Buddhism Quotes

I have always worked with energy. Everything is energy. Buddhism. Christ teachings. These are foundation stones for a spiritual life. ~ Dave Davies

Why is it that one of the best songs in the world has to be written by the BeeGees?
Benedict ~ Tricia Walker

The universe is made up of an endless ocean of life itself. It is an endless ocean of itself. And for a time it binds itself together in particularized forms. Those forms have perception and they perceive themselves as being separate. ~ Frederick Lenz

There's no point in getting frustrated at yourself. Just be truthful. ~ Frederick Lenz

Love has very little to do with a person. It comes from us. You can love a surprisingly great number of people. ~ Frederick Lenz

Zen students see themselves as athletes. Their competitive sport is enlightenment; only with enlightenment do we compete. ~ Frederick Lenz

For the Stoics, however, the near impossibility of becoming a sage is not a problem. They talk about sages primarily so they will have a model to guide them in their practice of Stoicism. The sage is a target for them to aim at, even though they will probably fail to hit it. The sage, in other words, is to Stoicism as Buddha is to Buddhism. Most Buddhists can never hope to become as enlightened as Buddha, but nevertheless, reflecting on Buddha's perfection can help them gain a degree of enlightenment. ~ William B. Irvine

As the kundalini rises, the knowledge and powers of those dimensions will begin to come to you. ~ Frederick Lenz

The surface personality is only the beginning of what we are. So as we meditate, we still that surface personality, we can see beyond it, and we see that we encompass multitudes. ~ Frederick Lenz

In Buddhism, we talk of meditation as an act of awakening, to be awake to the fact that the earth is in danger and living species are in danger. ~ Nhat Hanh

You can lead an uncommonly fine life. But it takes determination. You have to march to the beat of different drummer. You have to decide. ~ Frederick Lenz

Learning to let go should be learned before learning to get. Life should be touched, not strangled. You've got to relax, let it happen at times, and at others move forward with it. ~ Ray Bradbury

Gratitude is a virtue of the rarest kind. ~ K.Hari Kumar

What we focus on we become. If you are just focusing on unhappy things, you will become unhappy. If you focus on happy states of mind, then it will grow in you. ~ Frederick Lenz

This constant mental diatribe and the frustrations, worries, insecurities and muscular tension that ensues are the self. ~ Chris Matakas

The study of meditation is the entrance into the world of Wonderland. It has nothing to do with how you'd like it. You want a nice neat little study that's easily understandable. ~ Frederick Lenz

When you break something, is your first impulse to throw it away? Or do you repair it but feel a sadness because it is no longer "perfect"? Whatever the case, you might want to consider the way the Japanese treated the items used in their tea ceremony. Even though they were made from the simplest materials... these teacups and bowls were revered for their plain lines and spiritual qualities. There were treated with the utmost care, integrity and respect.

For this reason, a cup from the tea ceremony was almost never broken. When an accident did occur and a cup was broken, there were certain instances in which the cup was repaired with gold.

Rather than trying to restore it in a what they would cover the gace that it ahad been broken, the cracks were celebrated in a bold and spirited way. The thin paths of shining gold completely encircled the ceramic cup, announcing to the world that the cup was broken and repaired and vulnerable to change.

And in this way, its value was even further enhanced. ~ Gary Thorp

You might have a warrior spirit in there somewhere, and it's just waiting for the opportunity to come out. If you do, you might be a candidate for the pathway to enlightenment. ~ Frederick Lenz

We perceive the solidification as the world around us, which appears to be relatively solid. But that solidification is just really a reflection of the solidification of one's sense of self. ~ Frederick Lenz

Happiness does not mean that everything works out. Usually nothing works out, but you get a kick out of it anyway. ~ Frederick Lenz

Women tend to open themselves up more during sex. Because their subtle physical bodies are so much more sensitive they tend to pick up the total energy of the man they have sex with. ~ Frederick Lenz

We need not reply or even listen to people who are talking about - not to - us. ~ Mokokoma Mokhonoana

What creates happiness, peace, and balance is not becoming simply powerful, but knowledgeable. ~ Frederick Lenz

