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Quotes since April 2007
 

(1)
****
Rinpoche uses a classic example that is my absolute favourite. He says that when someone makes you angry, it is as if they shot an arrow at your heart. It doesn't hit you, but lands right at your feet. Then you pick up the arrow and stab yourself with it over and over and over again. That's what happens. Anything in life can be the cause of getting upset, but the choice to be upset or not is our own. Anger is the worst poison of the mind - the grossest, most obvious one. Subtle anger is even worse.

Tsering Everest, The Bodhisattva Peace Training
Buddhism through American Women's Eyes
Snow Lion Publications


 
(2)
A man was asked if he wanted to go to heaven or to hell.
He replied that he would like to see them both first.

First, he went to hell. There was a large table with all the inhabitants of hell sitting around it. The centre of the table was full of delicious food. Each person had two very long chopsticks. They could reach the food but they could not get it into their mouths because their chopsticks were too long. They were miserable. No one was eating and everyone went hungry.

Next, he was taken to visit heaven. All the inhabitants of heaven were also sitting around a big table full of delicious food, but they were happy. They too had very long chopsticks, but they were eating and enjoying themselves. They used the chopsticks to feed each other across the table. The people in heaven had discovered that it was in their best interest to collaborate unselfishly.

Ringu Tulku
Mind Training
Snow Lion Publications
 
(3)
The name "Mind" is imposed on the essence of phenomena.

The name "Phenomena" is imposed on the functioning of mind.

In reality, there is just one single thing, without any distinctions of inside and outside or this and that. What fills the universe is both All Mind and All Phenomena.

Wang Shihuai, 16th century Chinese Sage
From "Meeting the Dralas" by Jeremy Hayword in
Dharma Rain, Sources of Buddhist Environmentalism
Shambala Publications
 
(4)
       In the direction of the view, if conduct gets lost, the view goes to the tarnished state of Mara (delusion). In the direction of conduct, if the view is lost, we become entangled in the hopes and fears of materialism and ideology. Real liberation will never come and there is no way that you can reach the level of the unified state (of purified view and conduct).

PadmaSambhava
as quoted by Chatrul Rinpoche in
Compassionate Action, ed by Zach Larson
Snow Lion Publications
 
(5)
       "I am" is a conceiving; "I am this" is a conceiving; "I shall be" is a conceiving; "I shall not be" is a conceiving; "I shall have a physical form" is a conceiving; "I shall be formless" is a conceiving. Conceiving is a disease, conceiving is a tumor, conceiving is a dart. By overcoming all conceivings, one is called a sage at peace.

The Buddha,
In the Buddha's Words
 
(6)

Through the destruction, fading away, cessation, giving up, relinquishing

of desire, lust, delight, craving, engagement and clinging,

mental standpoints, adherences, and underlying tendencies

towards Form, Feeling, Perception, Intention, and Consciousness,

the mind is said to be well liberated

The Buddha
Connected Discourses on the 5 Collections ( KhandhaSamyutta 22(5) )
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 
(7)
       One must not calculate when putting on the Armour of a Bodhisattva.
One should buckle it on without thought,
because thought cannot encompass it.

Aksayamati Pariprccha Sutra
Jewel Ornament of Liberation
Shambala Publications
 
(8)
When you wandered so much in the past, samsara did not stop by itself, nor will it stop by itself - you must stop it. And the time to stop it is now. Now that you have gained this precious Human Birth.

Geshe Potawa from
Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand
Pabonka Rinpoche tr by Michael Richards
Wisdom Publications
 
(9)
       We are so closely interconnected that without a sense of universal responsibility and understanding that we really are part of one big human family, we cannot hope to overcome the dangers to our very existence, let alone bring about peace and happiness.

HH the Dalai Lama
How to see yourself as you really are
Atria Books
 
(10)
       All of life, every day, all the time, is designed to bring us to enlightenment if that's what we're seeking. Appearances are suffused with utterly magnificent meaning.

