Daily Zen Quote - December 31, 2015

“Life is full of highs and lows. We need them both to grow to our fullest potential. Just hang on tight & enjoy the ride.”
~ Dawn Gluskin

Daily Zen Quote - December 30, 2015

“I sit in meditation…and soon all sounds, and all one sees and feels, take on imminence, an immanence, as if the Universe were coming to attention, a Universe of which one is the center, a Universe that is not the same yet not different from oneself: within man as within mountains there are many parts of hydrogen and oxygen, of calcium, phosphorus, potassium, and other elements. ‘You never enjoy the world aright, till the Sea itself flows in your veins, till you are clothed with the heavens, and crowned with the stars…’(Thomas Traherne, Centuries of Meditation)

The secret of the mountains is that the mountains simply exist, as I do myself: the mountains exist simply, which I do not. The mountains have no ‘meaning,’ they are meaning; the mountains are. The sun is round. I ring with life, and the mountains ring, and when I can hear it, there is a ringing that we share.”
~ Peter Matthiessen from The Snow Leopard

Daily Zen Quote - December 29, 2015

“Your actions create an "energy vortex" that draws in the necessary ingredients for your venture.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 28, 2015

“Again, all of life presents us with two basic ways to treat events. We can either label them "god for us" or "bad for us." The event is only an event. It's how we treat the event that determines what it becomes in our lives. The event doesn't make that determination- we do.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 27, 2015

“Every belief that you hold manifests itself in some manner by either causing you to take some form of action or by preventing you from taking action. If you don't believe something is possible, you won't even attempt it.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 26, 2015

“If you feel depressed for an hour, you've produced approximately eighteen billion new cells that have more receptors calling out for depressed-type peptides and fewer calling out for feel-good peptides.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 25, 2015

“The true source of happiness is within each of us.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

 

Daily Zen Quote - December 24, 2015

“What determines each person's state of happiness or unhappiness is not the event itself, but what the event means to that person.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 23, 2015

“The more you engage in any type of emotion or behavior, the greater your desire for it will become.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 22, 2015

“Who you allow into the circle of your life will make the difference in the quality of your life.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 21, 2015

“If the feet of enlightenment moved, the great ocean would overflow; If that head bowed, it would look down upon the heavens.
Such a body has no place to rest. . . .
Let another continue this poem.”
~ Paul Reps from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings

Daily Zen Quote - December 20, 2015

“If you are surrounded by people who not only don't believe in your goals and your positive outlook on life, but who also continually try to tear you down, it will be extremely challenging for you to hold firmly in mind that you will succeed and that you can be happy.”
― Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 19, 2015

“The best way for you to get that new experience is to change your response to what happens.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - December 18, 2015

“If the eye never sleeps,
all dreams will naturally cease.
If the mind makes no discriminations,
the ten thousand things are as they are,
of single essence.
To understand the mystery of this One essence
is to be released from all entanglements.
When all things are seen equally
the timeless Self-essence is reached.
No comparisons or analogies are possible in this causeless, relation-less state.

Consider movement stationary
and the stationary in motion,
both movement and rest disappear.
When such dualities cease to exist
Oneness itself cannot exist.
To this ultimate finality
no law or description applies.”
~ Seng-Ts0an

Daily Zen Quote - December 17, 2015

“In a Zen retreat we have a format for working with these quicksilver changes: we sit with them, we pay attention to them... Being steady with mindfulness as an anchor for all the changes we go through is the way we practice forbearance. And you can employ this same method anywhere anytime: just pay close attention to the details of what is going on internally and externally. Don't flinch, don't run away. Trust what happens. Take your stand there." (71)”
~ Norman Fischer from Sailing Home: Using Homer's Odyssey to Navigate Life's Perils and Pitfalls

Daily Zen Quote - December 16, 2015

“Mindfulness is attainable when one can embrace life, not its circumstances.”
~ Michelle Cruz-Rosado

Daily Zen Quote - December 15, 2015

“To practice with an end in view is to have one eye on the practice and the other on the end, which is lack of concentration, lack of sincerity.”
~ Alan W. Watts

Daily Zen Quote - December 14, 2015

“Life is full of highs and lows. We need them both to grow to our fullest potential. Just hang on tight & enjoy the ride.”
~ Dawn Gluskin

Daily Zen Quote - December 13, 2015

“During this journey it was as if he again thought over his whole life and reached the same old comforting and hopeless conclusion: that there was no need for him to start anything, that he had to live out his life without doing evil, without anxiety, and without wishing for anything.”
~ Leo Tolstoy from War and Peace

Daily Zen Quote - December 12, 2015

“Travel is such a wonderful experience! Especially when you forget you are traveling. Then you will enjoy whatever you see and do. Those who look into themselves when they travel will not think about what they see. In fact, there is no distinction between the viewer and the seen. You experience everything with the totality of yourself, so that every blade of grass, every mountain, every lake is alive and is a part of you. When there is no division between you and what is other, this is the ultimate experience of traveling.”
~ Liezi from Lieh-tzu: A Taoist Guide to Practical Living

Daily Zen Quote - December 11, 2015

“Anywhere we go, we will have our self with us; we cannot escape ourselves.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh

Daily Zen Quote - December 10, 2015

“*Breathing in, I know this is my in-breath.
Breathing out, I know this is my out-breath.*

It's very simple, but very effective. When we bring our attention to our in-breath and our out-breath, we stop thinking of the past; we stop thinking of the future; and we begin to come home to ourselves...Don't think this practice doesn't apply to you. If we don't go home to ourselves, we can't be at our best and serve the world in the best way... Our quality of being is the foundation for the quality of our actions.

*Breathing in, I'm aware of my whole body.
Breathing out, I'm aware of my whole body.*

Breathing mindfully brings us back to our bodies. We have to acknowledge our bodies first because tension and suffering accumulate in the body. Breathing in this way, we create a kind of family reunion between mind and body. The mind becomes an embodied mind.

...We can't do our best if we don't know to release the tension and pain in ourselves.

*Breathing in, I'm aware of the tension in my body.
Breathing out, I'm aware of the tension in my body.*

When we look at the suffering around us, at poverty, violence, or climate change, we may want to solve these things immediately. We want to do something. But to do something effectively and ethically, we need to be our best selves in order to be able to handle the suffering...

*Breathing in, I am aware of a painful feeling arising.
Breathing out, I release the painful feeling.*

This is a nonviolent and gentle way to help our bodies release tension and pain. It is possible to practice mindful breathing in order to produce a feeling of joy, a feeling of happiness. When we are well-nourished and know how to create joy, then we are strong enough to handle the deep pain within ourselves and the world.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh from Good Citizens: Creating Enlightened Society

Daily Zen Quote - December 9, 2015

“Does one really have to fret
About enlightenment?
No matter what road I travel,
I’m going home.”
~ Shinsho

Daily Zen Quote - December 8, 2015

“Sharpen your sword daily , and let it serve your true master: YOU. You and the Master are one”
~ Vernon Kitabu Turner

Daily Zen Quote - December 7, 2015

“It is not enough to believe in yourself alone; there will come a day when you will fail yourself. That is why we must also believe in a supportive power beyond our control - a safety net, a super intelligence - or there is no hope for the moment when all our strength is gone.”
~ Vernon Kitabu Turner from Soul Sword, 2nd Edition: The Way and Mind of a Zen Warrior

Daily Zen Quote - December 6, 2015

“As a soul, you have the freedom – and earned responsibility – to transpose your personal process of evolution, to manifest your greatest talents and vision, into the work that matters to you most as a means to personal redemption.”
~ Darrell Calkins