Today it is very popular to do a thing we call channeling. People are trying to channel entities and have these beings come through them. In my estimation this is downright ridiculous and dangerous. ~ Frederick Lenz

It seems to me that there's a terrible misunderstanding between us. It seems to me that I love you a great deal, my friends. ~ Frederick Lenz

Until we begin to question our basic assumptions about ourselves and view them as fluid, not fixed, it's easy to repeat established patterns and, out of habit, reenact old stories that limit our ability to live and love ourselves with an open heart. ~ Sharon Salzberg

Effort is the unconstrained willingness to persevere through difficulty. ~ Sharon Salzberg

Long is the night to him who is awake; long is a mile to him who is tired; long is life to the foolish who do not know the true law. ~ Gautama Buddha

Recollection of death also serves as a useful preparation for the time when one actually has to face death. As the concluding exercise among the body contemplations, a regular recollection of death can lead to the realization that death is fearful only to the extent to which one identifies with the body. With the aid of the body contemplations one can come to realize the true [impermanent] nature of the body and thereby overcome one's attachment to it. Being free from attachment to the body, one will be freed from any fear of physical death. ~ Analayo

The best martial artist doesn't win fights, but avoids fights. Martial arts is a way of gaining basic self-mastery of your mind, body and emotions. It can also be very useful in combat situations. ~ Frederick Lenz

You have compassion but by itself it is not enough. It is almost as if you carry around inside you some dead thing. Some heavy black cinder in your heart that burdens you; a ponderous anchor that tethers you to the past. Until you can burn it away, you can never truly live in the present, in the now. Until you can live in the now, you cannot see things as they really are. Meantime you are a man who is wilfully blind. You have eyes and yet you will not use them. ~ John Dolan

Happiness will come through the practice of yoga and Buddhism, that happiness is not something you will lose at the end of this lifetime. It will stay with you. ~ Frederick Lenz

Examine your experience of the incarnation so far and realistically add up the moments of happiness and unhappiness and you tell me, oh somewhat vaguely nobly born, you tell me, what has it been like for you? ~ Frederick Lenz

The sign that the kundalini is releasing is not the development of miraculous powers, but that your mind is becoming quieter. ~ Frederick Lenz

It is only when we are by ourselves that we can know others. When we are with other human beings we are distracted. People try and dream us into their dreams. ~ Frederick Lenz

When you are a young person, you are like a young creek, and you meet many rocks, many obstacles and difficulties on your way. You hurry to get past these obstacles and get to the ocean. But as the creek moves down through the fields, it becomes larges and calmer and it can enjoy the reflection of the sky. It's wonderful. You will arrive at the sea anyway so enjoy the journey. Enjoy the sunshine, the sunset, the moon, the birds, the trees, and the many beauties along the way. Taste every moment of your daily life. ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The kundalini energy enables us to do things that would not happen otherwise, to apply an occult pressure, to use energy to create effects perhaps thousands of miles away. ~ Frederick Lenz

If a man lives a pure life, nothing can destroy him. ~ Gautama Buddha

Meditation is the study of making the mind still. As your mind becomes still, a power enters you. This power transmogrifies your mind, it escalates your evolution and you begin to cycle through many incarnations in one lifetime. ~ Frederick Lenz

As you meditate, you'll develop a sense of humor so that you can laugh at yourself, which you need to do in this world. ~ Frederick Lenz

Even the worst that has ever happened to you could have been worse. ~ Mokokoma Mokhonoana

"The person next to me meditates better than I do. They're purer." - This is the ego feeling sorry for itself. ~ Frederick Lenz

George used to say that Granny wasn't a time-optimist, she was a time-atheist, and the only religion she believed in was Do-It-Later-Buddhism. ~ Fredrik Backman

If you have the sense of participation in sports or athletics, of being a player, then you are not really into the Zen mind. In Zen mind there is no sense of self in the play. ~ Frederick Lenz

The nuns taught me that the best thing you can do in life when things get difficult is to work. ~ Frederick Lenz

Man suffers only because he takes seriously what the gods made for fun. ~ Alan W. Watts

