"To practice Zen means to realize one's existence moment after moment, rather than letting life unravel in regret of the past and daydreaming of the future...as the clutter of ideas and emotions fall away and body and mind return to the natural harmony with all creation. Out of this emptiness can come a true insight into the nature of existence, which is no different from one's Buddha nature."
-Peter Mattheissen
"When an unpleasant thought or feeling, physical or mental, arises in him, a wise man does not worry, complain, weep, pound his chest, or torture his body and mind. He calmly observes his feeling and is aware that it is only a feeling. He knows that he is not the feeling, and he is not caught by the feeling. Therefor, the pain cannot bind him."
"Ignorance is the cause of all suffering. One must look deeply into things in order to penetrate their true nature. One cannot overcome ignorance through prayers and offerings."
"...as his pace slowed down, his heart quieted. He was wholeheartedly immersing himself, and this was his path. He turned around for one more glimpse of the only land and people he knew, and he saw them as mere specks merging with the shadows."
-Thich Nhat Hahn
