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Zen Quotes

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Zen Quotes

“Everything depends upon your readiness and willingness to let go into the Unknown and live from that mysterious and precious condition. The question is: Are you ready to give up everything when God comes knocking at your door? This willingness to completely let go and surrender to the divine determines how free you will ultimately become. Whatever you hold back for yourself will become your prison. My advice is to give your whole heart, mind, body, and soul to Grace when it comes. Ask yourself now: Am I ready? (p. 116)”

GraceEnlightenmentAwakeningZenSurrender To GodAdyashanti
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“It comes down to practice, and practice, after all, is conduct in keeping with Right Views. Of course, Right Views are not merely opinions, not even Skākyamuni’s opinions, but are views that accord with this realization: we are all in this together and we aren’t here very long. Let’s take care of one another while we can.”

CompassionBuddhismUnityZenZen BuddhismSpiritual PracticeRight View
Book:Encouraging Words: Zen Buddhist Teachings for Western Students
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“Wird das Ego als Kind des Ganzen betrachtet, so ergibt ein reiner Fokus auf dieses und das Fällen von bedeutungsvollen Entscheidungen aus dieser Instanz wenig Sinn – es ergibt jedoch genauso wenig Sinn, das Kind auszu-schließen.”

EgoZenGesellschaftSinnBuddhismusBedeutungSelbstoptimierung
Book:Radikal verbunden: Über traumatisierende Herrschaft und den spirituellen Aktivismus als Brücke zwischen sozio-politischem Aufdecken und mitfühlender Bezogenheit
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“Religion is one; theologies are many. Theology contaminates religion. People have different theologies. They have been fighting because of theology. Theology means the philosophy about God, the logic about God. It is all meaningless because there is no way to prove God. There is no way to disprove either. Argumentation is just irrelevant. Yes, one can experience god but one cannot prove and that’s what theology goes on doing. Humanity is growing towards that awareness where theology will be dropped and religion will be accepted purely as an experience.”

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Author:A Mystic
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“Abiding means letting everything be as it already is – no matter what it is. If you're feeling good, let that be as it is. If you're feeling bad, let that be as it is. No matter what your emotional, physical, or mental state, let it be as it is and don't wish it to be otherwise. If you want it to be different from what it is, you're not abiding; you're picking and choosing and trying to control your experience. (p. 29)”

AcceptanceSurrenderZenLet GoSpiritual AwakeningBe Here NowAdyashantiLetting Everything Be As It Is
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“When you reflect on the infinite number of happenstances that coalesced to produce you, then you understand how unique, how precious, how sacred you really are. Your task is to cultivate that precious, sacred nature and help it to flower.”

LifeSpiritSpiritualityBuddhismBirthSacredZenHuman LifeTrue SelfSpiritual Practice
Book:Encouraging Words: Zen Buddhist Teachings for Western Students
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“That which comes and goes is not real; quit chasing it. It doesn't matter. What haven't you lost? That is what‘s important. What always is? What is there in bliss and in misery? Who you are is always present and is always the same. That which doesn't come and go is real. That is where Freedom is found – nowhere else. (p. 31)”

FreedomEnlightenmentAwakeningZenAdyashanti
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“What is the difference between Zen and Tao? Roshi - "Look at this perfect peach. This must be Zen." Sensei - "If so, then see this wondrous tree here who gave us our peach, it is the Tao." Roshi - "Then look to the Earth from where the tree emerges. that is Zen. Sensei - "Then look to the sky whose wind blows through the leaves and whose clouds bring it the water of life." it is the Tao. Roshi - "Then look to the silent witnessing stars spanning through infinity they are so very Zen" Sensei ~ "Yet look at the space between all these stars, that must be the Tao." Then they smiled broadly and laughed hysterically "look at our many words they are like the dead leaves of this tree. What a bonfire we can now make.”