Daily Zen Quote - December 5, 2015

“You know you have arrived when you have stopped caring about the destination”
~ Srividya Srinivasan

Daily Zen Quote - December 4, 2015

“There’s surprising relief and regeneration in finding ourselves within a moment of genuine grace, however small or temporary it may be.”
~ Darrell Calkins

Daily Zen Quote - December 3, 2015

“In Zen, there is an old saying: The obstacle is the path. Know that a whole and happy life is not free of obstacles. Quite the contrary, a whole and happy life is riddled with obstacles-they simply become the very stepping-stones that help lift us to a new perspective. It is not what happens to us in this life that shapes us, it is how we choose to respond to what happens to us.”
~ Dennis Merritt Jones from The Art of Being: 101 Ways to Practice Purpose in Your Life

Daily Zen Quote - December 2, 2015

“Letting go takes a lot of courage sometimes. But once you let go, happiness comes very quickly. You won't have to go around search for it.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh

Daily Zen Quote - December 1, 2015

“Two monks were once traveling together down a wet and muddy road. The rain was torrential, making it almost impossible to walk along the path. As the two men were trudging along, a beautiful girl dressed in silk appeared. She was unable to cross the path and looked distressed.

“Let me help you”, said the older monk. He picked her up and carried her over the mud. His younger male companion did not utter a word that night until they reached their lodging temple. Then after hours of restrained conversation, the younger monk exclaimed: “We monks do not touch females; it is too tempting for us and can create a bad outcome”. The older monk looked into the younger monks eyes and said, “I left the girl on the road. Are you still carrying her?”

This ancient Zen story illustrates beautifully how so many of us are trapped in the habit of constantly “re-living” the past in our minds, thus dishonoring the present moment. The young monk wasted hours distressing himself with judgment, speculation, anxiety, resentment and ultimately self-perpetuated unhappiness as a direct result of not being mindful.”
~ Christopher Dines from Mindfulness Meditation: Bringing Mindfulness into Everyday Life

Daily Zen Quote - November 30, 2015

“All you do is think. Because all you do is think, you've constructed two separate worlds—one inside your head and one outside. Just the fact that you tolerate this enormous dissonance—why, that's a great intangible failure already.”
~ Natsume Sōseki from And Then

Daily Zen Quote - November 29, 2015

“There is nowhere to arrive except the present moment.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh from How to Sit

Daily Zen Quote - November 28, 2015

“Every hour of your life that ticks by, there are numerous points and moments when you can choose to pause - and be aware of your mental and physical state. At any given point, you can freeze the flow that is your life, and be fully conscious for a moment.”
~ Kevin Michel from Moving Through Parallel Worlds To Achieve Your Dreams

Daily Zen Quote - November 27, 2015

“The mind's best trick is the illusion that it exists.”
~ Marty Rubin

Daily Zen Quote - November 26, 2015

“You are not your thoughts!! This simple yet powerful statement can greatly change the quality of your life.”
~ Dawn Gluskin

Daily Zen Quote - November 25, 2015

“You can be happy if you are willing to let go of your past and leave yourself unencumbered so you can fly freely.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - November 24, 2015

“Who you allow into the circle of your life will make the difference in the quality of your life.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - November 23, 2015

“Anywhere we go, we will have our self with us; we cannot escape ourselves.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh

Daily Zen Quote - November 22, 2015

“If the eye never sleeps,
all dreams will naturally cease.
If the mind makes no discriminations,
the ten thousand things are as they are,
of single essence.
To understand the mystery of this One essence
is to be released from all entanglements.
When all things are seen equally
the timeless Self-essence is reached.
No comparisons or analogies are possible in this causeless, relationless state.

Consider movement stationary
and the stationary in motion,
both movement and rest disappear.
When such dualities cease to exist
Oneness itself cannot exist.
To this ultimate finality
no law or description applies.”
~ Seng-Ts0an

Daily Zen Quote - November 21, 2015

“It is not enough to believe in yourself alone; there will come a day when you will fail yourself. That is why we must also believe in a supportive power beyond our control - a safety net, a super intelligence - or there is no hope for the moment when all our strength is gone.”
~ Vernon Kitabu Turner from Soul Sword, 2nd Edition: The Way and Mind of a Zen Warrior

Daily Zen Quote - November 20, 2015

“Sharpen your sword daily , and let it serve your true master: YOU. You and the Master are one”
~ Vernon Kitabu Turner

Daily Zen Quote - November 19, 2015

“To speak conventionally - and I think it is easier for the general reader to see Zen thus presented - there are unknown recesses in our minds which lie beyond the threshold of the relatively constructed consciousness. To designate them as “sub-consciousness” or “supra-consciousness” is not correct. The word “beyond” is used simply because it is a most convenient term to indicate their whereabouts. But as a matter of fact there is no “beyond”, no “underneath”, no “upon” in our consciousness. The mind is one indivisible whole and cannot be torn in pieces. The so-called terra incognita is the concession of Zen to our ordinary way of talking, because whatever field of consciousness that is known to us is generally filled with conceptual riffraff, and to get rid of them, which is absolutely necessary for maturing Zen experience, the Zen psychologist sometimes points to the presence of some inaccessible region in our minds. Though in actuality there is no such region apart from our everyday consciousness, we talk of it as generally more easily comprehensible by us.”
~ D.T. Suzuki from An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

Daily Zen Quote - November 18, 2015

“We grow up to believe that we are supposed to somehow "become" who we are meant to be through the trial-by-fire that is life here on planet Earth.

Reality is...there's no "becoming".

It's actually all an "un-becoming", only to reunite with who you were born to be in the first place before society told you otherwise.”
~ Jennifer Sodini

Daily Zen Quote - November 17, 2015

“*Breathing in, I know this is my in-breath.
Breathing out, I know this is my out-breath.*

It's very simple, but very effective. When we bring our attention to our in-breath and our out-breath, we stop thinking of the past; we stop thinking of the future; and we begin to come home to ourselves...Don't think this practice doesn't apply to you. If we don't go home to ourselves, we can't be at our best and serve the world in the best way... Our quality of being is the foundation for the quality of our actions.

*Breathing in, I'm aware of my whole body.
Breathing out, I'm aware of my whole body.*

Breathing mindfully brings us back to our bodies. We have to acknowledge our bodies first because tension and suffering accumulate in the body. Breathing in this way, we create a kind of family reunion between mind and body. The mind becomes an embodied mind.

...We can't do our best if we don't know to release the tension and pain in ourselves.

*Breathing in, I'm aware of the tension in my body.
Breathing out, I'm aware of the tension in my body.*

When we look at the suffering around us, at poverty, violence, or climate change, we may want to solve these things immediately. We want to do something. But to do something effectively and ethically, we need to be our best selves in order to be able to handle the suffering...

*Breathing in, I am aware of a painful feeling arising.
Breathing out, I release the painful feeling.*

This is a nonviolent and gentle way to help our bodies release tension and pain. It is possible to practice mindful breathing in order to produce a feeling of joy, a feeling of happiness. When we are well-nourished and know how to create joy, then we are strong enough to handle the deep pain within ourselves and the world.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh from Good Citizens: Creating Enlightened Society

Daily Zen Quote - November 16, 2015

“If you have mindfulness, if you feel safe, you recognize that you have plenty of conditions to be happy already, and that you don't need to run into the future in order to get a few more conditions.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh from Good Citizens: Creating Enlightened Society

Daily Zen Quote - November 15, 2015

“You know you have arrived when you have stopped caring about the destination”
~ Srividya Srinivasan

Daily Zen Quote - November 14, 2015

“If the eye never sleeps,
all dreams will naturally cease.
If the mind makes no discriminations,
the ten thousand things are as they are,
of single essence.
To understand the mystery of this One essence
is to be released from all entanglements.
When all things are seen equally
the timeless Self-essence is reached.
No comparisons or analogies are possible
in this causeless, relation-less state.