It will take about a month for that awareness to be fully absorbed and modify someone's attention field. During that period of time, a person who studies with me will meditate on their own, and apply those things that they have learned to their daily lives. ~ Frederick Lenz

A teacher had two types of students. One type of student is a close student. The other is also a close student, but not in the sense of physical proximity. The close students rotate a lot. ~ Frederick Lenz

An action is at least a billion times less difficult to choose than a reaction. ~ Mokokoma Mokhonoana

The action of giving is in a certain vibratory level, meaning giving exists in a certain plane of consciousness. ~ Frederick Lenz

In building a path through the self to the far shore of awareness, we have to carefully pick our way through our own wilderness. If we can put our minds into a place of surrender, we will have an easier time feeling the contours of the land. We do not have to break our way through as much as we have to find our way around the major obstacles. We do not have to cure every neurosis, we just have to learn how not to be caught by them. ~ Mark Epstein

Buddhism teaches us not to want things, not to avoid things, not to be upset by the loss. In the I Ching, there's a hexagram that says, "Be like the sun at midday". View all things as being equal. ~ Frederick Lenz

The virtues of free enterprise can become distorted by greed & delusion. ~ Allan Lokos

As long as it's a world, it has laws. Why, I don't know, it's just the way it is. In Nirvana, there are no laws. ~ Frederick Lenz

To just be--to be--amidst all doings, achievings, and becomings. This is the natural state of mind, or original, most fundamental state of being. This is unadulterated Buddha-nature. This is like finding our balance. ~ Lama Surya Das

The Buddhas speak the wondrous sound throughout the world; the Teachings spoken over countless ages can all be expounded in a single word. ~ Thomas Cleary

Everything knows what is best for itself. That is what the Sanskrit word dharma means. Dharma means the best of all possible actions. ~ Frederick Lenz

A boddhisattva is someone who is on the way to becoming a buddha. All of us become boddhisattvas as soon as we start to take our Zen work seriously and the work we do contributes to creating a world in which all good actions become more efficacious. ~ David Brazier

Music is not the only reason that I practice Buddhism anymore because it has affected my whole life. ~ Herbie Hancock

If someone else runs faster than you or makes more money than you or is more adept at anything, that doesn't mean you have lost. You are measuring yourself only against yourself and your tendencies not to do all that you are capable of doing. ~ Frederick Lenz

No sane person fears nothingness. ~ Robert A.F. Thurman

When I missed the physical body of my partner, I meditated on its parts, tossed by the waves, torn, dispersed, and deteriorated. When memories of our lives together became acute and intense, I breathed. I breathed through each wave of yearning, of regret, of guilt, of what-could-have-been. Every time I asked him, "Where are you?" A quiet voice immediately responded, "I am here. I have never left you." I did not only lose a partner. I lost my childhood all over again. I lost my soul mate. I lost the accepting father and the gentle mother that he was to me. I lost the dream of a "normal life," which I had tried so hard to achieve. Now I had to face my own mind. ~ Dang Nghiem

Think about these things and see if they make sense to you. You will find that work will no longer be a four-letter word. It will be a three-letter word: fun. ~ Frederick Lenz

Its funny how human beings tend to think that they're the masters of the earth never realizing that the earth, for a time, simply tolerates its tenants and then, when the mood strikes, it shifts its continents around. ~ Frederick Lenz

The true tragedy in most people's lives is that they are far better than they imagine themselves to be and, as a result, end up being much less than they might be. ~ Earl R. Smith II

Will is guided by wisdom. Wisdom comes from introspection, looking inside yourself, probing, studying the wisdom of the teachers, the masters and bringing that into your mind. ~ Frederick Lenz

There is a certain beauty and refinement that is often found in our world and it is expensive. It shouldn't necessarily be so. It is just the way our economic system is. ~ Frederick Lenz

The advantages of developing absorption concentration are not only that it provides a stable and receptive state of mind for the practice of insight meditation. The experience of absorption is one of intense pleasure and happiness, brought about by purely mental means, which thereby automatically eclipses any pleasure arising in dependence on material objects. Thus absorption functions as a powerful antidote to sensual desires by divesting them of their former attraction. ~ Analayo

If you know that you have had countless lives, then what happens in this life is not quite as traumatic. ~ Frederick Lenz

We can see that there are many ways in which we actively contribute to our own experience of mental unrest and suffering. Although, in general, mental and emotional afflictions themselves can come naturally, often it is our own reinforcement of those negative emotions that makes them so much worse. For instance when we have anger or hatred towards a person, there is less likelihood of its developing to a very intense degree if we leave it unattended.


