If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.

Meditation is not just about sitting quietly, it's about transforming the mind.

In meditation, we are continuously discovering who and what we are.

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.

Meditation is like catching a fish. If you try to catch it quickly, you'll miss it. If you have patience and know how to wait, the fish will come.

The mind is intrinsically empty. It's empty of all that we perceive as being intrinsically "me" and "mine."

The mind that sees its own nature becomes free from all extremes.

The mind can go in a thousand directions, but on this beautiful path, I walk in peace. With each step, the wind blows. With each step, a flower blooms.

The greatest obstacle to meditation is our expectation about what it should be.

The heart of one who practices is like the earth. No matter what they throw on it, the earth remains unchanged.

The spiritual journey is not about heaven and finally getting to a place that's really swell.

Those who grasp at things as truly existent are like someone trying to catch the reflection of the moon in water.

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

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

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

The way is basically perfect. It is not a matter of practice or enlightenment.

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

Observe the reality as it is, not as you wish it to be.

The everyday practice is simply to develop complete acceptance and openness to all situations and emotions.

Emptiness is not nothingness. Emptiness is the space of possibility.

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

In my youth I studied, in my prime I practiced, now all my doubts are cleared.

The path of awakening is not about becoming who you are. Rather it is about unbecoming who you are not.

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

Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.

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

We need to learn to let our emotions pass through us like waves, without getting caught in their undertow.

When you plant lettuce, if it does not grow well, you don't blame the lettuce. You look for reasons it is not doing well. It may need fertilizer, or more water, or less sun. You never blame the lettuce.

True happiness is not about getting rid of all our problems, but about changing our relationship to them.

Muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone.

When you practice gratefulness, there is a sense of respect toward others.

You are an aperture through which the universe is looking at and exploring itself.

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