Consider movement stationary
and the stationary in motion,
both movement and rest disappear.
When such dualities cease to exist
Oneness itself cannot exist.
To this ultimate finality
no law or description applies.”
~ Sengcan

Daily Zen Quote - November 13, 2015

“Every hour of your life that ticks by, there are numerous points and moments when you can choose to pause - and be aware of your mental and physical state. At any given point, you can freeze the flow that is your life, and be fully conscious for a moment.”
~ Kevin Michel from Moving Through Parallel Worlds To Achieve Your Dreams

Daily Zen Quote - November 12, 2015

“Before we were born we had no feeling; we were one with the universe. This is called "mind-only," or "essence of mind," or "big mind," After we are separated by birth from this oneness, as the water falling from the waterfall is separated by the wind and rocks, then we have feeling. You have difficulty because you have feeling. You attach to the feeling you have without knowing just how this kind of feeling is created. When you do not realize that you are one with the river, or one with the universe, you have fear. Whether it is separated into drops or not, water is water. Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this fact we have no fear of death anymore, and we have no actual difficulty in our life.”
~ Shunryu Suzuki

Daily Zen Quote - November 11, 2015

“Life is eternal game, there are no rules. Indulge yourself.”
~ Osh Marty

Daily Zen Quote - November 10, 2015

“One master defines Zen as the art of feeling the polar star in the southern sky. Truth can be reached only through the comprehension of opposites.”
~ Okakura Kakuzō from The Book of Tea

Daily Zen Quote - November 9, 2015

“In Zen, there is an old saying: The obstacle is the path. Know that a whole and happy life is not free of obstacles. Quite the contrary, a whole and happy life is riddled with obstacles-they simply become the very stepping-stones that help lift us to a new perspective. It is not what happens to us in this life that shapes us, it is how we choose to respond to what happens to us.”
~ Dennis Merritt Jones from The Art of Being: 101 Ways to Practice Purpose in Your Life

Daily Zen Quote - November 8, 2015

“There’s surprising relief and regeneration in finding ourselves within a moment of genuine grace, however small or temporary it may be.”
~ Darrell Calkins

Daily Zen Quote - November 7, 2015

“The idea of Zen is to catch life as it flows. There is nothing extraordinary or mysterious about Zen. I raise my hand ; I take a book from the other side of the desk ; I hear the boys playing ball outside my window; I see the clouds blown away beyond the neighboring wood: — in all these I am practicing Zen, I am living Zen. No wordy discussions is necessary, nor any explanation. I do not know why — and there is no need of explaining, but when the sun rises the whole world dances with joy and everybody’s heart is filled with bliss. If Zen is at all conceivable, it must be taken hold of here.”
~ D.T. Suzuki from An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

Daily Zen Quote - November 6, 2015

“To think, or not to think...This is the true question.”
~ Bert McCoy

Daily Zen Quote - November 5, 2015

“Stay in the center, and you will be ready to move in any direction.”
~ Alan W. Watts

Daily Zen Quote - November 4, 2015

“There is nowhere to arrive except the present moment.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh from How to Sit

Daily Zen Quote - November 3, 2015

“Before we were born we had no feeling; we were one with the universe. This is called "mind-only," or "essence of mind," or "big mind," After we are separated by birth from this oneness, as the water falling from the waterfall is separated by the wind and rocks, then we have feeling. You have difficulty because you have feeling. You attach to the feeling you have without knowing just how this kind of feeling is created. When you do not realize that you are one with the river, or one with the universe, you have fear. Whether it is separated into drops or not, water is water. Our life and death are the same thing. When we realize this fact we have no fear of death anymore, and we have no actual difficulty in our life.”
~ Shunryu Suzuki

Daily Zen Quote - November 2, 2015

“Be aware of yourself without thinking or looking in the mirror”
~ Bert McCoy

Daily Zen Quote - November 1, 2015

“Anywhere we go, we will have our self with us; we cannot escape ourselves.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh

Daily Zen Quote - October 31, 2015

“All other creatures look down toward the earth, but man was given a face so that might turn his eyes toward the stars and his gaze upon the sky.”
~ Ovid

Daily Zen Quote - October 30, 2015

“The object of our lives is to look at, listen to, touch, taste things. Without them—these sticks, stones, feathers, shells—there is no Deity.”
~ R.H. Blyth by Zen in English Literature & Oriental Classics

Daily Zen Quote - October 29, 2015

“For eternally and always there is only now, one and the same now; the present is the only thing that has no end.”
~ Alan W. Watts from The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are

Daily Zen Quote - October 28, 2015

“Life is a river," a wise friend told me. "It's flowing. You're never at the same place twice.”
~ Kamal Ravikant from Live Your Truth

Daily Zen Quote - October 27, 2015

“The glass is neither half empty, nor half full. The glass is just a glass and it's content can perpetually change with your perception.”
~ Jennifer Sodini

Daily Zen Quote - October 26, 2015

“We should live every day like people who have just been rescued from the moon.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh by No Death, No Fear

Daily Zen Quote - October 25, 2015

“What is a course of history, or philosophy, or poetry, no matter how well selected, or the best society, or the most admirable routine of life, compared with the discipline of looking always at what is to be seen?”
~ Henry David Thoreau by Walden

Daily Zen Quote - October 24, 2015

“When you do something, you should do it with your whole body and mind; you should be concentrated on what you do. You should do it completely, like a good bonfire. You should not be a smoky fire. You should burn yourself completely. If you do not burn yourself completely, a trace of yourself will be left in what you do.”
~ Shunryu Suzuki from Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind

Daily Zen Quote - October 23, 2015

“Problems that remain persistently insoluble should always be suspected as questions asked in the wrong way”
~ Alan W. Watts from The Book on the Taboo Against Knowing Who You Are

Daily Zen Quote - October 22, 2015

“The things I carry are my thoughts. That's it. They are the only weight. My thoughts determine whether I am free and light or burdened.”
~ Kamal Ravikant from Live Your Truth

Daily Zen Quote - October 21, 2015

“Life is full of highs and lows. We need them both to grow to our fullest potential. Just hang on tight & enjoy the ride.”
~ Dawn Gluskin

Daily Zen Quote - October 20, 2015

“Zen movement is a meditative practice.”
~ Bryant McGill from Simple Reminders: Inspiration for Living Your Best Life

Daily Zen Quote - October 19, 2015

“Mindfulness is attainable when one can embrace life, not its circumstances.”
~ Michelle Cruz-Rosado

Daily Zen Quote - October 18, 2015

“You are not your thoughts!! This simple yet powerful statement can greatly change the quality of your life.”
~ Dawn Gluskin

Daily Zen Quote - October 17, 2015

“The true source of happiness is within each of us.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - October 16, 2015

“But I looked out at the waves far below the bluff. They looked violent, erupting against the cliff. I watched them rising - up, up, higher, higher - then falling, crashing, swirling into chaos, passing away. I breathed deeply. I tried to breathe space between my thoughts, find the space between the anger.”
~ Jaimal Yogis from Saltwater Buddha: A Surfer's Quest to Find Zen on the Sea

