Quotes About Enlightenment

three thousand realms in a single moment of life.

The path that one person follows is not the correct path for any other person. Each of us must walk his own path to enlightenment— that is the way.

Most of us are imprisoned by something. We're living in darkness until something flips on the switch.

No matter how revolutionary people were, he said, they could not live without books. Without books, we would not understand the world; without books, we could not develop; without books, nature could not serve humanity.

Por mais revolucionárias que sejam, disse, as pessoas não podem viver sem livros. Sem livros não compreenderíamos o mundo; sem livros não poderíamos desenvolver; sem livros, a natureza não pode servir a humanidade.

In order to properly understand the big picture, everyone should fear becoming mentally clouded and obsessed with one small section of truth.

there was no shame in admitting you didn't have the answer, it was a necessary step toward the truth.

No era una vergüenza el no saber, sino solo una señal que podía llevar hacia una nueva verdad.

Luz et veritas, Light and truth

It is most useful," Geshe Wangpo told Sam, "to share one's knowledge with others. Otherwise, what is the point in having it?

Before we eat any meal, vegetarian or meat, we should always remember the beings that have died so that we can eat. Their lives were just as important to them as your life is to you. Think of them with gratitude and pray that their sacrifice will be a cause for them to be reborn in a higher realm—and for you to be healthy, so that you can quickly, quickly reach full enlightenment in order to lead them to that same state.

Serena smiled. "The historical Buddha who lived two and a half thousand years ago, Shakyamuni Buddha, he was a man. But enlightenment is a state beyond being male or female

Enlightened beings cannot take away your suffering or give you happiness. If they could do this, wouldn't they have done so already?

We are beyond being helped, even by other more realized beings, unless we are in a receptive mental state.

How valid is a practice that frees our bodies from rigidity but does nothing for the mind?

A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life?

One of the last things Buddha said to his followers was that anyone who believed a word he had taught them was a fool—unless they had tested it against their own experience.

Every time we do something nice for someone else, even if it is a routine thing they expect, we can do so with the thought 'By this act of love, or of giving happiness, may I attain enlightenment to liberate all living beings.' Every time we practice generosity, whether it is making a donation or nursing a cat, we can think the same thing.

Without question, the most important practice is bodhichitta. The wish to attain enlightenment to lead all living beings to that same state... This mind of enlightenment is based on pure, great compassion, which in turn is based on pure, great love. In each case pure means impartial. Without conditions. And great means benefiting all living beings, not just the small group of those we happen to like at the moment.

cause for me to become enlightened, so that I may help all other beings attain this same state.

From our perspective the only way to enjoy a state of permanent happiness and avoid all suffering is to achieve enlightenment. This is why bodhichitta is considered to be the most altruistic of motivations. We wish to achieve enlightenment not only for ourselves but to help every other living being achieve the same state.

The true purpose of alchemy is about reining in our baser instincts –' he nodded towards me '– and realizing our highest potential.

Compassion, wisdom, power. When you have compassion and power but no wisdom, this is idiot compassion. Compassion and wisdom but no power—what can you achieve?" he shrugged. "All three are necessary, together.

bodhichitta." "The wish to attain enlightenment in order to lead all living beings to that same state,