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Quote by Matthew Bortolin

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The Zen of R2-D2: Ancient Wisdom from a Galaxy Far, Far Away

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Matthew Bortolin

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“During my time here, I learnt that one could not escape the secular world anymore than one could escape the web of karma that one had sown. True enlightenment comes not from isolation but immersion. The monks in the temples never really abandoned the world. Their doors were always open, and they took up arms when necessary as they had demonstrated countless times before. Their severance with attachment was to connect them with greater compassion, a higher love.”

LoveInspirationCompassionKindnessBuddhismZenGenerosityTao
Book:Snow at Heaven's Edge: A Tale from the Carefree Swordsman Saga
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“Disciple: Master, what will this temple give me? Master: This temple will not give you anything! Disciple: But I came here to take something! Master: There is nothing for you to take here; everything is within you, we will help you to take something from within yourself, that's all! Disciple: What if there is nothing within me, Master? Master: Then you will get nothing!”

Mehmet Murat Ildan QuotesZenZen StoriesZen StoryZen QuotesZen Quotations
Author:Mehmet Murat Ildan
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“In 1963, I was sitting with a number of my students on the campus of Columbia University in New York. The morning was beautiful, the sun was shining, and we were talking to each other about the Buddhist practice of removing concepts. Suddenly someone passing by stopped and looking at me for a few seconds, and then he asked, "Are you a Buddhist?" I looked up and said, "No." Did I tell a lie? I hope that my students understood me at that moment. If I had said, "Yes, I am a Buddhist," then he would still be caught in his idea of what a Buddhist is, and that would not help him. So "No" was more helpful than "Yes." That is the language of Zen. When you do say or do something, it is to help undo the knots in people's minds, and not to bind them anymore. That is why the language we use should aim at liberation.”

LanguageZenLiberation
Book:Peace Begins Here: Palestinians and Israelis Listening to Each Other
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