Daily Zen Quote - October 15, 2015

“If the feet of enlightenment moved, the great ocean would overflow; If that head bowed, it would look down upon the heavens.
Such a body has no place to rest. . . .
Let another continue this poem.”
~ Paul Reps from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings

Daily Zen Quote - October 14, 2015

“The best way for you to get that new experience is to change your response to what happens.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - October 13, 2015

“If you are surrounded by people who not only don't believe in your goals and your positive outlook on life, but who also continually try to tear you down, it will be extremely challenging for you to hold firmly in mind that you will succeed and that you can be happy.”
~ Chris Prentiss from Zen and the Art of Happiness

Daily Zen Quote - October 12, 2015

“To speak conventionally - and I think it is easier for the general reader to see Zen thus presented - there are unknown recesses in our minds which lie beyond the threshold of the relatively constructed consciousness. To designate them as “sub-consciousness” or “supra-consciousness” is not correct. The word “beyond” is used simply because it is a most convenient term to indicate their whereabouts. But as a matter of fact there is no “beyond”, no “underneath”, no “upon” in our consciousness. The mind is one indivisible whole and cannot be torn in pieces. The so-called Terra incognito is the concession of Zen to our ordinary way of talking, because whatever field of consciousness that is known to us is generally filled with conceptual riffraff, and to get rid of them, which is absolutely necessary for maturing Zen experience, the Zen psychologist sometimes points to the presence of some inaccessible region in our minds. Though in actuality there is no such region apart from our everyday consciousness, we talk of it as generally more easily comprehensible by us.”
~ D.T. Suzuki from An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

Daily Zen Quote - October 11, 2015

“If the eye never sleeps,
all dreams will naturally cease.
If the mind makes no discriminations,
the ten thousand things are as they are,
of single essence.
To understand the mystery of this One essence
is to be released from all entanglements.
When all things are seen equally
the timeless Self-essence is reached.
No comparisons or analogies are possible in this causeless, relation-less state.

Consider movement stationary
and the stationary in motion,
both movement and rest disappear.
When such dualities cease to exist
Oneness itself cannot exist.
To this ultimate finality
no law or description applies.”
~ Seng-Ts0an

Daily Zen Quote - October 10, 2015

“The knowledge of the past stays with us. To let go is simply to release any images and emotions.”
~ Alan W. Watts

Daily Zen Quote - October 9, 2015

“If you have mindfulness, if you feel safe, you recognize that you have plenty of conditions to be happy already, and that you don't need to run into the future in order to get a few more conditions.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh by Good Citizens: Creating Enlightened Society

Daily Zen Quote - October 8, 2015

“We grow up to believe that we are supposed to somehow "become" who we are meant to be through the trial-by-fire that is life here on planet Earth.

Reality is...there's no "becoming".

It's actually all an "un-becoming", only to reunite with who you were born to be in the first place before society told you otherwise.”
~ Jennifer Sodini

Daily Zen Quote - October 7, 2015

“The idea of Zen is to catch life as it flows. There is nothing extraordinary or mysterious about Zen. I raise my hand ; I take a book from the other side of the desk ; I hear the boys playing ball outside my window; I see the clouds blown away beyond the neighboring wood: — in all these I am practicing Zen, I am living Zen. No wordy discussions is necessary, nor any explanation. I do not know why — and there is no need of explaining, but when the sun rises the whole world dances with joy and everybody’s heart is filled with bliss. If Zen is at all conceivable, it must be taken hold of here.”
~ D.T. Suzuki from An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

Daily Zen Quote - October 6, 2015

“Stay in the center, and you will be ready to move in any direction.”
~ Alan W. Watts

Daily Zen Quote - October 5, 2015

“Zen is the period of time during which a person has true clarity of vision.”
~ Dr. Ernst Arnold

Daily Zen Quote - October 4, 2015

“There is nowhere to arrive except the present moment.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh from How to Sit

Daily Zen Quote - October 3, 2015

“Anywhere we go, we will have our self with us; we cannot escape ourselves.”
~ Thích Nhất Hạnh

Daily Zen Quote - October 2, 2015

“There’s surprising relief and regeneration in finding ourselves within a moment of genuine grace, however small or temporary it may be.”
~ Darrell Calkins

Daily Zen Quote - October 1, 2015

“Love always wins over hate”
~ Johnny Corn

Daily Zen Quote - September 30, 2015

“Does one really have to fret
About enlightenment?
No matter what road I travel,
I’m going home.”
~ Shinsho

Daily Zen Quote - September 29, 2015

“If you don’t practice presence, you never learn how to have busyness facilitate accomplishment.”
~ Darrell Calkins

Daily Zen Quote - September 28, 2015

“Sharpen your sword daily , and let it serve your true master: YOU. You and the Master are one”
~ Vernon Kitabu Turner

Daily Zen Quote - September 27, 2015

“It is not enough to believe in yourself alone; there will come a day when you will fail yourself. That is why we must also believe in a supportive power beyond our control - a safety net, a super intelligence - or there is no hope for the moment when all our strength is gone.”
~ Vernon Kitabu Turner from Soul Sword, 2nd Edition: The Way and Mind of a Zen Warrior

Daily Zen Quote - September 26, 2015

“It is not enough to believe in yourself alone; there will come a day when you will fail yourself. That is why we must also believe in a supportive power beyond our control - a safety net, a super intelligence - or there is no hope for the moment when all our strength is gone.”
― Vernon Kitabu Turner from Soul Sword, 2nd Edition: The Way and Mind of a Zen Warrior

Daily Zen Quote - September 25, 2015

“In Zen, there is an old saying: The obstacle is the path. Know that a whole and happy life is not free of obstacles. Quite the contrary, a whole and happy life is riddled with obstacles-they simply become the very stepping-stones that help lift us to a new perspective. It is not what happens to us in this life that shapes us, it is how we choose to respond to what happens to us.”
― Dennis Merritt Jones from The Art of Being: 101 Ways to Practice Purpose in Your Life

Daily Zen Quote - September 24, 2015

“As a soul, you have the freedom – and earned responsibility – to transpose your personal process of evolution, to manifest your greatest talents and vision, into the work that matters to you most as a means to personal redemption.”
― Darrell Calkins

Daily Zen Quote - September 23, 2015

“All you do is think. Because all you do is think, you've constructed two separate worlds—one inside your head and one outside. Just the fact that you tolerate this enormous dissonance—why, that's a great intangible failure already.”
― Natsume Sōseki from And Then

Daily Zen Quote - September 22, 2015

“To think, or not to think...This is the true question.”
― Bert McCoy

Daily Zen Quote - September 21, 2015

“Letting go takes a lot of courage sometimes. But once you let go, happiness comes very quickly. You won't have to go around search for it.”
― Thích Nhất Hạnh

Daily Zen Quote - September 20, 2015

“The eternity of "anytime" shines in this moment "now" while the unlimitedness of "anyplace" is manifested in the limits of "here." When the universality of "anyone" dances out in the individual "I," for the first time you have the world of Zen.”
― Omori Sogen from An Introduction to Zen Training

Daily Zen Quote - September 19, 2015

“Once Seung Sahn Soen-sa and a student of his attended a talk at a Zen center in California. The Dharma teacher spoke about Bodhidharma. After the talk, someone asked him "What's the difference between Bodhidharma's sitting in Sorim for nine years and your sitting here now?"

