Wherever you are, you are one with the clouds and one with the sun and the stars you see. You are one with everything. That is more true than I can say, and more true than you can hear.

The practice of Zen is forgetting the self in the act of uniting with something.

When walking, just walk. When sitting, just sit. Above all, don't wobble.

The Buddha and all sentient beings are nothing but expressions of the one mind. There is nothing else.

Whoever told you that practice and enlightenment are separate?

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

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

Where there is great doubt, there is great awakening; small doubt, small awakening; no doubt, no awakening.

Without accepting the fact that everything changes, we cannot find perfect composure.

Zen teaches nothing; it merely enables us to wake up and become aware. It does not teach, it points.

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

Should you desire the great tranquility, prepare to sweat white beads.

Meditation in the midst of activity is a thousand times superior to meditation in stillness.

When you see forms or hear sounds fully engaging body-and-mind, you intuit dharma intimately.

Emptiness which is conceptually liable to be mistaken for sheer nothingness is in fact the reservoir of infinite possibilities.

Life is like stepping onto a boat which is about to sail out to sea and sink.

Zazen is not step-by-step meditation. Rather it is simply the easy and pleasant practice of a Buddha, the realization of the Buddha's Wisdom.

If you forget yourself, you become the universe.

To forget the self is to be actualized by myriad things.

The dharma wheel turns from the beginning. There is neither excess nor deficiency. The whole universe is moistened with nectar, and the truth is ready to harvest.

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

When you understand one thing through and through, you understand everything. When you try to understand everything, you will not understand anything.

Our practice cannot be perfect, but without being discouraged by this, we should continue it. This is the secret of practice.

The superior person is like water, bringing benefit to all without competing.

Everybody has the light of Buddha within, but they don't look for it.

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.

Not knowing how near the truth is, we seek it far away.

The eye with which I see Buddha is the same eye with which Buddha sees me.

The zazen I speak of is not meditation practice. It is simply the dharma gate of joyful ease.

When you practice zazen you should not try to attain anything. You should just sit in the complete calmness of your mind and not rely on anything.

The true person is not anyone in particular. But like the deep blue color of the limitless sky, it is everyone, everywhere in the world.

The obstacle is the path.

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

The state of mind that exists when you sit in the right posture is, itself, enlightenment.

The basic teaching of Buddhism is the teaching of transiency, or change.

What is the sound of one hand clapping?

When you listen to someone, you should give up all your preconceived ideas and your subjective opinions.

The color of the mountains is Buddha's body; the sound of running water is his great speech.

As long as you seek for something, you will get the shadow of reality and not reality itself.

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

The mind is like a well-forged sword - it adapts to all situations.

If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything; it is open to everything.

The mind is the root from which all things grow. If you can understand the mind, everything else is included.

Enlightenment is intimacy with all things.

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

The best way to control people is to encourage them to be mischievous. Then they will be in control in a wider sense.

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

Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your thoughts to come and go. Just don't serve them tea.

The most important point is to accept yourself and stand on your two feet.

The mind has first to be attuned to the Unconscious.

Zen is not necessarily against words, but it is well aware of their limitations.

Life and death are of supreme importance. Time swiftly passes by and opportunity is lost. Each of us should strive to awaken. Awaken! Take heed, do not squander your life.

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

Just to be alive is enough.

The most important things in our practice are our physical posture and our way of breathing.

The practice of Zen is forgetting the self in the act of uniting with something.

Your own treasure house contains everything you need; why search outside?

The role of Zen is neither to stand above life nor to run away from it, but to face it with a spirit of determination.

Without darkness, there is no light. Without the path, there is no arrival.

We should find perfect existence through imperfect existence.