Quotes by Shunryu Suzuki

“Christopher McCandless:"I will miss you too, but you are wrong if you think that the joy of life comes principally from the joy of human relationships. God's place is all around us, it is in everyt...”

“A student, filled with emotion and crying, implored, "Why is there so much suffering?"Suzuki Roshi replied, "No reason.”

“I discovered that it is necessary, absolutely necessary, to believe in nothing. That is, we have to believe in something which has no form and no color--something which exists before all forms and ...”

“In the beginners mind there are many possibilities, but in the experts there are few”

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

“In your very imperfections you will find the basis for your firm, way-seeking mind.”

“To die is more important than trying to be alive. When we try to be alive, we have trouble. Rather than trying to be alive or active, if we can be calm and die or fade away into emptiness, then nat...”

“It is said that there are four kinds of horses: excellent ones, good ones, poor ones, and bad ones. The best horse will run slow and fast, right and left, at the drivers will, before it sees the sh...”

“While you are continuing this practice, week after week, year after year, your experience will become deeper and deeper, and your experience will cover everything you do in your everyday life. The ...”

“One time Marian showed me some sand. When she gave it to me, she said, "These are very interesting stones." It just looked like sand, but she asked me to took through a magnifying glass. Then those...”

“In zazen, leave your front door and your back door open. Let thoughts come and go. Just don't serve them tea.”

“Those who are attached only to the result of their effort will not have any chance to appreciate it, because the result will never come.”

“To have some deep feeling about Buddhism is not the point; we just do what we should do, like eating supper and going to bed. This is Buddhism.”

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

“Whereever you are, you are one with the clouds and one with the sun and the stars you see. You are one with everything. That is more true than I can say, and more true than you can hear.”

“When you do something, you should do it with your whole body and mind; you should be concentrated on what you do. You should do it completely, like a good bonfire. You should not be a smoky fire. Y...”

“Even in zazen you will lose yourself. When you become sleepy, or when your mind starts to wander about, you lose yourself. When your legs become painfulWhy are my legs so painful?you lose yourself....”

“In your big mind, everything has the same value...In your practice you should accept everything as it is, giving to each thing the same respect given to a Buddha. Here there is Buddhahood”

“When you listen to someone, you should give up all your preconceived ideas and your subjective opinions; you should just listen to him, just observe what his way is. We put very little emphasis on ...”

“True communication depends upon our being straightforward with one another... But the best way to communicate may be just to sit without saying anything.”