The Dharma teacher said, "About five thousand miles."
The questioner said, "Is that all?"
The Dharma teacher said, "Give or take a few miles."

Later on, Soen-sa asked his student, "What do you think of these answers?"
"Not bad, not good. But the dog runs after the bone."
"How would you answer?"
"I'd say, 'Why do you make a difference?' "

Soen-sa said, "Not bad. Now you ask me."
"What's the difference between Bodhidharma's sitting in Sorim for nine years and your sitting here now?"
"Don't you know?"
"I'm listening."
"Bodhidharma sat in Sorim for nine years. I am sitting here now."

The student smiled.”
~ Seung Sahn from Dropping Ashes on the Buddha: The Teachings of Zen Master Seung Sahn

Daily Zen Quote - September 18, 2015

“Om is the things, Om is the ingredient, Om is the container and the content of this universe.”
~ Banani Ray from Glory of OM: A Journey to Self-Realization

Daily Zen Quote - September 17, 2015

“The real ugliness lies in the relationship between people who produce the technology and the things they produce, which results in a similar relationship between the people who use the technology and the things they use.”
~ Robert M. Pirsig

Daily Zen Quote - September 16, 2015

“When thought is in bondage the truth is hidden, for everything is murky and unclear, and the burdensome practice of judging brings annoyance and weariness. What benefit can be derived from distinctions and separations?”
~ Sengcan from Hsin Hsin Ming

Daily Zen Quote - September 15, 2015

“The importance and unimportance of the self cannot be exaggerated.”
~ R.H. Blyth

Daily Zen Quote - September 14, 2015

“For the unified mind in accord with the Way all self-centered striving ceases. Doubts and irresolutions vanish and life in true faith is possible. With a single stroke we are freed from bondage; nothing clings to us and we hold nothing. All is empty, clear, self-illuminating, with no exertion of the mind's power.”
~ Sengcan from Hsin Hsin Ming

Daily Zen Quote - September 13, 2015

“Hearing a crow with no mouth
Cry in the deep
Darkness of the night,
I feel a longing for
My father before he was born.”
~ Ikkyu from Crow with No Mouth

Daily Zen Quote - September 12, 2015

“Do not seek for the truth, only stop having an opinion.”
― Seng-Ts'an

Daily Zen Quote - September 11, 2015

“The Great Way is not difficult for those who have no preferences. When love and hate are both absent everything becomes clear and undisguised. Make the smallest distinction, however, and heaven and earth are set infinitely apart. If you wish to see the truth then hold no opinion for or against. The struggle of what one likes and what one dislikes is the disease of the mind.”
~ Sengcan, from Hsin Hsin Ming

Daily Zen Quote - September 10, 2015

“That stone Buddha deserves all the
birdshit it gets
I wave my skinny arms like a tall
flower in the wind”
~ Ikkyu, from Crow with No Mouth

Daily Zen Quote - September 9, 2015

“Humility before the flower at the timber line is the gate which gives access to the path up the open fell.”
~ Dag Hammarskjöld, from Markings

Daily Zen Quote - September 8, 2015

“Earth, mountains, rivers, hidden in this nothingness.
In this nothingness, earth, mountains, rivers revealed.
Spring flowers, winter snows.
There's no being or non-being, nor denial itself.”
~ Saisho Hiroshi

Daily Zen Quote - September 7, 2015

“A pity it is evening, yet
I do love the water of this spring
seeing how clear it is, how clean;
rays of sunset gleam on it,
lighting up its ripples, making it
one with those who travel
the roads; I turn and face
the moon; sing it a song, then
listen to the sound of the wind
amongst the pines.”
~ Li Bai

Daily Zen Quote - September 6, 2015

“A falcon hovers at the edge of the sky.
Two gulls drift slowly up the river.

Vulnerable while they ride the wind,
they coast and glide with ease.

Dew is heavy on the grass below,
the spider's web is ready.

Heaven's ways include the human:
among a thousand sorrows, I stand alone.”
~ Du Fu

Daily Zen Quote - September 5, 2015

“To deny the reality of things is to miss their reality; to assert the emptiness of things is to miss their reality. The more you talk and think about it, the further astray you wander from the truth. Stop talking and thinking and there is nothing you will not be able to know.”
~ Sengcan, Hsin Hsin Ming

Daily Zen Quote - September 4, 2015

“When you paint Spring, do not paint willows, plums, peaches, or apricots, but just paint Spring. To paint willows, plums, peaches, or apricots is to paint willows, plums, peaches, or apricots - it is not yet painting Spring.”
~ Dōgen

Daily Zen Quote - September 3, 2015

“Pardon all runners,
All speechless, alien winds,
All mad waters.

Pardon their impulses,
Their wild attitudes,
Their young flights, their reticence.

When a message has no clothes on
How can it be spoken.”
~ Thomas Merton

Daily Zen Quote - September 2, 2015

“What we can change is our perceptions, which have the effect of changing everything.”
~ Donna Quesada, Buddha in the Classroom: Zen Wisdom to Inspire Teachers

Daily Zen Quote - September 1, 2015

“The baby looks at things all day without winking; that is because his eyes are not focused on any particular object. He goes without knowing where he is going, and stops without knowing what he is doing. He merges himself within the surroundings and moves along with it. These are the principles of mental hygiene.”
~ Zhuangzi

Daily Zen Quote - August 31, 2015

“Zen is a liberation from time. For if we open our eyes and see clearly, it becomes obvious that there is no other time than this instant, and that the past and the future are abstractions without any concrete reality.”
~ Alan W. Watts

Daily Zen Quote - August 30, 2015

“When you blame, you open up a world of excuses, because as long as you're looking outside, you miss the opportunity to look inside, and you continue to suffer.”
~ Donna Quesada, Buddha in the Classroom: Zen Wisdom to Inspire Teachers

Daily Zen Quote - August 29, 2015

“Too lazy to be ambitious,
I let the world take care of itself.
Ten days' worth of rice in my bag;
a bundle of twigs by the fireplace.
Why chatter about delusion and enlightenment?
Listening to the night rain on my roof,
I sit comfortably, with both legs stretched out.”
~ Ryokan

Daily Zen Quote - August 28, 2015

“When you catch yourself slipping into a pool of negativity, notice how it derives from nothing other than resistance to the current situation.”
~ Donna Quesada, Buddha in the Classroom: Zen Wisdom to Inspire Teachers

Daily Zen Quote - August 27, 2015

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few”
~ Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice

Daily Zen Quote - August 26, 2015

“The point of the spiritual life is to realize Truth. But you will never understand the spiritual life, or realize Truth, if you measure it by your own yardstick.”
~ Dainin Katagiri

Daily Zen Quote - August 25, 2015

“When mind exists undisturbed in the Way, nothing in the world can offend, and when a thing can no longer offend it ceases to exist in the old way. When no discriminating thoughts arise, the old mind ceases to exist.”
~ Sengcan, Hsin Hsin Ming

Daily Zen Quote - August 24, 2015

“Here's an example: someone says, "Master, please hand me the knife," and he hands them the knife, blade first. "Please give me the other end," he says. And the master replies, "What would you do with the other end?" This is answering an everyday matter in terms of the metaphysical.

When the question is, "Master, what is the fundamental principle of Buddhism?" Then he replies, "There is enough breeze in this fan to keep me cool." That is answering the metaphysical in terms of the everyday, and that is, more or less, the principle zen works on. The mundane and the sacred are one and the same.”
~ Alan W. Watts, What Is Zen?

