Other Nuggets

Some quotations and more ideas to contemplate:

Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing and rightdoing,

There is a field, I will meet you there.

When the soul lies down in that grass,

The world is too full to talk about.

Ideas, language, even the phrase "each other"

Doesn't make any sense.

What you practice grows stronger

Be where you are, otherwise you will miss your life

The mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its original dimensions

The miracle is not to walk on water- the miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now; peace is all around us, in the world, in nature, and in us, in our bodies and our spirits; once we learn to touch this peace, we will be healed and transformed

Around us, life bursts with miracles- a glass of water, a ray of sunshine, a leaf, a caterpillar, a flower, laughter, raindrops; if you live in awareness, it is easy to see miracles everywhere; each of us is a multiplicity of miracles; when we are tired and feel discouraged by life's daily struggles, we may not notice these miracles but they are always there...

Nothing has happened in the past, it happened in the Now; nothing will ever happen in the future, it will happen in the Now - realize deeply that the present moment is all you have...

A human being is a part of the whole called by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feeling as something separated from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty.

Eternity is not future or past. Eternity is a dimension of now. It is a dimension of the human spirit - which is eternal. Find that eternal dimension in yourself, and you will ride through time, and throughout the whole length of your days.

If those who lead you say to you, 'See, the kingdom is in the sky,' then the birds of the sky will precede you; if they say to you, 'It is in the sea,' then the fish will precede you; rather, the kingdom is inside of you, and it is outside of you

Knock upon yourself as upon a door, and walk upon yourself as a straight road; for if you walk on that path, you cannot go astray; and when you knock on that door, what you open for yourself shall open

Every moment is your rebirth - your new birth is yours to experience every moment you are alive

Learning to live is learning to let go

Everything one needs to be happy is present at any given moment

In the midst of movement and chaos, keep stillness inside of you

The idea that there is a goal...is wrong; we are the goal; we are always peace; to get rid of the idea that we are not peace is all that is required

What is Zen? Doing one thing at a time

Let the "fruits of the spirit," love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control, be your guide

After practicing mindfulness, a deep vision of reality arises within us, and the capacity of being there, enjoying life in the present moment, liberates us from all impulses and brings us real happiness

The beginning of freedom is the realization that you are not your mind or thoughts; the moment you start watching your mind and thoughts, a different consciousness becomes activated where you begin to realize there is a vast realm of consciousness beyond you that "you" are part of and a manifestation of; and you also realize beauty, love, creativity, joy, and inner peace that arise from beyond your mind; that's when you begin to awaken

The whole world becomes a slave of its own activity; if you want to be truly free, perform all acts as acts of worship

You have to do your own work; those who have reached the goal will only show the way

Do not lose yourself in the past, do not lose yourself in the future, do not get caught up in anger, worries, or fears- come back to the present moment, and touch life deeply

The wise are free of attachments, and act for the well-being of the whole world

The mind is a tool- the question is do you use the tool, or does the tool use you?

If you control your mind, you control the world

Yes, we need the mind and time to function in this world, but there comes a point when they take over our lives- and this is when dysfunction, pain, and sorrow set in

Let us rise up and be thankful, for if we didn’t learn a lot today, at least we learned a little, and if we didn’t learn a little, at least we didn’t get sick, and if we got sick, at least we didn’t die; so, let us all be thankful

Your worst enemy cannot harm you more than your own thoughts unguarded; but once mastered, no one can help you as much

Thinking is a wonderful servant but a terrible master

Why are you so unhappy? Because 99.9% of everything you think, and of everything you do, is for yourself- and there isn't one

None of us knows for certain whether we will see tomorrow- we are fragile beings and we are all "terminal," some just have more advance notice than others- so, be kind and do good - if tomorrow doesn't come, face death with a pure heart and a pure mind

We are all part of the sum total of all things and are interdependent - we are songs (as individuals) in a vast body of music (everything) – you are something the universe is doing, like a wave is something the ocean is doing

Love one another as yourself

For the one who perceives all things as self, there will be no more delusion or grief

An untroubled mind, no longer seeking to consider what is right and what is wrong, a mind beyond judgments, watches and understands

You can't wait until life isn't hard anymore before you decide to be happy

Seeking happiness outside yourself is like waiting for sunshine in a dark cave facing north

The joy of Being, which is the only true happiness, cannot come to you through any form, possession, achievement, person, or event - through anything that happens- that joy cannot come to you - ever; it emanates from the formless dimension within you, from consciousness itself and thus is one with who you are

The opposite of what you think is also true

Do not be the judge of people, do not make assumptions about others- a person is destroyed by holding judgments of others

As rain falls equally on the just and the unjust, do not burden your heart with judgments- rain kindness equally on all beings

Try to be mindful, and let things take their course, then your mind will become still in any surroundings, like a clear forest pool; all kinds of wonderful, rare animals will come to drink at the pool, and you will clearly see the nature of all things; you will see many strange and wonderful things come and go, but you will be still

