When we meet real tragedy in life, we can react in two ways - either by losing hope and falling into self-destructive habits, or by using the challenge to find our inner strength.

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

Forgiveness is not a moral issue. It's a power issue. When we hold onto grievance and resentment, we are giving our power away.

Whatever is happening is the path to enlightenment.

The only way to experience truth is to look within, to observe oneself.

Equanimity is not indifference. It is the balanced mind that sees things clearly without reaction.

Life is available only in the present moment.

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

The most important thing in life is to know death is coming and to prepare for it.

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

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

If you want to know the past, look at the present. If you want to know the future, look at the present.

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

Our basic nature is pure awareness that simply cognizes experience. Everything else is temporary and adventitious.

In the gap between thoughts, nonconceptual wisdom shines continuously.

To live is enough.

Life is like a cup of tea. It's all in how you make it.

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

Wisdom is not about accumulating knowledge, but about seeing through all knowledge.

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

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

By understanding emptiness, one understands all phenomena. Without understanding emptiness, one understands nothing.

The more we understand our mind, the more we understand the world.

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

Because you are alive, everything is possible.

When things fall apart and we're on the verge of we know not what, the test of each of us is to stay on that brink and not concretize.

The restraint of the senses is not a matter of suppression but of wise attention to our experience.

The willingness to empty ourselves and then seek our true nature is an expression of great and courageous love.

A flower falls, even though we love it; and a weed grows, even though we do not love it.

Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible be found in us.

The path is not about moving from one place to another. It's about recognizing where we already are.

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.

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

Trying to define yourself is like trying to bite your own teeth.

The Four Noble Truths are not merely theoretical propositions but a framework for understanding and transforming our experience.

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

The perfect moment is this one, not the one you're waiting for.

The path of insight is a path of discovery, not a path of creation. We are discovering what is already there.

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

Only when you can be extremely pliable and soft can you be extremely hard and strong.

When we understand that peace is not dependent on external conditions, we can find it in the midst of any circumstance.

There is no need to have a deep understanding of Zen. Even though you read much Zen literature, you must read each sentence with a fresh mind.

Let none find fault with others; let none see the omissions and commissions of others. But let one see one's own acts, done and undone.

The essence of Buddhist practice is to bring everything onto the path. Every experience becomes an opportunity for awakening.

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

The treasure house within you contains everything, and you are free to use it. You don't need to seek outside.

When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know. But if you listen, you may learn something new.

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

The Buddha's teaching is not about belief but about investigation, not about accepting but about examining.

People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.

The quieter you become, the more you can hear.

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

Through violence, you may solve one problem, but you sow the seeds for another.

Hasten slowly and you will soon arrive.

When you walk in the mist, you get wet.

The essence of the spiritual journey is the uncovering of what is always already present.

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

To be attached to a thing means that mind and the thing meet and grow into each other.

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

The root of suffering is attachment.