Daily Zen Quote - August 23, 2015

“Who we are now is all that really matters.”
~ Amy Joy, The Academie

Daily Zen Quote - August 22, 2015

“Consider your own place in the universal oneness of which we are all a part, from which we all arise, and to which we all return.”
~ David Fontana

Daily Zen Quote - August 21, 2015

“In pale moonlight / the wisteria's scent / comes from far away.”
~ Yosa Buson

Daily Zen Quote - August 20, 2015

“Preoccupied with a single leaf you won't see the tree.”
~ Vagabond

Daily Zen Quote - August 19, 2015

“When composing a verse let there not be a hair's breath separating your mind from what you write; composition of a poem must be done in an instant, like a woodcutter felling a huge tree or a swordsman leaping at a dangerous enemy.”
 ~ Matsuo Bashō

Daily Zen Quote - August 18, 2015

“The ultimate goal of farming is not the growing of crops, but the cultivation and perfection of human beings.”
~ Masanobu Fukuoka from The One-Straw Revolution

Daily Zen Quote - August 17, 2015

“A student, filled with emotion and crying, implored, "Why is there so much suffering?"
Suzuki Roshi replied, "No reason.”
~ Shunryu Suzuki from Zen is Right Here: Teaching Stories and Anecdotes of Shunryu Suzuki, Author of "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind"

Daily Zen Quote - August 16, 2015

“Like vanishing dew,
a passing apparition
or the sudden flash
of lightning -- already gone --
thus should one regard one's self.”

~ Ikkyu

Daily Zen Quote - August 15, 2015

“Where there are humans,
You'll find flies,
And Buddhas.”
~ Kobayashi Issa

Daily Zen Quote - August 14, 2015

“If you are unable to find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?”
~ Dōgen

Daily Zen Quote - August 13, 2015

“Haiku is not a shriek, a howl, a sigh, or a yawn; rather, it is the deep breath of life.”
  ~ Santoka Taneda from Mountain Tasting: Haiku and Journals of Santoka Taneda

Daily Zen Quote - August 12, 2015

“Not thinking about anything is Zen. Once you know this, walking, sitting, or lying down, everything you do is Zen.”
~ Bodhidharma from The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma

Daily Zen Quote - August 11, 2015

“Only the hand that erases can write the true thing.”
~ Meister Eckhart 

Daily Zen Quote - August 10, 2015

“The way out is through the door. Why is it that no one will use this method?”
~ Confucius 

Apology

Apologies for not posting over the last couple of days, personal issues. But now I am back and ready for daily updates again!

Daily Zen Quote - August 8, 2015

Taking steps in mindfulness
is an act of liberation.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 7, 2015

There is no distinction
between means and ends.
There is no way to happiness;
happiness is the way.
There is no way to enlightment;
enlightenment is the way.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 6, 2015

We're not just trying to run away from suffering.
We want to transform our own suffering and be
free in order to help other people
transform their suffering.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 5, 2015

Our practice is based on the insight
of nonduality - anger is not an enemy.
Both mindfulness and anger
are ourselves. The energy of anger is
recognized and embraced tenderly
by the energy of mindfulness.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 4, 2015

Every time we make a mindful step,
we are engaged in an act of enlightenment.
We can be enlightened about the fact
that we are making a step.
Each step can have beauty in it.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 3, 2015

Breathing in, I see myself as a flower.
Breathing out, I feel fresh.
Breathing in, I see myself
as a moutain.
Breathing out, I feel solid.
Breathing in, I see myself as space.
Breathing out, I feel free.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 2, 2015

Within the seed of mindfulness is the seed
of concentration. With these two energies,
we can liberate ourselves from afflications.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - August 1, 2015

When we look deeply
at a flower, we can see
the whole cosmos
is contained in it.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - July 31, 2015

Life is present in this moment.
Every breath brings me back to the
present moment to be in touch with life.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - July 30, 2015

We know very well that the present moment is
the only moment when we can get in touch with life.
The past is now here anymore. And the future
isn't here yet. Only the present moment is real.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - July 29, 2015

Practicing mindfulness I can recognize
what is happening in the present without
grasping or aversion, without judgement or
reaction. This helps me to keep stability
and freedom alive within myself.

~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - July 28, 2015

Mindful breathing is the basis
of mindfulness practice.
When we practice mindful breathing,
we bring our mind back to our
body and establish
our true presence.
~ Thich Nhat Hanh 

Daily Zen Quote - July 27, 2015

The world of peace and joy is at our fingertips. We only need to touch it.
~Thich Nhat Hanh

Daily Zen Quote - July 26, 2015

“I'm simply saying that there is a way to be sane. I'm saying that you can get rid of all this insanity created by the past in you. Just by being a simple witness of your thought processes.

It is simply sitting silently, witnessing the thoughts, passing before you. Just witnessing, not interfering not even judging, because the moment you judge you have lost the pure witness. The moment you say “this is good, this is bad,” you have already jumped onto the thought process.

It takes a little time to create a gap between the witness and the mind. Once the gap is there, you are in for a great surprise, that you are not the mind, that you are the witness, a watcher.

And this process of watching is the very alchemy of real religion. Because as you become more and more deeply rooted in witnessing, thoughts start disappearing. You are, but the mind is utterly empty.

That’s the moment of enlightenment. That is the moment that you become for the first time an unconditioned, sane, really free human being."

~ Osho

Daily Zen Quote - July 25, 2015

“Life is more or less a lie, but then again, that's exactly the way we want it to be.”
~ Bob Dylan

Daily Zen Quote - July 24, 2015

“Man suffers only because he takes seriously what the gods made for fun.”

~ Alan W. Watts

Daily Zen Quote - July 23, 2015

“Life is a journey. Time is a river. The door is ajar”

~ Jim Butcher, Dead Beat

Daily Zen Quote - July 22, 2015

“Learning to let go should be learned before learning to get. Life should be touched, not strangled. You’ve got to relax, let it happen at times, and at others move forward with it.”
~ Ray Bradbury 

Daily Zen Quote - July 21, 2015

“Walk as if you are kissing the Earth with your feet.”

From - Thich Nhat Hang, Peace is Every Step: The Path of Mindfulness in Everyday Life 

Daily Zen Quote - July 20, 2015

“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing
and right doing there is a field.
I'll meet you there.

When the soul lies down in that grass
the world is too full to talk about.”

~Rumi

Small Update

While I did enjoy posting only Buddha quotes for the past few months, I feel that a change is needed. I will still be updating daily, or as much as I can but now the quotes will not be specifically from Buddha himself.
Hope everyone continues to enjoy this blog and if you have any suggestions as to what else you want to see posted here then please feel free to leave a comment on this blog.

