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We do not slight the idea of enlightenment, but the most important thing is this moment, not some day in the future. We have to make our effort in this moment. This is the most important thing for our practice.

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
Moments
Ideas
Slight
Important
Enlightenment
Thing
Effort
Make
Practice
Future
Moment
Idea

More quotes by Shunryu Suzuki

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Instead of respecting things, we want to use them for ourselves and if it is difficult to use them, we want to conquer them.
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Nothing we see or hear is perfect. But right there in the imperfection is perfect reality.
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Happiness is sorrow sorrow is happiness. There is happiness in difficulty difficulty in happiness. Even though the ways we feel are different, they are not really different, in essence they are the same. This is the true understanding transmitted from Buddha to us.
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You will always exist in the universe in one form or another.
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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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The world is its own magic.
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If you think your body and mind are two, that is wrong if you think that they are one, that is also wrong. Our body and mind are both two and one.
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If your mind is empty, it is always ready for anything it is open to everything.
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Only when you understand people, they may understand you. So even though you do not say anything, if you understand people there is some communication.
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To express yourself as you are, without any intentional, fancy way of adjusting yourself, is the most important thing.
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We try, and we try, and we fail and then we go deeper.
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After you have practiced for a while, you will realize that it is not possible to make rapid, extraordinary progress. Even though you try very hard, the progress you make is always little by little.
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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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We do not exist for the sake of something else. We exist for the sake of ourselves.
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You can't make a date with enlightenment.
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It is a big mistake to think that the best way to express yourself is to do whatever you want, acting as you please. This is not expressing yourself. If you know what to do exactly, and you do it, then you can express yourself fully.
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From True Emptiness The Wondrous Being Appears
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If you cannot bow to Buddha, you cannot be a Buddha. It is arrogance.
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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.
Shunryu Suzuki