Thich Nhat Hanh Quotes

The present moment is the only time over which we have dominion. The most important person is always the person you are with, who is right before you

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

When a feeling or thought arises, your intention should not be to chase it away, even if by continuing to concentrate on the breath the feeling or thought passes naturally from the mind. The intention isn't to chase it away, hate it, worry about it, or be frightened by it. So what exactly should you be doing concerning such thoughts and feelings? Simply acknowledge their presence.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

While practicing mindfulness, don't be dominated by the distinction between good and evil, thus creating a battle within oneself.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

A person who looks at the table and can see the universe is a person who can see the way.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

People normally cut reality into compartments, and so are unable to see the interdependence of all phenomena. To see one in all and all in one is to break through the great barrier which narrows one's perception of reality, a barrier which Buddhism calls the attachment to the false view of self.Attachment to the false view of self means belief in the presence of unchanging entities which exist on their own.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Whatever the tasks, do them slowly and with ease, in mindfulness. Don't do any task in order to get it over with. Resolve to do each job in a relaxed way, with all your attention.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

To take hold of your mind, you must practice mindfulness of the mind. You must know how to observe and recognize the presence of every feeling and thought which arises in you.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Now I see that if one doesn't know how to die, one can hardly know how to live - because deathis a part of life.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

[A]ll the methods in the search for truth should be looked on as means rather than as ends in themselves or as absolute truth.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The meditation on interdependence is to help one penetrate reality in order to be one with it, not to become caught up in philosophical opinion or meditation methods. The raft is used to cross the river. It isn't to be carried around on your shoulders. The finger which points at the moon isn't the moon itself.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Meditation is not evasion, it is a serene encounter with reality.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Live the actual moment. Only this actual moment is life.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Equanimity means to let go, not to abandon.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Sitting meditation, walking meditation, and mindful eating are good opportunities for resting. When you feel agitated, if you are able to go to a park or a garden, it is an opportunity for rest. If you walk slowly and remember to take it easy, if you are able to sit and do nothing from time to time, you can rest deeply and enter a state of true ease.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Concentration is not wholesome in itself. A thief needs concentration to break into a house.The object of our concentration is what makes it beneficial or not. If you use meditative concentration to run away from reality, that is not beneficial.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

When mindfulness is present, the Buddha and the Holy Spirit are already there

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Smiling is a kind of mouth yoga. When we smile, it releases the tension in our face. Others notice it, even strangers, and are likely to smile back. By smiling, we initiate a wonderful chain reaction, touching the joy in anyone we encounter. A smile is an ambassador of goodwill.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Our feelings are formations, impermanent and without substance. We learn not to identify with ourselves with our feelings, not to consider them as a self, not to seek refuge in them, not to die because of them.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Worrying does not accomplish anything. Even if you worry twenty times more, it will not change the situation of the world. In fact, your anxiety will only make things worse. Even though things are not as we would like, we can still be content, knowing we are trying our best and will continue to do so. If we don't know how to breathe, smile,and live every moment of our life deeply, we will never be able to help anyone. I am happy in the present moment. I do not ask for anything else. I do not expect any additional happiness or conditions that will bring about more happiness. The most important practice is aimlessness, not running after things, not grasping.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

If we think we have twenty-four hours to achieve a certain purpose, today will become a means to attain an end. The moment of chopping wood and carrying water is the moment of happiness. We do not need to wait for these chores to be done to be happy. To have happiness in this moment is the spirit of aimlessness. Otherwise, we will run in circles for the rest of our life. We have everything we need to make the present moment the happiest in our life, even if we have a cold or a headache. We don't have to wait until we get over our cold to be happy. Having a cold is a part of life.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