Sayings of Buddha - July 18, 2015

The mind is everything. What you think you become.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - July 17, 2015

To keep the body in good health is a duty... otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - July 16, 2015

There is no fire like passion, there is no shark like hatred, there is no snare like folly, there is no torrent like greed.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - July 15, 2015

What is the appropriate behavior for a man or a woman in the midst of this world, where each person is clinging to his piece of debris? What's the proper salutation between people as they pass each other in this flood?
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - July 14, 2015

When one has the feeling of dislike for evil, when one feels tranquil, one finds pleasure in listening to good teachings; when one has these feelings and appreciates them, one is free of fear.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 13, 2015

Though one may conquer a thousand times a thousand men in battle,
yet he indeed is the noblest victor who conquers himself.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 12, 2015

Look within.
Be still.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 11, 2015

Just as a tree,
though cut down,
sprouts up again if its roots remain uncut and firm,
even so, until the craving that lies dormant is rooted out,
suffering springs up again and again.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 10, 2015

Your worst enemy cannot harm you as much as your own thoughts,
unguarded.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 9, 2015

Easy to do are things that are bad and harmful to oneself.
But exceedingly difficult to do things that are good and beneficial.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 8, 2015

Learn this from the waters;
in mountain clefts and chasms,
loud gush the streamless,
but great rivers flow silently.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 7, 2015

Whatever an enemy might do to an enemy,
or a foe to a foe,
the ill-directed mind can do to you even worse.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 6, 2015

Better it is to live one day seeing the rise and fall of things than to live a hundred years without ever seeing the rise and fall of things.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 5, 2015

How long the night to the watchman,
how long the road to the weary traveler,
how long the wandering of many lives to the fool who misses the way.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 4, 2015

Knowing that the other person is angry,
one who remains mindful and calm acts for his own interest and for the other's interest too.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 3, 2015

Were there a mountain made of gold,
doubled that would not be enough to satisfy a single man:
know this and live accordingly.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - July 2, 2015

Make an island of yourself;
make yourself your refuge;
there is no other refuge.
Make truth your island,
make truth your refuge;
there is no other refuge.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - July 1, 2015

Wonderful it is to train the mind so swiftly moving,
seizing whatever it wants.
Good is to have a well-trained mind,
for a well-trained mind brings happiness.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 30, 2015

Overcome the angry of non-anger;
overcome the wicked by goodness;
overcome the mister by generosity;
overcome the liar by truth.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 29, 2015

With good will for the entire cosmos,
cultivate a limitless heart;
above, below and all around,
unobstructed, without hostility or hate.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 28, 2015

If he makes himself as good as he tells others to be,
then he in truth can teach others.
Difficult indeed is self-control.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 27, 2015

The glorious chariots of kinds wear out,
and the body wears out and grows old;
but the virtue of the good never grows old.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 26, 2015

Do not live in the world,
in distraction and false dreams,
outside the dharma.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 25, 2015

One truly is the protector of oneself;
who else could the protector be?
With oneself fully controlled,
one gains a mastery that is hard to gain.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 24, 2015

If a man going down into a river,
swollen and swiftly flowing,
is carried away by the current --
how can he help others across?
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 23, 2015

Just as solid rock is not shaken by the storm,
even so the wise are not affected by praise or blame.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 22, 2015

Nothing brings joy as does a tamed, controlled, attended, and restrained heart.
This heart brings joy.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 21, 2015

Corporeality is transient,
feeling is transient,
perception is transient,
mental formations are transient,
consciouness is transient.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 20, 2015

Do not what is evil.
So what is good.
Keep your mind pure.
This is the teaching.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 19, 2015

Yet the Teaching is simple.
Do what is right.
Be pure.
At the end of the way is freedom.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 18, 2015

Watch the thought and its ways with care,
and let it spring from love born out of concern for all beings.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 17, 2015

There is no fire like passion,
there is no shark like hatred,
there is no snare like folly,
there is no torrent like greed.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 16, 2015

Let a man overcome anger by love.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 15, 2015

He who for the sake of happiness hurts others who also want happiness,
shall not hereafter find happiness.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 14, 2015

As the shadow follows the body,
as we think,
so we become.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 13, 2015

Nothing is infallible.
Nothing is binding forever.
Every thing is subject to inquiry and examination.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - June 12, 2015

Ye must leave righteous ways behind,
not to speak of unrighteous ways.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 11, 2015

His success may be great,
but be it ever so great the wheel of fortune may turn again and bring him down into the dust.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 10, 2015

The fool laughs at generosity.
The miser cannot enter Heaven.
But the master finds joy in giving and happiness is his reward.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 9, 2015

The farmer channels water to his land.
The fletcher whittles his arrows.
And the carpenter turns his wood.
So the wise man directs his mind.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 8, 2015

Let a man avoid evil deeds as a man who loves life avoids poison.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 7, 2015

A good friend who points out mistakes and imperfections and rebukes evil is to be respected as if he reveals a secret of hidden treasure.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 6, 2015

It is you who must make the effort.
Masters only point the way.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 5, 2015

Good men and bad men differ radically.
Bad men never appreciate kindness shown them,
but wise men appreciate and are graceful.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 4, 2015

If you are happy at the expense of another man's happiness,
you are forever bound.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 3, 2015

Follow the way of virtue.
Follow the way joyfully through this world and beyond.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 2, 2015

If the traveler cannot find master or friend to go with him,
let him travel alone rather than with a fool for company.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - June 1, 2015

The rain could turn to gold and still your thirst would not be slaked.
Desire is unquenchable or it ends in tears, even in heaven.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 31, 2015

Live joyfully, without desire.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 30, 2015

Endurance is one of the most difficult disciplines,
but it is to the one who endures that the final victory comes.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 29, 2015

Does the spoon taste the soup?
A fool may life all his life in the company of a master and still miss the way.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 28, 2015

Be quick to do good.
If you are slow,
the mind,
delighting in mischief,
will catch you.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 27, 2015

Beware of the anger of the mind.
Master your thoughts.
Let them serve truth.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 26, 2015

A wise man,
recognizing that the world is but an illusion,
does not act as if it is real,
so he escapes the suffering.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 25, 2015

Happiness or sorrow - whatever befalls you,
walk on untouched, unattached.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 24, 2015

One is not low because of birth nor does birth make one holy.
Deeds alone make one low, deeds alone make one holy.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 23, 2015

Beware of the anger of the mouth.
Master your words.
Let them serve truth.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 22, 2015

For a while the fool's mischief tastes sweet,
sweet as honey.
But in the end it turns bitter.
And how bitterly he suffered!
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 21, 2015

The greatest impurity is ignorance.
Free yourself from it.
Be pure.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 20, 2015

The wind cannot overturn a mountain.
Temptation cannot touch the man who is awake, strong, and humble,
who masters himself and minds the law.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 19, 2015

Beware of the anger of the body.
Master the body.
Let it serve truth.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 18, 2015

"As I am, so are others; as others are, so am I."
Having thus identified self and others, harm no one nor have them harmed.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 17, 2015

Awake.
Be the witness of your thoughts.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 16, 2015

Do what you have to do resolutely, with all your heart.
The traveler who hesitates only raises dust on the road.
~ Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 15, 2015

Fresh milk takes time to sour.
So a fool's mischief takes time to catch up with him.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - May 14, 2015

Be kind to all creatures; this is the true religion.
~Buddha

Update & Apologizes

First and foremost, let me apologize for not updating this blog in over a month. It was not my intention to allow this blog to go this long without a post and for that I am sincerely sorry.

Life decided to rear its ugly head at me, or so the saying goes I believe; as the past month has been a little bit less than calm and peaceful for me.

With family issues, issues with my health (nothing bad I promise) and issues with my grandfather's health; I have had pretty much no time to myself. The first two weeks of April were spent with me just being sick due to overstress and not taking care of myself like I should have. Then the family issues came up and then it just seemed like one thing after another seem to keep popping up.

But now everything seems to be calming down now, I believe that I begin focusing on my blogs and writing again. Oh writing, how I have missed you.

Anyway I won't make this update any longer than it has to be but rest assured that there will be a quote update later today and hopefully there will be one everyday from now on. Again I apologize for not updating but as far as I know I can go back to my regular schedule. :-)

Until next time!

