Shunryu Suzuki Quotes

Bowing helps to eliminate our self-centered ideas. This is not so easy. It is difficult to get rid of these ideas, and bowing is a very valuable practice. The result is not the point; it is the effort to improve ourselves that is valuable. There is no end to this practice.

The practice of Zen mind is beginner’s mind. The innocence of the first inquiry — what am I? — is needed throughout Zen practice. The mind of the beginner is empty, free of the habits of the expert, ready to accept, to doubt, and open to all the possibilities. It is the kind of mind which can see things as they are, which step by step and in a flash can realize the original nature of everything.

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 colors appear... No matter what god or doctrine you believe in, if you become attached to it, your belief will be based more or less on a self-centered idea.

Tozan, a famous Zen master, said, “The blue mountain is the father of the white cloud. The white cloud is the son of the blue mountain. All day long they depend on each other, without being dependent on each other. The white cloud is always the white cloud. The blue mountain is always the blue mountain.” This is a pure, clear interpretation of life. There may be many things like the white cloud and blue mountain: man and woman, teacher and disciple. They depend on each other. But the white cloud should not be bothered by the blue mountain. The blue mountain should not be bothered by the white cloud. They are quite independent, but yet dependent. This is how we live, and how we practice zazen.

So even if the sun were to rise from the west, the Bodhisattva has only one way.

Zen is nothing to get excited about.

When we see a part of the moon covered by a cloud, or a tree, or a weed, we feel how round the moon is. But when we see the clear moon without anything covering it, we do not feel that roundness the same way we do when we see it through something else.

When we do not expect anything we can be ourselves. That is our way, to live fully in each moment of time.

When you get wet in a fog it is very difficult to dry yourself.

Some people may say that Zen Buddhism is not religion. Maybe that is so, or maybe Zen Buddhism is religion before religion. So it might not be religion in the usual sense. But it is wonderful, and even though we do not study what it is intellectually, even though we do not have any cathedral or fancy ornaments, it is possible to appreciate our original nature. This is, I think, quite unusual.

[W]hen your practice is calm and ordinary, everyday life itself is enlightenment.

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

Read in: A Monk's Guide to Happiness: Meditation in the 21st Century by Gelong Thubten

If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything; it is open to everything. In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities; in the expert’s mind there are few.

Instead of only criticizing your culture, you should devote your mind and body to practicing this simple way. Then society and culture will grow out of you.

Actually the best way to relieve your mental suffering is to sit in zazen, even in such a confused state of mind and bad posture.