"A flower falls, even though we love it; and a weed grows, even though we do not love it." (Dogen Zenji)
"Bodhisattvas who study prajna-wisdom must first have deep compassion for all beings and a deep longing to save all of them. They must practice samadhi meditation with great care. Refusing to practice zazen only for their own emancipation, they must promise to ferry these sentient beings over to the other shore." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)
"Do not follow the ideas of others, but learn to listen to the voice within yourself. Your body and mind will become clear and you will realize the unity of all things." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"Do not think you will necessarily be aware of your own enlightenment." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"Don’t cling to your own understanding. Even if you do understand something, you should ask yourself if there might be something you have not fully resolved, or if there may be some higher meaning yet." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"Enlightenment is like the moon reflected on the water. The moon does not get wet, nor is the water broken. Although its light is wide and great, the moon is reflected even in a puddle an inch wide. The whole moon and the entire sky are reflected in dewdrops on the grass, or even in one drop of water. Enlightenment does not divide you, just as the moon does not break the water. You cannot hinder enlightenment, just as a drop of water does not hinder the moon in the sky. The depth of the drop is the height of the moon. Each reflection, however long or short its duration, manifests the vastness of the dewdrop, and realizes the limitlessness of the moonlight in the sky." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"Even after getting out of samadhi, you should always be on the alert to act responsively and protect your power of concentration as you protect a baby. Then, it will be easy for you to cultivate your power of concentration until it comes to maturity." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)
"Even if it is painful and lonely, associate with worthy companions." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"If you want to get out of samadhi, move your body slowly, stand up calmly and not suddenly." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)
"First awaken your compassionate mind with a deep longing to save all sentient beings. You must practice samadhi meditation with great care, and promise to ferry these sentient beings over to the other shore, refusing to practice zazen only for your own emancipation." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)
"Once the posture has been stabilized and the breath regulated, push forth the lower abdomen; one thinks not of good or evil." (Dogen Zenji, "Zazen gi", cca. 13th century)
"One need not necessarily depend on the words of the ancients, but must only think of what is really true." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"One should not differentiate good and bad on the basis of taste." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"People of the world cannot necessarily be considered good - let them think whatever they will." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"If the heart is not empty, it will not admit truthful words." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"If the right faith arises in your mind, you should train in Zen. If it does not arise, you should wait for awhile and reflect upon the fact that the Buddha Dharma did not become part of you long ago." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"If you think you can become enlightened just by worshipping images and relics, this is a mistaken view. This is actually possession by the poisonous serpent of temptation." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"If you would be free of greed, first you have to leave egotism behind. The best mental exercise for relinquishing egotism is contemplating impermanence." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"If you want to travel the Way of Buddhas and Zen masters, then expect nothing, seek nothing, and grasp nothing." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"The color of the mountains is Buddha's body; the sound of running water is his great speech." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"The mind has no fixed characteristics; depending on circumstances, it may turn out any way at all." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"The practice of Buddhism depends on whether your teacher is right or wrong. The potentiality of the pupil is like good material, and the teacher is like the master of art. Even if the material is good, good work will not be produced without a good artisan. On the other hand, even a crooked piece of wood will immediately reveal the skill of workmanship in the hands of a good worker. This will testify to the fact that true or false satori (enlightenment) depends on the adequacy of the teacher." (Dogen Zenji, "Gakudo Yojinshu" ["Points to Watch in Practicing the Way"], cca. 13th century)
"There is fundamentally no good or bad in the human mind; good and bad arise according to circumstances." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"To study the Self is to forget the Self." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"Truth is not greater or lesser, but people are shallow or deep." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"What you think in your own mind to be good, or what people of the world think is good, is not necessarily good." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"When we discover that the truth is already in us, we are all at once our original selves." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"When you see others’ errors and you want to guide them because you think they are wrong and you feel compassion for them, you should employ tact to avoid angering them, and contrive to appear as if you were talking about something else." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
"Zazen is something which makes us want to sit in zazen." (Dogen Zenji, cca. 13th century)
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