However, if we think about the projected injustices done to us, the ways in which we have been unfairly treated, and we keep on thinking about them over and over, then that feeds the hatred. It makes the hatred very powerful and intense. Of course, the same can apply to when we have an attachment towards a particular person; we can feed that by thinking about how beautiful he or she is, and as we keep thinking about the projected qualities that we see in the person, the attachment becomes more and more intense. But this shows how through constant familiarity and thinking, we ourselves can make our emotions more intense and powerful. ~ Dalai Lama XIV

If all the members of a team have synchronized their energy and they have all subordinated their egos to success of the team, then we have a functioning unit. If we have a lot of hotshots who want attention, you won't really play that well. ~ Frederick Lenz

I was raised Catholic, but then I discovered Buddhism, and I used to have a boyfriend who was a Scientologist, and they are all good religions that help people. As far as I'm concerned, you can have all three religions at once and it's okay! ~ Penelope Cruz

Subhuti, someone might fill innumerable worlds with the seven treasures and give all away in gifts of alms, but if any good man or any good woman awakens the thought of Enlightenment and takes even only four lines from this Discourse, reciting, using, receiving, retaining and spreading them abroad and explaining them for the benefit of others, it will be far more meritorious. Now in what manner may he explain them to others? By detachment from appearances-abiding in Real Truth. -So I tell you-
Thus shall you think of all this fleeting world:
A star at dawn, a bubble in a stream;
A flash of lightening in a summer cloud,
A flickering lamp, a phantom, and a dream.
When Buddha finished this Discourse the venerable Subhuti, together with the bhikshus, bhikshunis, lay-brothers and sisters, and the whole realms of Gods, Men and Titans, were filled with joy by His teaching, and, taking it sincerely to heart they went their ways. ~ Gautama Buddha

The principles of Buddhism and Shambhala can be effective in helping the course of what is happening in the world. ~ Sakyong Mipham

Sometimes we have to be hard on ourselves. We've got to get on our case, if we are being sloppy, lazy, and indulgent. ~ Frederick Lenz

The purpose of all of this is not to walk around with new vocabulary words, but to cause you to speculate on the marvel of your own being. ~ Frederick Lenz

A world full of people hating themselves is not a happy world. Buddhism does not seem to be about self-punishment. A key buddhist symbol is that of the lotus flower. The lotus flower grows in mud at the bottom of a pool, but rises above the murky water and blooms in the clear air, pure and beautiful, before eventually dying. This metaphor for spiritual enlightenment also works as a metaphor for hope and change. ~ Matt Haig

America's freedom of religion, and freedom from religion, offers every wisdom tradition an opportunity to address our soul-deep needs: Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, secular humanism, agnosticism and atheism among others. ~ Parker Palmer

Everyone makes mistakes. Whether we put our mistakes to use depends on how deeply we reflect on our actions. It is desirable to reflect until the tears come.
- On Self-Reflection - ~ Kentetsu Takamori

Meditation is a practice of detaching and then stopping ourselves from thinking; our thoughts are interruptions in the flow of awareness. Consciousness, in its highest aspect, is perfect and formless. ~ Frederick Lenz

Put the mind in alignment with the ten thousand radiances of enlightenment and experience them in various gradations forever. That's the total purpose of a monk. ~ Frederick Lenz

They were the good old days. Don't give up hope in the bad new
days, which will become then good old days. We appreciate Kennedy because he was killed; Martin Luther King was a great man. If you'd meet Naropa or Tilopa on the spot you'd be pissed off. History is very deceptive, reality is more important. There is a piece of philosophy for you. ~ Chogyam Trungpa

Attachment has to do with suffering, so it's really close to Buddhism, because Buddhism wants to relieve you from suffering; you're supposed to escape from suffering. ~ Gerald Stern

... the doctrinal differences between Hinduism and Buddhism and Taoism are not anywhere near as important as doctrinal differences among Christianity and Islam and Judaism. Holy wars are not fought over them because verbalized statements about reality are never presumed to be reality itself. ~ Robert M. Pirsig

What worlds are there herein? I'll tell you. In these seas of fragrant waters, numerous as atoms in unspeakably many buddha-fields, rest an equal number of world systems. Each world system also contains an equal number of worlds. Those world systems in the ocean of worlds have various resting places, various shapes and forms, various substances and essences, various locations, various entryways, various adornments, various boundaries, various alignments, various similarities, and various powers of maintenance. ~ Thomas Cleary

Kundalini is generated through cultivating humility, purity, through meditation, selfless giving, and by studying with an advanced teacher on a personal level. ~ Frederick Lenz

There are two sides to a person's being - the superconscious and the conscious. These have reverberations in the popular works of Carlos Castaneda, in the don Juan terminology of the tonal and the nagual. ~ Frederick Lenz

Everything is perception. A hallucination is a perception of a certain reality. It is a perception of a certain state of mind. ~ Frederick Lenz

There are no problems, there is only confusion. When confusion passes away, there is only happiness. Happiness is not complicated at all. ~ Frederick Lenz

Meditation is a process of liquefying the self temporarily and then allowing the self to rebind. The ice melts and then it comes back again. ~ Frederick Lenz

But I will tell you in all honesty that there is no Deity or Messiah, no Jesus or Muhammad, no angel or mythical spirit who can save you. Not even Buddha can save you, even if he or any of the other spirits wished it with all of their might, for your only salvation, if there is any, lies within you and you alone. Each of us has the potential for good as well as evil; it is whatever circumstances we find ourselves in and what choices we make in life which really takes us down one or the other path. ~ Andrew James Pritchard

It is better to agree with a "wrong" idea than to press a "right" idea on other people. ~ Frederick Lenz

All the philosophical theories that exist have been created by the mistaken dualistic minds of human beings. In the realm of philosophy, that which today is considered true, may tomorrow be proved to be false. No one can guarantee a philosophy's validity. Because of this, any intellectual way of seeing whatever is always partial and relative. The fact is that there is no truth to seek or to confirm logically; rather what one needs to do is to discover just how much the mind continually limits itself in a condition of dualism.

Dualism is the real root of our suffering and of all our conflicts. All our concepts and beliefs, no matter how profound they may seem, are like nets which trap us in dualism. When we discover our limits we have to try to overcome them, untying ourselves from whatever type of religious, political or social conviction may condition us. We have to abandon such concepts as 'enlightenment', 'the nature of the mind', and so on, until we are no longer satisfied by a merely intellectual knowledge, and until we no longer neglect to integrate our knowledge with our actual existence. ~ Namkhai Norbu

Happiness is a state of mind. The key to happiness is being able to disconnect your life from your perceptions. If you saw things as they really were, you would be happy automatically. ~ Frederick Lenz

To produce a primary [karmic] cause which is potentially capable of having an effect, three things are necessary: intention, the actual action, and then satisfaction. ~ Namkhai Norbu

Jealousy, anger, fear - these are ridiculous emotions that drain your power. You need to control them by being content, trusting that life knows what is best, accepting with an even mind whatever is presented to you. ~ Frederick Lenz

The root of all happiness is the mind; the root of all suffering is the mind. The root of all afflictions and the root of all faith, devotion, love and compassion come down to the mind. If we know the nature of our mind, we can make use of the great treasure and eventually gain perfect happiness and the ultimate result of liberation and omniscience. ~ Khenchen Thrangu

Nirvana is not really a physical place, although sometimes I talk about it as if it were. It is not really an experience, although sometimes I mention it as if it was. ~ Frederick Lenz

Life is an endless matrix of existence. And as you experience it in that pure form, that's what we call enlightenment. ~ Frederick Lenz

There is a difference between willing and forcing. Willing something simply means you are not being lazy. Forcing something means you are trying to do something inappropriate or in an inappropriate way. ~ Frederick Lenz