B. Allan Wallace
Buddhism with an Attitude
Snow Lion Publications
 
(11)
       With the prevailing global problem of poverty and accompanied social sufferings such as ecological devastation, human rights violation, cultural crisis, consumerist, unethical and idle lifestyle, discrimination of all kinds etc., now humankind is right at the point that we need to make our world a livable, just, peaceful and sustainable place

International Network for Engaged Buddhists
Young Bodhisattva Program
 
(12)
       Bodhisattvas always benefit others and practice good conduct without bothering to figure out if they take a loss.

Hsuan Hua Shir
Shurangama Sutra Commentary
 

(13)
Cherishing others is the source of all happiness.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche

 

(14)
With the origination of nutriment, there is the origination of the body. With the cessation of nutriment, there is the passing away of the body.

With the origination of contact, there is the origination of feeling. With the cessation of contact, there is the passing away of feeling.

With the origination of name and form, there is the origination of mind. With the cessation of name and form, there is the passing away of mind.

With the origination of attention, there is the origination of phenomena. With the cessation of attention, there is the passing away of phenomena.

The Buddha
Satipatthanasamyutta - sutra 42
 
(15)
       If other people offer you advice, instead of thinking, What business is it of yours to be making suggestions? Respect what they have to say and consider yourself as the disciple of all beings.

--The Dalai Lama
 
(16)

       Were there a mountain all made of gold, doubled that would not be enough to satisfy a single man: know this and live accordingly.

Samyutta Nikaya I, 117
 
(17)

      

Holding on to anger is like grasping a hot coal with the intent of throwing it at someone else.

You are the first to get burnt. And you might miss the person it was intended for.

If you hit him, he might hurl another piece at you, and it goes on endlessly.

What stupidity!


From Daily Enlightenment
Buddhazine Magazine - www.BuddhaNet.net


 
(18)

      
The greatest achievement is selflessness.
The greatest worth is self-mastery.
The greatest quality is seeking to serve others.
The greatest precept is continual awareness.
The greatest medicine is the emptiness of everything.
The greatest action is not conforming with the worlds ways.
The greatest magic is transmuting the passions.
The greatest generosity is non-attachment.
The greatest goodness is a peaceful mind.
The greatest patience is humility.
The greatest effort is not concerned with results.
The greatest meditation is a mind that lets go.
The greatest wisdom is seeing through appearances.

Atisha


 
(19)
  In the Beginner's Mind there are many possibilities, in the experts there are few.....

The mind of the beginner is empty, free of the habits of the expert, ready to accept, to doubt, and open to all the possibilities. It is the kind of mind that sees things as they are, which step by step and in a flash can realize the original nature of everything...

Shunryo Suzuki Roshi
Zen Mind, Beginners Mind
 
(20)
 
 The Bodhisattva Vow

May I be a guard for those who are protectorless,
A guide for those who journey on the road;
For those who wish to go across the water,
May I be a boat, a raft, a bridge.

May I be an isle for those who yearn for landfall,
And a lamp for those who long for light;
For those who need a resting place, a bed,
For all who need a servant, may I be a slave.

May I be the wishing jewel, the vase of plenty,
A word of power, and the supreme remedy.
May I be the trees of miracles,
And for every being, the abundant cow.

Like the great earth and the other elements,
Enduring as the sky itself endures,
For the boundless multitude of living beings,
May I be the ground and vessel of their life.

Thus, for every single thing that lives,
In number like the boundless reaches of the sky,
May I be their sustenance and nourishment
Until they pass beyond the bounds of suffering

Countless sentient beings, I vow to help to cross the ocean of existence.
Eternal Sufferings, I vow to end.
Innumerable spiritual methods, I vow to study and comprehend.
The buddha's unsurpassable supreme dharma, I vow to realize.

[adapted from Kim Dieu's translation from the Vietnamese]

 
(21)

Just as from the cow comes milk, from the milk cream,
from cream comes butter, from the butter, ghee
and from ghee, the skim of ghee
and this is said to be the very best.
So, of persons who are concerned neither with their own good, nor others good,
with their own good and not others good
with others good, and not their own good, and
with their own good AND others good.
The last one is the best

The Buddha

 
(22)

  "And let one cultivate a boundless heart of loving kindness towards the whole world - above, below and across, unhindered, without hatred, without enmity.

Whatever living beings there may be; whether weak or strong, large, medium, short or small, seen and unseen, those living near and far away, those born and yet-to-be-born; May all beings be well and happy!"

- The Buddha (Discourse on Loving Kindness [Metta Sutta])

 
(23)


Of Buddhahood's abundant crop, compassion is the seed
It is like moisture, bringing increase
And is said to ripen into the state of lasting happiness.
Therefore to begin, I celebrate Compassion.

Chandrakirti in the
Introduction to the Middle Way
(Madhyamakavatara)

 
(24)


"...when we study Buddhism we're studying ourselves--the nature of our body, speech and mind--the main emphasis being on the nature of our mind and how it works in everyday life. The main topic is not something else, like what is Buddha, what is the nature of God or things like that. Why is it so important to know the nature of our own mind? It's because we all want happiness, enjoyment, peace and satisfaction and these experiences do not come from ice cream but from wisdom and the mind. Therefore we have to understand what the mind is and how it works."

Lama Thubten Yeshe
Universal Love

 
(25)
We are like 5 blind people who approach a different portion of an elephant and then end up in an argument over what an elephant looks like as they describe the portion of the elephant they perceived (eg. the trunk, the tail, the leg, the ears, the side). The truth is, of course, that the elephant is the combination of all of their descriptions.

 
(26)
If Phenomena are truly analyzed,
No basis for analysis remains.
And when the object is removed, the subject too subsides.
That indeed is said to be Nirvana.

Shantideva
The Way of the Bodhisattva
 
(27)
  I know the first beginning of things, and I know not only that, but what surpasses it in value. And I am not under the sway of what I know, and not being under its sway, I have come to know for myself that quenching, by the realization of which, One thus gone cannot fall into perilous paths.

The Buddha
Patika Sutra (from the Digha Nikaya)
 
(28)
      The power of compassion accelerates our realization and makes it more profound.

      Thus, if you want to speed up your progress, push the accelerator of compassion, love, and bodhicitta. If you want to slow down your discovery, put more focus on "self" - on self-liberation, individual salvation, or individual freedom.

Punlop Rinpoche
Mind Beyond Death
 
(29)
May I purify an ocean of worlds,
May I free an ocean of beings,
May I clearly see an ocean of Dharma,
May I realize an ocean of pristine wisdom.

May I purify an ocean of activities,
May I fulfill an ocean of aspirations,
May I make offerings to an ocean of Buddhas,
May I practice without discouragement for an ocean of aeons.

From "The King of Prayers"
Advice and Practice on Death & Dying, FPMT

 
(30)


If you wish to know what you were in the past,
Look at your present circumstances.

If you wish to know what you will be in the future,
Look at your present Actions.


 
(31)

There has never been found a fire which intends "Let me burn the fool."

But a fool who assaults a fire, burns himself by his own doing.

Sutra on the Rebuke to Mara
MN.50
 
(32)

There is a difference between living FOR the present and living IN the present.

In Buddhism, we are trying to live IN the present in order to be living FOR a better spiritual future.

Larry Reside
 
(33)

Beings are owners of their actions, heirs to their actions, they originate from their actions, are bound to their actions, have actions as their refuge.

It is action that distinguishes beings as inferior and superior.


The Buddha

Sutra on the Shorter Exposition of Karma
Majjhima Nikaya (MN.135)
 
(34)

Having slain Anger, one sleeps soundly,
Having slain Anger, one does not sorrow,
The killing of Anger, with its poisoned root and honeyed tip,
This is the killing that the Noble Ones praise.
For having slain that, one does not sorrow.

