“When walking, walk. When eating, eat.”

“Sitting quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself.”

“The quieter you become, the more you can hear.”

“Zen is not some kind of excitement, but concentration on our usual everyday routine.”

“In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.”

“Not knowing is most intimate.”

“Don’t seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise; seek what they sought.”

“A man is not learned who does not speak; he is not wise who does not listen.”

“Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.”

“You should sit in meditation for 20 minutes a day. Unless you are too busy—then sit for an hour.”

“Each day is a journey, and the journey itself is home.”

“Drink tea and nourish life.”

“Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn… this is the best season of your life.”

“The moon does not fight. It attacks no one.”

“Flow with whatever may happen and let your mind be free.”

“When the mind is nowhere, it is everywhere.”

“Awareness is the greatest agent for change.”

“Be master of mind rather than mastered by mind.”

“The mind is everything. What you think, you become.”

“Wake up to the ordinary.”

“Let go or be dragged.”

“Nothing is worth holding on to. Let it all go.”

“Don’t move. Keep quiet, and all things will fall into place.”

“When there is no desire, all things are at peace.”

“If you understand, things are just as they are; if you do not understand, things are just as they are.”

“Each moment is the universe.”

“Nothing to do, nowhere to go, nothing to attain. Just be.”

“What was never lost can never be found.”

“Great doubt: great awakening. Little doubt: little awakening. No doubt: no awakening.”

“This is it.”

“No thought, no reflection, no analysis… let it settle itself.”

“The obstacle is the path.”

“No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place.”

“If you want to climb a mountain, begin at the top.”

“To see things as they are is to cease comparing.”

“The bird of paradise lands only on the hand that does not grasp.”

“Don’t seek, don’t search, don’t ask, don’t knock, don’t demand—relax.”

“He who clings to life dies; he who defies death lives.”

“The way is not in the sky. The way is in the heart.”

“To accept everything is an exercise in true freedom.”

“Treat every moment as your last. It is not preparation for something else.”

“To follow the path, look to the master, become the master.”

“Only when you can be extremely pliable and soft can you be extremely hard and strong.”

“No self, no problem.”

“Your mind is like a mirror. Don’t polish it, just see through it.”

“Obstacles do not block the path. They are the path.”

“When you realize nothing is lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”

“Each moment is the universe.”

“Where you are, be there totally.”

“Do not seek the truth, only cease to cherish opinions.”

“A journey of a thousand miles begins beneath one’s feet.”

“Empty your cup so that it may be filled.”

“Enlightenment is when a wave realizes it is the ocean.”