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 31, 2015

The true master lives in truth,
in goodness and restraint,
non-violence,
moderation,
and purity.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 30, 2015

There is pleasure and there is bliss.
Forgo the first to possess the second.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 29, 2015

Look not to the faults of others,
not to their omissions and commissions.
But rather look to your own acts,
to what you have done and left undone.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 28, 2015

Free from passion and desire,
you have stripped the thorns from the stem.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 27, 2015

How easy it is to see your brother's faults,
how hard it is to face your own.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 26, 2015

Understand that the body is merely the foam of a wave,
the shadow of a shadow.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 25, 2015

Whoever is master of his own nature,
bright,
clear,
and true,
he may indeed wear the yellow robe.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 24, 2015

The ignorant man is an ox.
He grows in size, not in wisdom.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 23, 2015

How easily the wind overturns a frail tree.
Seek happiness in the senses,
indulge in food and sleep,
and you too will be uprooted.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 22, 2015

The wise have mastered body, word and mind.
They are the true masters.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 21, 2015

Let no one deceive another or despise anyone anywhere,
or through anger or irritation wish for another to suffer.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 20, 2015

Desire never crosses the path of virtuous and wakeful men.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 19, 2015

Let go of anger.
Let go of pride.
When you are bound by nothing you go beyond sorrow.
~Buddha

Sayings of Budda - Mar. 18, 2015

May all beings be happy at heart.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 17, 2015

With gentleness overcome anger.
With generosity overcome meanness.
With truth overcome deceit.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 16, 2015

The greatest prayer is patience.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 15, 2015

On a long journey of human life, faith is the best of companions; it is the best refreshment on the journey; and it is the greater property.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 14, 2015

Neither fire nor wind, birth nor death can erase our good deeds.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 13, 2015

The fragrance of sandalwood and rosebay does not travel far. But the fragrance of virtue rises to the heavens.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 12, 2015

It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 11, 2015

If he is a good man, a man of faith, honored and prosperous, wherever he goes he is welcome.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 10, 2015

If desires are not uprooted, sorrows grow again in you.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 9, 2015

It is better to do nothing than to do what is wrong. For whatever you do, you do to yourself.

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 8, 2015

Hold fast to Truth as a lamp; hold fast to the truth as a refuge.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 7, 2015

Winning gives birth to hostility. Losing, one lies down in pain.
The calmed lie down with ease, having set winning and losing aside.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 6, 2015

Every human being is the author of his own health and disease.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 5, 2015

To share happiness, and to have done something good before leaving this life is sweet.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 4, 2015

You are the source of all purity and impurity. No one purifies another.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 3, 2015

You too shall pass away. Knowing this, how can you quarrel?
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 2, 2015

Crushing out of conceit "I am" -- This is the highest happiness.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Mar. 1, 2015

Your work is to discover your work and then with all your heart to give yourself to it.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 28, 2015

To keep the body in good health is a duty...otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 27, 2015

Having compassion for all beings, rich and poor alike; each has their suffering.
Some suffer too much, others too little.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 26, 2015

To conquer oneself is a greater task than conquering others.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 25, 2015

Teach this triple truth to all: a generous heart, kind speech, and a life of service and compassion are the things that renew humanity.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 24, 2015

A jug fills drop by drop.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 22, 2015

You cannot travel the path until you have become the path itself.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 23, 2015

Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and you own common sense.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 21, 2015

A dog is not considered a good dog because he is a good barker.
A man is not considered a good man because he is a good talker.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 20, 2015

Look not for recognition but follow the awakened and set yourself free.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 18, 2015

To understand everything is to forgive everything.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 19, 2015

Why do what you will regret? Why bring tears upon yourself? Do only what you do not regret and fill yourself with joy.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 17, 2015

An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 16, 2015

By your own efforts waken yourself, watch yourself. And live joyfully. You are the master.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 15, 2015

All wrong-doing arises because of mind. If mind is transformed can wrong-doing remain?
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 14, 2015

By your own folly you will be brought as low as your enemy wishes.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 13, 2015

Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 12, 2015

Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only be love; this is the eternal rule.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 11, 2015

To enjoy good health, to bring true happiness to one's family, to bring peace to all, one must first discipline and control one's own mind.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 10, 2015

Those who are free of resentful thoughts surely find peace.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 9, 2015

We are shaped by our thoughts, we become what we think.
When the mind is pure, joy follows
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 8, 2015

There has to be evil so that good can prove its purity above it.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 7, 2014

There is nothing more dreadful than the habit of doubt. Doubt separates people. It is a poison that disintergrates friendships and breaks up pleasant relations.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 6, 2015

The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 5, 2015

As a mother would risk her life to protect her child, her only child, even so should one cultivate a limitless heart with regard to all beings.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 4, 2015

The way is not in the sky.
The way is in the heart.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 3, 2015

There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth; not going all the way, and not starting.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 2, 2015

The tongue like a sharp knife...kills without drawing blood.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Feb. 1, 2015

The virtues, like the Muses, are always seen in groups. A good principle was never found in solitary in any breast.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 31, 2015

The mind is everything.
What you think you become.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 30, 2015

The whole secret of existence is to have no fear. Never fear what will become of you, depend on no one. Only the moment you reject all help are you freed.
~Buddha 

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 29, 2015

The foot feels the foot when it feels the ground.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 28, 2015

When one has the feeling of dislike for evil, when one feels tranquil, one finds pleasure in listening to good teachings; when one has these feelings and appreciates then, one is free of fear.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 27, 2015

Peace comes from within. Do not seek it without.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 26, 2015

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

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 25, 2015

It is better to travel well than to arrive.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 24, 2015

No one saves us but ourselves. No one can and no one may. We ourselves must walk the path.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 23, 2015

You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 22, 2015

You yourself, as much as anybody in the entire universe, deserves your love and affection.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 21, 2015

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

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 20, 2015

Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 19, 2015

An insecure and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 18, 2015

We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 17, 2015

Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 16, 2015

To live a pure unselfish life, one much count nothing as one's own in the midst of abundance.
~ Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 15, 2015

In every trial let understanding fight for you.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 14, 2015

To be idle is a short road to death and to be diligent is a way of life; foolish people are idle, wise people are diligent.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 13, 2015

See the false as false, the true as true. Look into your heart. Follow your nature.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 12, 2015

The wise ones fashioned speech with their thoughts, sifting it as grain is sifted through a sieve.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 11, 2015

I never see what has been done; I only see what remains to be done.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 10, 2015

In the sky, there is no distinction of east and west; people create distinctions out of their own minds and then believe them to be true.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 9, 2015

Speak or act with an impure mind and trouble will follow you.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 8, 2015

I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 7, 2015

Holding on to anger is like grasping at a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else; you are the only one who gets burned.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 6, 2015

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 5, 2015

However many holy words you read, however many you speak, what good will they do you if you do not act upon them?
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 4, 2015

Thousands of candles can be lit from a single candle, and the life of the candle will not be shortened. Happiness never decreases by being shared.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 3, 2015

Chaos is inherent in all compounded things. Strive on with diligence.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 2, 2015

Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment.
~Buddha

Sayings of Buddha - Jan. 1, 2015

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.
~Buddha

Daily Zenscape is coming back!

I've missed putting up zen quotes/sayings on this blog for the past year and I'm looking forward to getting back into it!
I have a new idea for a series for this blog that I've been wanting to try out. So until I run out of quotes all of entries are going to be the Sayings of Buddha.
I don't know how long this series will last but when I get through with it, then I'm going to start another series.
If you have any suggestions then feel free to leave a comment! I love hearing back from my readers!