The Buddha,
Devatta Samyutta 71(1)
(Samyutta Nikaya 1)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha
 

(35)

Just as all rafters of a peaked house lead to the roof peak and converge upon the roof peak and all are removed when the roof peak is removed, so too all unwholesome states are rooted in ignorance, and converge upon ignorance and all are uprooted when ignorance is uprooted.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses with Similies (20.Opammasamyutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(36)

If someone were to give away a hundred pots of food as charity in the morning,
a hundred pots of food as charity at noon,
and a hundred pots of food as charity at night,
It would not be as much merit as developing a mind of loving kindness for a single moment.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses with Similies (20.Opammasamyutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(37)

Rahula,
Any kind of Form,
Any kind of Feeling,
Any kind of Perception,
Any kind of Intention,
Any kind of Consciousness,
Whether past, present, or future,
Internal, external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near
Should be seen as it really is with correct wisdom thus:

This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self.

Having seen all Form, Feeling, Perception, Intention, and Consciousness as it really is with correct wisdom thus: "this is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self, one is liberated by non-clinging.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses with Rahula (18.Rahulasamyutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(38)

What lies in the past has been abandoned,
What lies in the future has been relinquished,
and desire and lust for present forms of individual existence has been thoroughly removed.
It is in such a way, Elder, that dwelling alone is fulfilled in detail.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses with Monks (21.Bikkhusamyutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(39)

Then the Blessed One took up a little bit of soil in his fingernail and said.
There is not even this much form that is permanent, stable, eternal, not subject to change, and that will remain the same just like eternity itself. ....There is not this much feeling...perception...intention...or consciousness that is permanent, stable, eternal, not subject to change, and that will remain the same just like eternity itself.

If there WAS this much form....feeling....perception....intention....or consciousness that was permanent, stable, eternal, and not subject to change, living the holy life for the complete destruction of suffering could not be discerned.

But BECAUSE there is not even this much form....feeling....perception....intention....or consciousness that is permanent, stable, eternal and not subject to change, living the holy life for the complete destruction of suffering CAN be discerned.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses on the 5 Collections (22.KhandhaSamutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(40)

The world, for the most part, depends upon a duality - upon the notion of existence, and the notion of non-existence.

But for one who sees the origin of the world as it really is with correct wisdom, there is no notion of non-existence in regard to the world.

And for one who sees the cessation of the world as it really is with correct wisdom, there is no notion of existence in regard to the world.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses on causation (12.NidhanaSamyutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(41)

In clinging to the 5 Collections (form, feeling, perception, intention, consciousness), one either grasps at them with desire and lust and assumes posession, or one identifies with them, taking them as the basis of conceit or for views about one's real self.

To break up our appropration of the 5 Collections, the Buddha often enjoins us to abandon desire and lust for them. But to give up clinging is difficult because clinging is reinforced by views which rationalize our identification with the 5 Collections and thus equip our clinging with a protective shield.

Bhikkhu Bodhi
Intruduction to the Book of the 5 Collections (III.KhandhaVagga)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(42)

And what, monks, are the things that should be fully understood?

Form is something that should be fully understood. Feeling.... Perception.... Intention.... Consciousness.... These are called the things that should be fully understood.

And what, monks, is full understanding?

The destruction of lust in regards to these things, the destruction of hatred in regards to these things, the destruction of delusion in regards to these things. This is called full understanding.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses on the 5 Collections (Khandhasamyutta 22(23) )
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 

(43)

There comes a time when the great ocean dries up and evaporates and no longer exists,
but still I say, there is no making an end of suffering for those beings roaming and wandering onward,
hindered by ignorance and fettered by craving.

The Buddha
Connected Discourses on the 5 Collections (Skandas) (22.Khandhasamyutta)
Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Samyutta Nikaya)

 
(44)

Nowhere in Samsara is without true sufferings because the samsaric environment itself acts as a condition to experience suffering. Ordinary beings are born in Samsara without choice and continually have to experience dissatisfaction and misery.

