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

The nature of life is change. The nature of change is painful. The nature of pain is temporary.

No valid plans for the future can be made by those who have no capacity for living now.

Life is nothing but a continuous chain of sensations. Pleasant or unpleasant, observe them objectively.

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

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

The trick is to keep exploring and not bail out, even when we find out that something is not what we thought.

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

We can learn the art of fierce compassion - redefining strength, deconstructing isolation and renewing a sense of community, practicing letting go of rigid us-vs.-them thinking.

As surely as there is a voyage away, there is a journey home.

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

My father is the intrinsic awareness, Samantabhadra. My mother is the ultimate sphere of reality, Samantabhadri. I belong to the caste of non-duality of these two.

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

The true hero is one who conquers his own anger and hatred.

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

The practice of patience guards us against losing our presence of mind.

When concentration is developed, wisdom arises. When wisdom arises, one becomes disenchanted with the five aggregates.

We should find perfect existence through imperfect existence.

The mind is everything. What you think you become.

Letting go gives us freedom, and freedom is the only condition for happiness.

Forgiveness is giving up all hope for a better past.

True love is not for the faint-hearted.

Long is the night to him who is awake; long is a mile to him who is tired; long is life to the foolish who do not know the true law.

Don't think that only sitting with the eyes closed is practice. If you do think this way, then quickly change your thinking.

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

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

Nothing we see or hear is perfect. But right there in the imperfection is perfect reality.

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

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

Conquer anger with non-anger. Conquer evil with good. Conquer stinginess with giving. Conquer deceit with truth.

The more precisely you note, the more clearly you understand. The more clearly you understand, the stronger your insight becomes.

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

Sometimes one creates a dynamic impression by saying something, and sometimes one creates as significant an impression by remaining silent.

Do not mistake understanding for realization, and do not mistake realization for liberation.

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

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

Generosity generates its own enthusiasm. We don't have to force ourselves to be generous; we just need to start.

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

Every thought, every word, and every action leaves an imprint on our mind.

In the end, only three things matter: how much you loved, how gently you lived, and how gracefully you let go of things not meant for you.

The problem is not the problem; the problem is your attitude about the problem.

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

We practice to learn how to let go, not how to increase our holding on to things.

The period of greatest gain in knowledge and experience is the most difficult period in one's life.

Happiness is a skill that can be developed like playing an instrument or learning to read.

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

If you want to know your past life, look into your present condition; if you want to know your future life, look into your present actions.

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.

Panic, anxiety, and stress are not obstacles to the practice. They are the path to wisdom and compassion.

The highest truth cannot be taught except through the conventional truth.

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

When you note pain, you are not trying to make it go away. You are trying to understand its true nature.

Take into account that great love and great achievements involve great risk.

Every step on the path must be with the understanding of anicca - impermanence. This is the essence of the teaching.

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

Face your own anger and you will be free from anger. Face your own fears and you will be free from fear.

We deal with our mind from morning until evening, and it can be our best friend or our worst enemy.

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.

Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It's a relationship between equals.

Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher.