The time of the past becomes the present, the time of the present becomes the future, the time of the future becomes the present, and the time of the present becomes the past.

At the bottom of great doubt lies great awakening. If you doubt fully, you will awaken fully.

Ardently do today what must be done. Who knows? Tomorrow, death comes.

When the heart is still, it can be kind. When the mind is still, it can see clearly.

What we call "I" is just a swinging door which moves when we inhale and when we exhale.

When you recognize that pain and suffering are impermanent, you become free.

When we recognize that our thoughts are just thoughts, we can choose whether or not to follow them.

The world is its own magic.

The purpose of meditation is not to create a mental vacuum but to come to know one's own mind.

The root of suffering is not in the world outside us but in our own minds.

Compassion is not mere sentiment but a powerful force that can transform both ourselves and others.

The deepest form of happiness comes from discovering the natural peace of our own awareness.

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

Mindfulness helps us get better at seeing the difference between what's happening and the stories we tell ourselves about what's happening.

As long as our orientation is toward perfection or success, we will never learn about unconditional friendship with ourselves, nor will we find compassion.

Work out your own salvation. Do not depend on others.

Worry pretends to be necessary but serves no useful purpose.

The real meaning of enlightenment is to gaze with undimmed eyes on all darkness.

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.

What you are is what you have been. What you'll be is what you do now.

Both formerly and now, it is only suffering that I describe, and the cessation of suffering.

The sign of wisdom is constant joy.

The path is not about perfecting ourselves, but about perfecting our love.

Fear keeps us focused on the past or worried about the future. If we can acknowledge our fear, we can realize that right now we are okay.

The challenge in meditation is not to eliminate thinking but to understand the nature of thought itself.

The nature of everything is empty and clear, and the mind is beyond both existence and nonexistence.

All worldly pursuits have but one unavoidable and inevitable end, which is sorrow; acquisitions end in dispersion; buildings in destruction; meetings in separation; births in death.

The development of wisdom does not occur in isolation but requires the cultivation of the entire Noble Eightfold Path.

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

Devotion is the head of meditation, as is often said. When you are inspired by some spiritual teacher, you can have a very strong connection with that person, and thereby the blessings can enter.

True happiness comes from a sense of inner peace and contentment, which in turn must be achieved through cultivation of altruism, of love, of compassion.

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

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