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

The Dhamma unfolds in accordance with a definite sequence: faith, virtue, learning, generosity, wisdom, and insight.

The Buddha's teaching is a teaching of self-reliance, of being one's own master, one's own refuge.

The mind creates the abyss, and the heart crosses it.

When the mind is ready to understand, the truth will come to meet it.

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.

In the end, just three things matter: How well we have lived, how well we have loved, how well we have learned to let go.

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 first step toward faith is to admit that we don't know everything.

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

Expectations are the thieves of joy.

The purpose of studying Buddhism is not to study Buddhism, but to study ourselves.

Life is like an ever-shifting kaleidoscope - a slight change, and all patterns alter.

True love is not for the faint-hearted.

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

Real happiness comes from having an unshakable connection to the deep wellspring of peace and happiness that is not dependent on external conditions.

The truth of suffering is not to be feared but to be understood through direct observation.

To be in harmony with the wholeness of things is not to have anxiety over imperfection.

The Buddha's teachings are not a religion, but a science of mind.

To think in terms of either pessimism or optimism oversimplifies the truth. The problem is to see reality as it is.

Panic is a gateway to wisdom. When we learn to stay present with our panic, it becomes our teacher.

The defilements of the mind are temporary visitors. Pure awareness is your true home.

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

Peace is not found by changing the world, but by changing your attitude to the world.

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

Mindfulness isn't difficult, we just need to remember to do it.

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

Even death is not to be feared by one who has lived wisely.

The mind itself is the maker of all happiness and misery; yet beings do not understand this and blame external conditions.

The person who clings to nothing of the past, present and future, who has no attachment and no aversion, has no conceptual imprints.

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

When mindfulness becomes continuous, the distinction between the observer and the observed begins to break down.

We do not "come into" this world; we come out of it, as leaves from a tree.

Every small positive change we make in ourselves repays us in confidence in the future.

The trouble is, you think you have time.

Suffering comes from our resistance to what is. Peace comes from our acceptance of what is.

True happiness is born of letting go of what is unnecessary.

Through our eyes, the universe is perceiving itself. Through our ears, the universe is listening to its harmonies. We are the witnesses through which the universe becomes conscious of its glory, of its magnificence.

Dependent origination is not a theory about the origin of the world but a teaching that shows how suffering originates in dependence on our own mental processes.

Holding onto anger is like drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.

The path to liberation requires both individual effort and the support of the spiritual community.

The Buddha's teaching is not a philosophical system but a practical guide to living.

Nothing is permanent. Everything is subject to change. Being is always becoming.

The ultimate source of happiness is not money and power, but warm-heartedness.

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

Neither from itself nor from another, nor from both, nor without a cause, does anything whatever, anywhere arise.

The truth of Zen is the truth of life, and life means to live, to move, to act, not merely to reflect.

If you cannot find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?

The difference between buddhas and sentient beings is that buddhas recognize their nature while sentient beings fail to recognize it.

Our true nature is like a diamond - pure, brilliant, and indestructible. No matter how much dirt covers it, its essential nature remains unchanged.

The development of wisdom requires both study and practice, both learning and direct experience.

Not by hatred is hatred conquered, but by love alone. This is an eternal law.

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.

If you want to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be miserable, expect something in return.

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

Mindfulness is attention to life, and life itself is sacred.

Don't be a bodhisatta; don't be an arahant; don't be anything at all. Being something makes you suffer.

Just as true humor is laughter at oneself, true humanity is knowledge of oneself.

The most important thing is to enjoy your life - to be happy. This is the goal of Buddhist practice.

The more we understand impermanence, the more we appreciate each moment of our lives.