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

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

Who would then deny that when I am sipping tea in my tearoom I am swallowing the whole universe with it and that this very moment of my lifting the bowl to my lips is eternity itself transcending time and space?

The basic idea of Zen is to come in touch with the inner workings of our being, and to do this in the most direct way possible, without resorting to anything external or superadded.

In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert's there are few.

The real secret of the arts: always be a beginner.

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

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

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

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

All beings by nature are Buddha, as ice by nature is water. Apart from water there is no ice; apart from beings, no Buddha.

The contradiction so puzzling to the ordinary way of thinking comes from the fact that we have to use language to communicate our inner experience, which in its very nature transcends linguistics.

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

Intrinsically all living beings are Buddhas, just as ice and water are of the same substance.

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

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

Technical knowledge is not enough. One must transcend techniques so that the art becomes an artless art, growing out of the unconscious.

This very body is the Buddha. And this very earth the lotus paradise.

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.

To what shall I compare this life? It is like a boat that left at dawn, leaving no trace.

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

The practice of Zen mind is beginner's mind. In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities; in the expert's mind there are few.

Instead of having a deep understanding of the teaching, we need a strong confidence in our teaching, which says that originally we have Buddha nature.

If you forget yourself, you become the universe.

The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.

Just to be alive is enough.

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

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

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

Muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone.

Enlightenment is intimacy with all things.

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

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

Just as parents care for their children, you should bear in mind the whole universe.

The true understanding is that the practice itself is enlightenment.

What is the sound of one hand clapping?

When you do something, you should burn yourself completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself.

The mind of the past is ungraspable; the mind of the future is ungraspable; the mind of the present is ungraspable.

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

The mind has first to be attuned to the Unconscious.

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

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

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 fundamental delusion of humanity is to suppose that I am here and you are out there.

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

When you are you, Zen is Zen. Big mind is just big mind.

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

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

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.

Do not follow the ideas of others, but learn to listen to the voice within yourself.

To carry yourself forward and experience myriad things is delusion. That myriad things come forth and experience themselves is awakening.

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

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

The ocean does not reject any water; therefore it is great. The mountain does not select its stones; therefore it is great.

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

The true purpose of Zen is to see things as they are, to observe things as they are, and to let everything go as it goes.

Birth and death are neither two things nor one thing. Life is not an appearance, death is not a disappearance.

The whole moon and the entire sky are reflected in one dewdrop on the grass.

To study the Way is to study the self. To study the self is to forget the self. To forget the self is to be enlightened by all things.