Quotes from Thich Nhat Hanh

Protecting life is the primary obligation of someone who has the bodhisattva ideal.

The mind is like a sharp knife that cuts reality into separate pieces.

Love can bring us happiness and peace as long as we love in such a way that we don't make a net to confine ourselves and others. We can tell the correct way to love because, when we love correctly, we don't create more suffering.

To practice the Four Noble Truths, you yourself have to touch deeply the things that bring you peace and joy. When you do, you realize that walking on the Earth is a miracle, washing the dishes is a miracle, and practicing with a community of friends is a miracle. The greatest miracle is to be alive.

The cloud that was in the sky yesterday has not disappeared, it has become tea. It has not died, it is just playing hide and seek

Dharma talks aren't the truth. The true Dharma exists in the mind of the students as seeds and the Dharma talks are just like a little cloud that releases rain and causes the seeds in the mind of the practitioners to sprout and manifest.

People often ask if it is difficult to be a celibate monk or nun, but to practice mindfulness as a monastic is in many ways easier than to practice as a layperson. To refrain from sexual activity altogether is much easier than to have a healthy sexual relationship.

Things are dynamic and living, while our concepts of them are static and poor.

Accustomed as we are to being constantly occupied, if these occupations should happen to be taken from us, we find ourselves empty and abandoned. We then refuse to confront ourself and instead go off in search of friends, to mix in with the crowd, to listen to the radio or to the television, to get rid of this impression of emptiness.

We ride on the wave of birth and death, and we are free from birth and death.

Although physical desire is not love, it is impossible to have physical intimacy without emotional intimacy because body and mind are not two separate entities. What happens in the body will have an effect on the mind and vice versa.

Breathing in, I know I'm alive." Your eyes still work: "Breathing in, I'm aware of my eyes. Breathing out, I smile to my eyes.

Never in all history has man had to face such terrible dangers. He is at the point where he is no longer sure of being able to control the situation. The economic, political, and military systems he has established have turned against him and imposed themselves upon him.

Part of the beauty of the monastic life lies in the ability to live simply with few desires and to consume only what you need.

The universe and the person who creates the universe are not two different entities. Some Christian theologians say that God is the ground of being. This is quite close to Buddhism. But then Buddhism asks the question, If God is the ground of being, then what is the ground of nonbeing?

Every living thing wants to continue into the future. This is true of humans, as well as of all other animals. Sex and sexual reproduction are part of life. Sex can bring great pleasure and enrich a deep connection between two people. We shouldn't be against sex, but we also shouldn't confuse it with love. True love doesn't necessarily have to do with sex. We can love perfectly without sex and we can have sex without love.

The horse is our habit energy pulling us along, and we are powerless. We are always running, and it has become a habit. We struggle all the time, even during our sleep. We are at war within ourselves, and we can easily start a war with others.

When desire stops, there is no more fear. We are then truly free, peaceful, and happy.

If the wave does not have to die to become water, then we do not have to die to enter the kingdom of God.

When you and your partner share an aspiration and a practice, there is no place for jealousy, because you're both faithful to the same aspiration. Whatever the other person does, you do it with him. You share everything. That is the spirit of upeksha. It makes fidelity possible.

No birth and no death; no being and no nonbeing; no coming and no going; no same and no different

Just as we have the tendency to run away from a shot or a dose of medicine, even if it's good for us, we have the tendency to run away from answers that touch painful areas in our lives.

We can experience happiness, ease, and peace when we observe these moments of no desire. Desirelessness is the basic condition that makes possible the feelings of joy, peace, and ease that come with living a simple life. Simplicity means to have few desires, to be content with a simple life and just a few possessions. Desirelessness is the basis of true happiness, because in true happiness there must be the elements of peace, joy, and ease.

We have to practice continuously and not just superficially. It can't be done half-heartedly. We have to be determined to grasp our mind. A period of continuous diligent practice will surely lead to transformation