However, if we purify our minds, we purify our experience of the world and thereby attain a Pure Land free from all suffering.

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
Guide to Dakini Land
Tharpa Publications


 

(45)

The Four Reliances:

Rely on the Teachings, not just the teacher.
Rely on the Meaning, not just the words.
Rely on the Real Meaning, not just the interpretation.
Rely on the Experience, not just the idea.

The Buddha

 

(46)

And how is it, monks, that by protecting oneself, one protects others?
By the pursuit, development, and cultivation of the four foundations of mindfulness
(mindfulness of body, feelings, mind, and phenomena).
It is in such a way that by protecting oneself, one protects others.

And how is it, monks, that by protecting others, one protects oneself?
By patience, harmlessness, loving-kindness, and sympathy.
It is in such a way that by protecting others, one protects oneself.

The Buddha
Sattipatthana Samyutta - sutra 19

 

(47)

The correct formulation of the relative truth is the means for realizing the ultimate truth and conversely, the ultimate truth depends on the understanding of the realitive. The ultimate is, in fact, the true nature of the relative.

If there were no relative, the ultimate would be entirely impossible, for the ultimate cannot be reached if the relative is removed. Thus the two are interdependent and can never be dissociated.

How then is the ultimate to be realized? As has been explained, a correct understanding of the ultimate truth comes as a result of skillful means (the relative truth). A person who does not understand the relative truth as a means and the ultimate truth as an end will fall into confusion and wander into error.

In Chandrakirti's tradition, dependent arising and emptiness mean the same thing.

From Introduction to the Middle Way
Chandrakirti's Madhyamakavatara with commentary by Jamgon Mipham
translated by the Padmakara Translation Group
Shambala Publications
 


(48)
The entire Dharma of the [Buddha's] Dispensation is good in the beginning with Virtue as one's own well-being. It is good in the middle with Serenity and Insight and with Path and Fruition. It is good in the end with Nirvana.

Or alternatively, it is good in the beginning with Virtue and Concentration. It is good in the middle with Insight and the Path. It is good in the end with Fruition and Nirvana.

From the Path of Purification (Visuddhimagga) Chapter VII, verse 70.

 

(49)
Watch your thoughts because they become words.
Watch your words they become actions.
Watch your actions they become habits.
Watch out because your habits become character.
Watch your character because it will shape your destiny,
and your destiny is your life ...

HH The Dalai Lama

In conversation with Leonardo Boff
Milan, December 2007

 

(50)
 

(51)
A farmer sows seeds freely without holding back. He must do this in the spring to get results in the fall. It wouldn't make sense for him to have attachment to the seeds and not plant them while still holding high expectations for a crop in the fall. But farmers know what they are doing and do it freely, because more will come of it. It is the same with our practice of generosity. If we freely sow the seed of Generosity in the field of Bodhicitta (the Awakening Heart), the great harvest of Enlightenment (Buddhahood) will surely result.

From "A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path"
By Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen & Khenmo Trinlay Chodron
Snow Lion Publications.
 

(52)
Take a delicious meal as an example. We are so attracted to it, especially when we are really hungry. But if that meal were truly a cause of pleasure, we should get more and more enjoyment the more we eat. However, when we eat too much, we develop stomach problems. That which we thought was pleasurable changes into a cause of suffering. This is called the suffering of change. It is better to choose a policy of moderation, or the middle way, in everything.

From "A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path"
By Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen & Khenmo Trinlay Chodron
Snow Lion Publications.
 

(53)
The mistaken notion of a self is like a turtle's hair. Someone may tell you that turtle hair is smooth, soft, warm, and of very light weight and that, because of these qualities, colth made from turtle hair is very expensive. People who don't know that a turtle acutally has no hair may believe these talkes and want to buy some. They will then waste their time looking here and there for turtle hair and asking people where to get it. But if someone knows that a turtle has no hair, they will neither yearn to own a sweater made of turtle hair, nor hate turtle hair because they can't find it. Attachment and Aversion will have no basis at all on which to arise. In the same way, when we posess the wisdom to understand that the "self" is a fiction, Attachments, and Aversions naturally drop away just as the trunk, branches, and leaves of a giant tree will dry up by themselves if we cut the tree at its root.

