The only reason we don't open our hearts and minds to other people is that they trigger confusion in us that we don't feel brave enough or sane enough to deal with.

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.

You are the sky. Everything else is just the weather.

The whole path of mindfulness is about letting go. We let go of our attachment to our views, our attachment to our opinions, our attachment to our ideas.

The greatest achievement is selflessness. The greatest worth is self-mastery.

In the moment of love, awareness is very strong. Use that awareness, that strength of consciousness, to look into yourself.

Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.

Each moment of mindfulness is a moment of purification.

To think in terms of either pessimism or optimism oversimplifies the truth. The problem is to see reality as it is.

Metta (loving-kindness) becomes truly effective only when it arises from a peaceful mind, a pure mind, a balanced mind.

The root of all mind is your own present pure awareness. Rest in that essence without seeking elsewhere.

The greatest obstacle to connecting with our joy is resentment.

The water in the ocean can be rough or calm. It can be clear or murky. But the water itself doesn't mind.

When you generate negativity, you are the first victim of your negativity.

Sticking with uncertainty, getting the knack of relaxing in the midst of chaos, learning not to panic—this is the spiritual path.

The essence of bravery is being without self-deception.

Anxiety and excitement are the same emotion. The only difference is our attitude toward the experience.

External phenomena are like a dream, whatever appears is not real. Recognize the nature of dream-like phenomena to be dream-like.

Let go of what has passed. Let go of what may come. Let go of what is happening now. Don't try to figure anything out. Don't try to make anything happen. Relax, right now, and rest.

The grass is greener where you water it.

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

The dharma is not in the books. If you want to find the dharma, look in your mind.

The difference between misery and happiness depends on what we do with our attention.

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

Where is the place that your original face has not yet emerged?

We do not "come into" this world; we come out of it, as leaves from a tree.

The essence of all phenomena is empty and clear like space. The nature of mind is awareness-emptiness like the sun and sky.

True freedom is a freedom from the tyranny of our own thoughts and afflictive emotions.

Insight knowledge comes from direct experience, not from intellectual understanding.

The biggest prison is the one we build in our own mind.

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

The heart is like a garden. It can grow compassion or fear, resentment or love. What seeds will you plant there?

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

The purpose of meditation is to make our mind calm and peaceful. If our mind is peaceful, we will be free from worries and mental discomfort.

You are the master of your own mind. You can be your best friend or your worst enemy.

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

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

The mind is like a room with many windows. Open them all and let the fresh air in.

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

Dependent origination is not a theory about the origin of the world but a teaching that shows how suffering originates in dependence on our own mental processes.

The most difficult times for many of us are the ones we give ourselves.

You are your own teacher. Looking for teachers can't solve your own doubts. Investigate yourself to find the truth - inside, not outside.

The way to overcome anger is to be too busy being kind to have time to be angry.

The way we look at the world is the way the world looks.

Every intelligent individual wants to know what makes him tick, and yet is at once fascinated and frustrated by the fact that oneself is the most difficult of all things to know.

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.

The more you meditate, the more you understand yourself and the better friend you become to yourself.

When you run after your thoughts, you are like a dog chasing a stick. Every time a stick is thrown, you run after it. Instead, be like a lion who, rather than chasing after the stick, turns to face the thrower.

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

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

Our defilements are like tame tigers. If you feed them, they're tame. If you stop feeding them, they'll eat you up.

If a problem is fixable, if a situation is such that you can do something about it, then there is no need to worry. If it's not fixable, then there is no help in worrying. There is no benefit in worrying whatsoever.

Mind training is based on the idea that two opposite mental factors cannot happen at the same time.

Forgiveness is giving up all hope for a better past.

Hope and fear come from feeling that we lack something; they come from a sense of poverty. We can't simply relax with ourselves. We hold on to hope, and hope robs us of the present moment.

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

Just as treasures are uncovered from the earth, so virtue appears from good deeds, and wisdom appears from a pure and peaceful mind.

Each decision we make, each action we take, is born out of an intention.

To see the truth, do not be for or against. The struggle between for and against is the mind's worst disease.

Though the view should be as vast as the sky, keep your conduct as fine as barley flour.