Quotes from Shunryu Suzuki

Wisdom is something which will come out of your mindfulness. So the point is to be ready for observing things, and to be ready for thinking. This is called emptiness of your mind.

In order not to leave any traces, 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.

This is also the real secret of the arts: always be a beginner. Be very very careful about this point. If you start to practice zazen, you will begin to appreciate your beginner's mind. It is the secret of Zen practice.

V mysli za?áte?níka jsou spousty možností. V mysli odborníka je jich jen pár.

Without any intentional, fancy way of adjusting yourself, to express yourself as you are is the most important thing.

When your mind is wandering about elsewhere you have no chance to express yourself. But if you limit your activity to what you can do just now, in this moment, then you can express fully your true nature, which is the universal Buddha nature.

Quel est le plus important : réussir ou trouver un sens à votre effort de réussir ?

that Americans have a beginner's mind, that they have few preconceptions about Zen, are quite open to it, and confidently believe that it can help their lives. He found they question Zen in a way that gives Zen life.

To be aware of the meaning of your life, you practice zazen.

There is no need to have a deep understanding of Zen.

When our mind is compassionate, it is boundless.

When you sit in the full lotus position, your left foot is on your right thigh, and your right foot is on your left thigh. When we cross our legs like this, even though we have a right leg and a left leg, they have become one. The position expresses the oneness of duality: not two, and not one. This is the most important teaching: not two, and not one.

After some years we will die. If we just think that it is the end of our life, this will be the wrong understanding. But, on the other hand, if we think that we do not die, this is also wrong. We die, and we do not die. This is the right understanding.

We say "inner world" or "outer world," but actually there is just one whole world.

Usually we think of our mind as receiving impressions and experiences from outside, but that is not a true understanding of our mind. The true understanding is that the mind includes everything; when you think something comes from outside it means only that something appears in your mind.

When you feel disagreeable it is better for you to sit. There is no other way to accept your problem and work on it.

So even if the sun were to rise from the west, the Bodhisattva has only one way.

Everything should exist in the right place, in the right way.

When you do things in the right way, at the right time, everything else will be organized.

Knowing that your life is short, to enjoy it day after day, moment after moment, is the life of "form is form and emptiness is emptiness.

Zazen practice and everyday activity are one thing. We call zazen everyday life, and everyday life zazen.

Zen activity is activity which is completely burned out, with nothing remaining but ashes. This is the goal of our practice. That is what Dogen meant when he said, "Ashes do not come back to firewood.

Dogen-zenji said, "To give is nonattachment." That is, just not to attach to anything is to give.

Our Soto way puts an emphasis on shikan taza , or "just sitting." Actually we do not have any particular name for our practice; when we practice zazen we just practice it, and whether we find joy in our practice or not, we just do it. Even though we are sleepy, and we are tired of practicing zazen, of repeating the same thing day after day; even so, we continue our practice. Whether or not someone encourages our practice, we just do it.