Be mindful, and a deep vision of reality will arise within you, and the capacity of being there, enjoying life in the present moment, will liberate you from all impulses and bring you real happiness

Words and thoughts enslave the mind - let your awareness be beyond words and thoughts

I searched everywhere for god but did not find her- I looked within and found that god and I have always been the same

In the depths of all of us are wholesome and unwholesome seeds- understanding this helps us understand ourselves and others and see things as they are- the seeds of the worst and best of humankind are in all of us- we must practice not watering the unwholesome seeds and watering the wholesome seeds, in ourselves and others

All beings are born to ignorance, ruled by aversion and craving; this is the principle duality that keeps them bound; but when one is released from dualities, one can act purely, without attachment

All things are empty of meaning until we assign meaning to them

Your senses do not reveal what is outside of you, but what is connected to you and within you

The only thing you can be certain of is change- all things are impermanent- breathe mindfully, relax, and observe the constant movement (changing) of the universe, within yourself and beyond

If you let go a little, you will have a little happiness; if you let go a lot, you will have a lot of happiness; if you let go completely, you will be completely happy

Buddhist koan:

A man traveling across a field encountered a tiger. He fled, the tiger after him. Coming to a precipice, he caught hold of the root of a wild vine and swung himself down over the edge. The tiger sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the man looked down to where, far below, another tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the vine sustained him.

Two mice, one white and one black, little by little started to gnaw away the vine. The man saw a luscious strawberry near him. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the strawberry with the other. How sweet it tasted!

The miracle is not to walk on water- the miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now

The path of awakening is simply a process of wakeful, profound relaxing

Every thought fuels your mental fire- do not let it consume you

Suffering = pain x resistance

If we seek happiness through indulgence, we are not free; if we struggle against ourselves, we are not free- it is the middle path that brings freedom

Those of few wishes, who are restrained in speech and actions, will know themselves and be free of distraction

The middle path does not go from here to there, it goes from there to here; the middle path describes the presence of eternity- in the reality of the present, life is clear, vivid, awake, empty and yet filled with possibility- when we discover the middle path, we neither remove ourselves from the world nor get lost in it- we let ourselves open and relax in the middle

You don't own anything; even your thoughts and your body are not your possessions, they are mostly out of your control; you must care for them with compassion, but all things are subject to the laws of change and not your wishes for them; when you truly understand this, you can be at peace in any surrounding

A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and diversity of the biotic community at every level of ecosystem, up to that of the earth as a whole; it is wrong when it tends otherwise

Native American teaching:

An old man is teaching his grandson about life. “A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil – he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.”

He continued, “The other is good – he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person, too.”

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”

The old man simply replied, “The one you feed.”

Anger is like a child- you don't want it driving and you don't want to stuff it in the trunk; who is driving?

Anger is like the mud- you cannot grow the lotus flower without the mud

Bear no hatred, utter no unkind words- remain compassionate with no hostility or ill-will

If something you say, think, or do invokes fear, anger, or anxiety, in yourself or others, abandon it – if it invokes well-being and happiness, cultivate it

The present moment is all there is- the past is gone, the future is unknown, the present moment is our eternity; make your present moments peaceful, and dwell in the eternity of the present

Your physical form birth and your physical form death are simply continuations of the universe changing; all things that existed before you will exist after you- "you," the animating life force/ "essence," always was and always will be one with the universe

Everything is particles and waves, the universe is simply particles and waves moving about (including what we perceive as "self")- "we" are simply a continuum of particles and waves, part of, and dancing with, all the other particles and waves in the universe

What you do today is important because you are exchanging a day of your life for it

The being of a past moment of thought has lived, but does not live, nor will it live,

The being of a future moment of thought will live, but has not lived, nor does it live,

The being of the present moment of thought does live, but has not lived, nor will it live

Don't get caught in hell...don't get caught in heaven...don't get caught anywhere...

Nothing is to be clung to as I, me, or mine

Everything is form and not form (manifest and unmanifest)- form is only half of reality- don't get lost in form

All words and teachings are just tools- tools to use to get to deeper understanding- read the words, but understand beyond language- do not get hung up on or attached to words and teachings

As unnecessary as a well is to a village on the banks of a river, so unnecessary are all the scriptures to someone who has seen the truth; when your understanding has passed beyond the thicket of delusions, there is nothing you need to learn from even the most sacred scripture; indifferent to scriptures, your mind stands by itself, unmoving, absorbed in deep meditation

At the highest stages of the path, one no longer has any preference for chaos or calm, samsara or nirvana; everything is experienced evenly; pleasant experiences are not cultivated and unpleasant ones are not shunned

What do you think of the world? Lost in thought...

How we live is how we die

25 Fun and Helpful Quotations About the Human Mind | Psychology Today

64 Buddha Quotes For Enlightenment: Timeless Wisdom For Life And Peace - Peaceful Soul Quest

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