Quote

Zazen practice and everyday activity are one thing. We call zazen everyday life, and everyday life zazen.

Shunryu Suzuki

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Shunryu Suzuki
Age: 67 †
Born: 1904
Born: May 18
Died: 1971
Died: December 4
Bhikkhu
Leader
Missionary
Philosopher
Writer
Atlanta
Georgia
Everyday
Activity
Practice
Call
Thing
Life

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An enlightened person does not ignore things and does not stick to things, not even to the truth.
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A Master who cannot bow to a disciple cannot bow to Buddha.
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There is no connection between I myself yesterday and I myself in this moment
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To cook is not just to prepare food for someone or to cook for yourself it is to express your sincerity. So when you cook you should express yourself in your activity in the kitchen. You should allow yourself plenty of time.
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If it is raining out, do not walk fast, because it is raining everywhere.
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It is wisdom that is seeking for wisdom.
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We try, and we try, and we fail and then we go deeper.
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A tiger does not ignore or slight any small animal. The way he catches a mouse and catches and devours a cow are the same.
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How much 'ego' do you need? Just enough so that you don't step in front of a bus.
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People say that practicing Zen is difficult, but there is a misunderstanding as to why. It is not difficult because it is hard to sit in the cross- legged position, or to attain enlightenment. It is difficult because it is hard to keep our mind pure and our practice pure in its fundamental sense.
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Concentration comes not from trying hard to focus on something, but from keeping your mind open and directing it at nothing.
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If you take pride in your attainment or become discouraged because of your idealistic effort, your practice will confine you by a thick wall.
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When he bowed to all those buddhas, the buddhas he bowed to were beyond his own understanding. Again and again he did it.
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It is easy to have calmness in inactivity, it is hard to have calmness in activity, but calmness in activity is true calmness.
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Zen is everywhere.... But for you, Zen is right here.
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When you do something, you should burn yourself up completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself.
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Time goes from present to past.
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When you try to understand everything, you will not understand anything. The best way is to understand yourself, and then you will understand everything.
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Take care of things, and they will take care of you.
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From True Emptiness The Wondrous Being Appears
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