Quote

When we become truly ourselves, we just become a swinging door, and we are purely independent of, and at the same time, dependent upon everything.

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
Truly
Doors
Upon
Become
Swinging
Everything
Purely
Time
Dependent
Door
Independent

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In the mind of the beginner, there are many possibilities. In the mind of the expert there are few.
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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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You see something or hear a sound, and there you have everything just as it is. [...] Whatever you do, it should be an expression of the same deep activity. We should appreciate what we are doing. There is no preparation for something else.
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If you want to enjoy the movie, you should know that it is the combination of film and light and white screen, and that the most important thing is to have a plain, white screen.
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We do not exist for the sake of something else. We exist for the sake of ourselves.
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If you want to read a letter from the Buddha's world, it is necessary to understand Buddha's world.
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For Zen students a weed is a treasure. With this attitude, whatever you do, life becomes an art.
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Enlightenment is not a complete remedy.
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Zen is not some fancy, special art of living. Our teaching is just to live, always in reality, in its exact sense. To make our effort, moment after moment, is our way.
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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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True communication depends upon our being straightforward with one another... But the best way to communicate may be just to sit without saying anything.
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The secret of Soto Zen is just two words: not always so.... In Japanese, it's two words, three words in English. That is the secret of our practice.
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Moment after moment, completely devote yourself to listening to your inner voice.
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The world is its own magic.
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When the restrictions you have do not limit you, this is what we mean by practice.
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Things are always changing, so nothing can be yours.
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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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