Quotes from Deng Ming-Dao

If you are what you eat, then you are shaped by what you share as you eat.

Worry is an addiction that interferes with compassion.

Those truly linked don't need correspondence, When they meet again after many years apart, Their friendship is as true as ever.

The moon does not fight. It attacks no one. It does not worry. It does not try to crush others. It keeps to its course, but by its very nature, it gently influences. What other body could pull an entire ocean from shore to shore? The moon is faithful to its nature and its power is never diminished.

Those who don't know how to suffer are the worst off. There are times when the only correct thing we can do is to bear out troubles until a better day.

All teachings are mere references. The true experience is living your own life. Then, even the holiest of words are only words.

Who you are is always right.

If you have a good idea, use it so that you will not only accomplish something, but so that you can make room for new ones to flow into you.

Grappling with fate is like meeting an expert wrestler: to escape, you have to accept the fall when you are thrown. The only thing that counts is whether you get back up.

We may be floating on Tao, but there is nothing wrong with steering. If Tao is like a river, it is certainly good to know where the rocks are.

Whether we remain the ash or become the phoenix is up to us.

Expression is never helped by suppression.

Those truly linked don't need correspondence. When they meet again after many years apart, Their friendship is as true as ever.

You may be capable of great things, But life consists of small things.

Markings in dry clay disappear Only when the clay is soft again. Scars upon the self disappear Only when one becomes soft within.

It is too facile to say that the way to follow Tao is to simply go along with the flow of life. Sometimes, like the carp, we must know when to go it alone.

Shared dining fortifies us.

The traditional family table is round. No corners. No sides. No head. No tail. Everything is smooth. The food is in the center, and each family member reaches over the same distance. Someone you love is next to you on each side, and no one is last or at the end. The person farthest away from you is also the person facing you.

Sharing the same meal reaffirms kinship.