the only moment available to us, and it is the door to all moments.

Every intelligent individual wants to know what makes him tick, and yet is at once fascinated and frustrated by the fact that oneself is the most difficult of all things to know.

Ethical conduct is not a constraint upon our freedom but a condition of our freedom.

In the moment of pure noting, there is no self - only the knowing and the known.

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.

Life is glorious, but life is also wretched. It is both. Appreciating the gloriousness inspires us, encourages us, cheers us up, gives us a bigger perspective, energizes us. We feel connected. But if that's all that's happening, we get arrogant and start to look down on others, and there is a sense of making ourselves a big deal and being really serious about it, wanting it to be like that forever. The gloriousness becomes tinged by craving and addiction. On the other hand, wretchedness--life's painful aspect--softens us up considerably. Knowing pain is a very important ingredient of being there for another person.

Happiness is not about getting what you want, but wanting what you've got.

What Zen wants us to do is to acquire an entirely new point of view whereby to look into the mysteries of life and the secrets of nature.

We don't set out to save the world; we set out to wonder how other people are doing and to reflect on how our actions affect other people's hearts.

The path of awakening is not about becoming who we think we should be, but about unbecoming who we are not.

The more you understand yourself, the more you understand the world.

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

The purpose of a spiritual discipline is to give us a way to stop the war, not by our force of will, but through understanding and through letting go.

Those who understand interdependent origination understand suffering, its origin, its cessation, and the path.

People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost.

Love is not about possession. Love is about appreciation.

Right practice is steady practice. Whether you feel lazy or diligent, just keep practicing.

The nature of mind is clearer than the sky, yet we keep looking elsewhere.

Fear is a natural reaction to moving closer to the truth.

A man is not called wise because he talks and talks again; but if he is peaceful, loving and fearless then he is in truth called wise.

The stages of insight unfold naturally when mindfulness is continuous. There is no need to desire them or try to make them happen.

Remember that the best relationship is one in which your love for each other exceeds your need for each other.

The realization of impermanence leads not to despair but to a deeper appreciation of the preciousness of each moment.

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

Wisdom is not something we have to strive to acquire. Rather, wisdom arises naturally as we open our hearts to the truth of what is.

The mind is like a room with many windows. Open them all and let the fresh air in.

The most important factor in achieving happiness is the mind. Happiness and suffering are mental states and therefore depend on the mind.

The ultimate revolution is the spiritual revolution, where we learn to see reality as it truly is.

Liberation is found in the practice, not in the theory.

The essence of Buddhist practice is to reduce our selfishness and to work for the benefit of others.

The root of suffering is attachment.

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

There is no path to happiness: happiness is the path.

Even if you speak of 'understanding,' this understanding is not a matter of knowledge. It is what fills the entire body and mind.

Our emotions are like waves in the ocean. We can't stop the waves, but we can learn to surf.

External phenomena are like a dream, whatever appears is not real. Recognize the nature of dream-like phenomena to be dream-like.