Quotes About Mindfulness

There's a Zen saying I often cite that goes, "Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water." The point: Stay focused on the task at hand rather than dwelling on the past or worrying about the future.

Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor. THICH NHAT HANH

When you allow a person's words to upset you, you're giving away your power.

People have the right to think and say whatever they want to. But you have the right not to take it to heart, and not to react.

You've learned by now to wait without waiting; as if it were dusk look into light falling: in deep relief things even out. Be careless of nothing. See what you see. from "How to See Deer

If you wish to view this as a cautionary tale, be my guest.

I recommend you take care of the minutes: for hours take care of themselves

That very day I resolved not to save all of my change until I turned forty. I resolved to have what I termed a little midlife crisis each day of my life in the hope of avoiding a larger one once I reached forty.

According to the Dalai Lama, happiness is not a static state that we attain. It is an elusive goal that we must constantly pursue.

Though the act of making one's own bed is simple and mundane, it reiterates that the little things in life can have a significant impact. 'If you can't do the little things right, you will never do the big things right,' he said.

people who are predominantly present-oriented tend to be willing to help others but appear less willing or able to help themselves.

The fastest way to write is to pretend you have all the time in the world.

Do you habitually find fault instead of looking for signs of goodness? Can you transform your disdain into a kinder feeling? Remember, you'll be doing it not for the other person, but to protect your soul from toxic emotions.

Experience was something it was difficult to avoid, though many people had managed to keep it to a minimum.

If you fall into poverty, live that way without grumbling - then your poverty will not burden you. Likewise, if you are rich, live with your riches. All this is the functioning of Buddha-nature. In short, Buddha-nature has the quality of infinite adaptability.

It will be worth it, if in the end I manage To blank out whatever it is that is doing the damage. Then there will be nothing I know. My mind will fold into itself, like fields, like snow.

He [Samuel Butler] made a practise of doing the forks last when washing up, on the grounds that he might die before he got to them. This is very much his principle of 'eating the grapes downwards', so that however many grapes you have eaten the next is always the best of the remainder.

You be greater than your feelings. I don't demand this of you - life does. Otherwise you'll be washed away by feelings. You'll be washed out to sea and never seen again.

It is interesting that we instinctively make this connection when we talk of "being sensible" about taking wise actions or making wise choices. We also speak of arriving at a more healthy way of seeing and doing as "coming to our senses.

When a leaf falls from a tree, when a river flows to the sea, when a bee flits from flower to flower, it happens without "action" or "doing." Nature is simply being. In the same way, human beings should simply be.

Walk as if you are kissing the earth with your feet...Every step makes a flower bloom.

When you awake in the morning, stretch your arms to the sky and breathe deeply. Fill your insides with the emptiness around you. Breathe easy. You're alive.

Occasionally we go on vacation to a place where there are no newspapers and no television. And when we return we find the world hasn't ended. We realize that even though following the news may be essential to making a living, it has little to do with living a spiritual life.

SEAVER: "What time is it?" BERRA: "You mean now?" No matter what time of day we check our watch, the only time is now. We may be running behind schedule, late for an appointment, or stuck in traffic, but we can't be anywhere other than where we are; our place in time cannot change. All we can do is make the best of each moment we're given. "This day will not come again," says the zen master Takuan. "Each minute is worth a priceless gem.