ZenTaoismTaoZen Buddhism
Book:Random Molecular Mirroring
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“Enlightenment depends to a large extent on believing that you are born for Freedom in this lifetime, and that it is available now, in this moment. The mind, which creates the past and future, keeps you out of the moment where the Truth of your Being can be discovered. In this moment, there is always Freedom and there is always peace. This moment in which you experience Stillness is every moment. Don‘t let the mind seduce you into the past or future. Stay in the moment, and dare to consider that you can be free now. (p. 8)”

FreedomEnlightenmentZenSpiritual AwakeningAdyashanti
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“In order to find what the concept of God is pointing to, you must let go of your image of God and every concept you have about God. You must dare to be void of all concepts and enter into perfect Emptiness, perfect stillness, and perfect silence. You must forget everything you have ever learned about God. It won‘t help you. It may comfort you, but such comfort is imaginary; it is an illusion. Let go of all the false comforts of the mind. Let them all come to an end. The end must be experienced full yin Stillness. When you let all images, all concepts, all hopes, and all beliefs end, Stillness is experienced. Experience the core of Stillness. Dive into it and surrender fully. In full surrender to Stillness, you directly experience That to which the concept of God points. In that direct experience, you awaken from the dream of the mind and realize that the concept of God points to who you truly are. (p. 20-21)”

GodEnlightenmentZenSpiritual AwakeningSelfrealizationAdyashantiGodrealiization
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“The human being is what links consciousness to its own infinite expressions in form. Through the form of an awake human being, consciousness becomes conscious of itself as both formlessness and as all forms. This is why, to the true sage, everything is divine, whole, and complete. Everything is God, the Self. (p. 71)”

EnlightenmentZenSpiritual AwakeningAdyashanti
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“This (liberation) isn't something I can help you with. I can tell you what you need to do, but you have to do it. In the beginning, teachers can help a lot. But the deeper you go, all they can do is point, and clarify, and tell you what you need to do. Only you can take this step. Nobody can push you into this place. It's like Buddha's final night under the Bodhi tree. What did he do when confronted with this? He reached down and touched the ground and said, „I will not be moved.“ Finally – when everything that could be thrown at him was thrown, and he was still unmoved – it was done. He never looked back. (p. 99)”

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Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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“If we practice hard, concentrate on zazen, and organize our life so that we can sit well, we will find out what we are doing. But you have to be careful in the rules and way you establish. If it is too strict you will fail, if it is too loose, the rules will not work. Our way should be strict enough to have authority, an authority everyone should obey. Thu rules should be possible to observe. This is how Zen tradition was built up, decided little by little, created by us in our practice. We cannot force anything. But once the rules have been decided, we should obey them completely until they are changed. It is not a matter of good or bad, convenient or inconvenient. You just do it without question. That way your mind is free.”

Zen
Book:Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice
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“Dharma literally means 'truth' or 'norm.' It is a particular way of thinking, a way of viewing the world, which is not a concept but experience. This particular truth is very painful truth—usually truths are. It rings with the sound of reality, which comes too close to home. We become completely embarrassed when we begin to hear the truth. It is wrong to think that the truth is going to sound fantastic and beautiful, like a flute solo. The truth is actually like a thunderbolt. It wakes you up and makes you think twice whether you should stay in the rain or move into the house. Provocative.”

BuddhismZenDharmaTibetan BuddhismPraxis
Author:Chögyam Trungpa
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“In order to find what the concept of God is pointing to, you must let go of your image of God and every concept you have about God. You must dare to be void of all concepts and enter into perfect Emptiness, perfect stillness, and perfect silence. You must forget everything you have ever learned about God. It won‘t help you. It may comfort you, but such comfort is imaginary; it is an illusion. Let go of all the false comforts of the mind. Let them all come to an end. The end must be experienced fully in Stillness. When you let all images, all concepts, all hopes, and all beliefs end, Stillness is experienced. Experience the core of Stillness. Dive into it and surrender fully. In full surrender to Stillness, you directly experience That to which the concept of God points. In that direct experience, you awaken from the dream of the mind and realize that the concept of God points to who you truly are. (p. 20-21)”

EnlightenmentZenStillnessSelfrealizationAdyashantiGodrealization
Book:The Impact of Awakening: Excerpts from the Teachings of Adyashanti
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