There is no need to put anything in front of us and run after it. We already have everything we are looking for, everything we want to become. Be yourself. Life is precious as it is. All the elements for your happiness are already here. There is no need to run, strive, search, or struggle. Just be. Just being in the moment in this place is the deepest practice of meditation. Most people cannot believe that just walking as though you have nowhere to go is enough. They think that striving and competing are normal and necessary. Try practicing aimlessness for just five minutes,and you will see how happy you are during those five minutes.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Everyone wants to be happy, and there is a strong energy in us pushing us toward what we think will make us happy. But we may suffer a lot because of this. We need the insight that position, revenge, wealth, fame, or possessions are, more often than not, obstacles to our happiness. We need to cultivate the wish to be free of these things so we can enjoy the wonders of life that are always available — the blue sky, the trees, our beautiful children.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Do not lose yourself in the past. Do not lose yourself in the future. Do not get caught in your anger, worries, or fears. Come back to the present moment, and touch life deeply. This is mindfulness.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

We do so much, we run so quickly, the situation is difficult, and many people say, Don't just sit there, do something. But doing more things may make the situation worse. So you should say, Don't just do something, sit there. Sit there, stop, be yourself first, and begin from there.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child - our own two eyes. All is a miracle.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Meditation is to be aware of what is going on: in your body, in your feelings, in your mind, and in the world.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

If you have mindfulness, if you feel safe, you recognize that you have plenty of conditions to be happy already, and that you don't need to run into the future in order to get a few more conditions.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Anywhere we go, we will have our self with us; we cannot escape ourselves.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Mindful living is an art. You do not have to be a monk or living in a monastery to practice mindfulness. You can practice it anytime, while driving your car or doing housework. Driving in mindfulness will make the time in your car joyful, and it will also help you avoid accidents. You can use the red traffic light as a signal of mindfulness, reminding you to stop and enjoy your breathing. Similarly, when you do the dishes after dinner you can practice mindful breathing, so the time dish washing is pleasant and meaningful. You do not feel you have to rush. If you hurry, you waste the time of dish washing. The time you spend washing dishes and doing all your other everyday tasks is precious. It is a time for being alive. When you practice mindful living, peace will bloom during your daily activities.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Mindfulness is the awareness of what is going on in us and around us in the present moment. It requires stopping, looking deeply, and recognizing both the uniqueness of the moment and its connection to everything that has gone on before and will go on in the future.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The leaves that remain are only a very small part of the tea. The tea that goes into me is a much bigger part of the tea. It is the richest part.We are the same; our essence has gone into our children, our friends, and the entire universe. We have to find ourselves in those directions and not in the spent tea leaves.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

If I don't understand you, I may be angry at you, all the time. We are not capable of understanding each other, and that is the main source of human suffering.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The son needs the father to have access to his source, and the father needs the son to have access to the future and the infinite.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

But work is life only when done in mindfulness. otherwise, one becomes life the person who lives as though dead. We need to light our own torch in order to carry on. But the life of each one of us is connected with the life of those around us. If we know how to live in mindfulness, if we know how to preserve and care for our own mind and heart then thanks to that our brothers and sisters will also know how to live in mindfulness.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The teachings of the Buddha could be summarized in four short sentences. ... [The Buddha] said ...The bad things, don't do them.The good things, try to do them.Try to purify, subdue your own mind.That is the teaching of all buddhas.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Mindfulness is like that—it is the miracle which can call back in a flash our dispersed mind and restore it to wholeness so that we can live each minute of life.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

I vow to ingest only items that preserve well-being, peace, and joy in my body and my consciousness... Practicing a diet is the essence of this precept. Wars and bombs are the products of our consciousness individually and collectively. Our collective consciousness has so much violence, fear, craving, and hatred in it, it can manifest in wars and bombs. The bombs are the product of our fear... Removing the bombs is not enough. Even if we could transport all the bombs to a distant planet, we would still not be safe, because the roots of the wars and the bombs are still intact in our collective consciousness. Transforming the toxins in our collective consciousness is the true way to uproot war (72-73).

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

Mindful consumption is the object of this precept. We are what we consume. If we look deeply into the items that we consume every day, we will come to know our own nature very well. We have to eat, drink, consume, but if we do it unmindfully, we may destroy our bodies and our consciousness, showing ingratitude toward our ancestors, our parents, and future generations (66).

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

The Three Kinds of Pride are: (1) thinking I am better than the other(s), (2) thinking I am worse than the other(s), and (3) thinking I am just as good as the other(s).

~ Thich Nhat Hanh

I have lost my smile,but don't worry.The dandelion has it.

~ Thich Nhat Hanh