The first noble truth of the Buddha is that life contains suffering. The second noble truth is that the cause of suffering is craving.

True peace is found not in the absence of experience but in the clear seeing of all experience.

The obstacle is the path.

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.

Study the Buddha's teaching which is present in every moment.

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

Each of you is perfect the way you are... and you can use a little improvement.

Zen proposes its solution by directly appealing to facts of personal experience and not to book-knowledge.

Awareness is like the sun. When it shines on things, they are transformed.

Sometimes the most productive thing you can do is relax.

Liberation is not found by running away from our experience but by looking deeply into it.

Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.

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

Mindfulness is not just bare attention but wise attention that leads to understanding and insight.

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.

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

The true path is not difficult; just avoid picking and choosing.

If you want to find peace, then look at that point where you find you're dissatisfied and investigate what's really going on.

The only thing that we truly have control over is our attitude toward experience.

Love is the wish that others be happy, and compassion is the wish that they be free from suffering.

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

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

The farther you enter into truth, the deeper it is.

Just to be alive is enough.

Happiness is not the pursuit of an endless succession of experiences but an attitude toward life.

The path to liberation is through understanding the true nature of mind and matter through direct observation.

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.

The only things that are truly mine are my actions and their results.

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

The mind is like water. When it's turbulent, it's difficult to see. When it's calm, everything becomes clear.

You will not be punished for your anger; you will be punished by your anger.

The path to liberation requires both understanding and practice, both pariyatti and patipatti.

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

The root of all suffering is ignorance. The antidote to ignorance is wisdom that realizes emptiness.

When mindfulness and concentration are strong, insight into the three characteristics naturally unfolds.

The highest mantra is to be without deception. The highest medicine is to have few desires. The highest meditation is not to be attached.

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

Life is an art, and like perfect art it should be self-forgetting.

The nature of the mind is like the sky, and our thoughts, emotions, and experiences are like clouds passing through it.

You are your own teacher. Looking for teachers can't solve your own doubts. Investigate yourself to find the truth - inside, not outside.

What we learn about the world is colored by the way we approach it.

We think that the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don't really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It's just like that. The healing comes from letting there be room for all of this to happen: room for grief, for relief, for misery, for joy.

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

If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it's not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever.

The seed of suffering in you may be strong, but don't wait until you have no more suffering before allowing yourself to be happy.

The key to the Buddha's teaching is not grasping, not trying to hold onto things that are essentially impermanent and unstable.

When dharma fills your body and mind, you realize that something is missing.

When you let go of trying to control everything, you can relax and enjoy life.

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.

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

The root of suffering is not in the world outside us but in our own minds.

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

It is never too late to turn on the light.

Each decision we make, each action we take, is born out of an intention.

Through continuous mindfulness practice, the true nature of physical and mental phenomena becomes clear.

If you see certainty in that which is uncertain, you are bound to suffer.

Where ignorance is our master, there is no possibility of real peace.

If you want to know your past life, look at your present condition. If you want to know your future life, look at your present actions.

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

The practice is not about achieving special states but about seeing ordinary experience with extraordinary clarity.