From "A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path"
By Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen & Khenmo Trinlay Chodron
Snow Lion Publications.
 

(54)
Tantra is most commonly classified into 4 types:

KRIYA TANTRA emphasizes physical cleanliness and purification while internally maintaining a deity yoga practice in which the yidam is viewed as being far superior to oneself.
CARYA TANTRA emphasizes verbal discipline and chanting while mentally maintaining a deity yoga practice in which the yidam is viewed as being like a close friend.
YOGA TANTRA emphasizes mental discipline and uniting oneself with the deity.
ANNUTARA YOGA TANTRA or Highest Yoga Tantra in which everything is transformed into the enlightened state through the practices of chakras, pranas, and so forth using the arising and completion stages.

Each method can be said to mature its practitioners according to their own needs and capabilities. For example Kriya tantra is useful for those who are more concerned with external appearances and ritual. Carya tantra shares characteristics with Kriya and yoga tantras and is most effective for practitioners with an interest in both external and internal processes. Some, who are unconcerned with external appearances, are intent on internal yogic development, and for them the Yoga tantras are taught. Highest Yoga Tantra is taught for those who are capable of meditating in a state where Method and Wisdom are indistinguishable.


From "A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path"
By Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen & Khenmo Trinlay Chodron
Snow Lion Publications.
 

(55)
The process of generating oneself as a deity is likened here to the enthronement of a king. without an enthronement or investiture, one cannot perform as a leader of a country, regardless of one's qualifications. When one is installed in an office, though, one immediately has all the attributes of a king, president, or prime minister. As such, one has the power to rule; the ability to protect the citizens; the responsability to maintain peace, harmony, and prosperity; and generally the ability to bring benefit to the entire country. In the same way, after receiving an empowerment, one has the authority to practice the generation stage. When we are "enthrowned" as Chenrezi or Tara, for example, and we take on their attributes, we can manifest all of the qualities and activities of that enlightened being.

From "A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path"
By Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen & Khenmo Trinlay Chodron
Snow Lion Publications.
 

(56)
[In Tantra,] Recalling that the visualized deity is insubstantial like a rainbow or a reflection is a special antidote to attachment and grasping. In this insubstantial nature, there is nothing to grasp and nothing to hold on to. There is only an appearance. When a rainbow appears, we enjoy looking at it, but we make no effort to hold onto it. Similarly, in deity yoga we use the visualization as an antidote to attachment to our own body. By visualizing ourselves in this insubstantial state or by meditating on the deity in this way, attachment and hatred naturally decline.

From "A Complete Guide to the Buddhist Path"
By Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen & Khenmo Trinlay Chodron
Snow Lion Publications.
 

(57)
"Sometimes I feel overwhelmed. But I try to work one day at a time. If we just worry about the big picture, we are powerless. So my secret is to start right away doing whatever little work I can do. I try to give joy to one person in the morning, and remove the suffering of one person in the afternoon. That's enough."

Sister Chan Khong
Vietnamese Buddhist Nun
 

(58)
Householder's Son, there are these four types who can be seen as foes in friendly guise: the man who is all take is one, the great talker is one, the flatterer is one, and the fellow-spendthrift is one.

Householder's Son, there are these four types who can be seen to be loyal friends: the friend who is a helper is one, the friend who is the same in happy and unhappy times is one, the friend who points out what is good for you is one, and the friend who is sympathetic is one.

The Sigalaka Sutra
The Teaching to Sigalaka
Advice to Lay Practitioners.
Sutra #31, The Long Discourses of the Buddha (Digha Nikaya)
by Maurice Walshe
Wisdom Publications
 

(##)
 

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