hackspirit
When it comes to Sunday evening, it can be difficult not dread the week ahead.
You’ve just had a fun and relaxing weekend and the last thing you want to do is get back in the swing of things.
But perhaps we’re looking at it the wrong way.
Buddhists say that the present moment is all that exists and that there is ALWAYS something to be grateful for.
So instead of being worried about the future, what if we embraced idea of present moment awareness and gratitude?
I bet we’d feel more fulfilled in nearly every area of our life, even while knowing the fact that Monday is coming around.
So to get us into that mindset, here are 31 profound Zen Buddhist sayings. Enjoy!
1) “To cry and not be carried away by tears, to laugh and not be carried away by laughter, is the way.”
2) “Before enlightenment, I chopped wood and carried water. After enlightenment, I chopped wood and carried water.”
3) “The instant you speak about a thing, you miss the mark.”
4) “Sitting quietly doing nothing, spring comes, grass grows of itself.”
5) “Zen is not some kind of excitement, but concentration on our usual everyday routine.” ~Shunryu Suzuki
6) “When you pass through, no one can pin you down, no one can call you back.”
7) “To study the way of the Buddha is to study oneself. To study oneself is to forget oneself. To forget oneself is to be enlightened by everything.”
8) “The whole moon and the entire sky are reflected in one dewdrop on the grass.” ~Dogen
9) “What is inexpressible is inexhaustible in its use.”
10) “Therefore the Three Realms are only mind.”
11) “In the scenery of spring, nothing is better, nothing worse; The flowering branches are; some long, some short.” ~Eicho
12) “One moon shows in every pool, in every pool the one moon.”
13) “When you get to the top of the mountain, keep climbing.”
14) “Where there is great doubt, there will be great awakening; small doubt, small awakening, no doubt, no awakening.”
15) “Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the men of old; seek what they sought.” ~Basho
16) “Many have come to realization simply by listening to the tinkling of a bell or some other sound.” ~Philip Kapleau
17) “The frog in the pond knows little of the great ocean.”
18) “When I eat, I eat; when I sleep, I sleep.”
19) “If we look at the world with a deluded body and mind, we will think that our self is permanent. But if we practice correctly and return to our true self, we will realize that nothing is permanent.” ~Dogen
20) “The Great Way is not difficult, it only avoids picking and choosing.” ~Sosan
21) “If you do not get it from yourself, where will you go for it?”
22) “Not thinking of good, not thinking of evil – tell me, what was your original face before your mother and father were born?”
23) “I would rather sink to the bottom of the sea for endless eons than seek liberation through all the saints of the universe.” ~Shih-t’ou
24) “Do not mistake understanding for realization, and do not mistake realization for liberation.” ~Tibetan saying
25) “The greater the passion, the greater the Buddha.”
26) “If you want to climb a mountain, begin at the top.”
27) “You should stop pursuing words and letters, and learn to withdraw and reflect on yourself. When you do so, your body and mind will fall away naturally and your original Buddha-nature will appear.” ~Dogen
28) “The fundamental delusion of humanity is to suppose that I am here and you are out there.” ~Yasutani Roshi
29) “If you understand, things are just as they are; if you do not understand, things are just as they are.”
30) “If you wish to know the taste of seawater and you live on an island, set out towards the coast and keep going. When you reach the seashore all you then need to do is to bend down, put the finger into the water, and then into the mouth and you will know the taste of all the seven seas. So it is with freedom, it has but one single taste.” ~Hakuin
31) “When you forget the good and the non-good, the worldly life and the religious life, and all other dharmas, and permit no thoughts relating to them to arise, and you abandon body and mind—then there is complete freedom. When the mind is like wood or stone, there is nothing to be discriminated.” ~Pai-chang Huai-hai
If you’re looking more wisdom, check out these Irish sayings that will make you sound way smarter!
