"Loving, hating, having expectations: all these are attachments. Attachment prevents the growth of one's true being." (Lao Tsu, "Hua Hu Ching: Teachings of Lao Tzu", cca. 4th century BC)
"Most of the world's religions serve only to strengthen attachments to false concepts such as self and other, life and death, heaven and earth, and so on. Those who become entangled in these false ideas are prevented from perceiving the Integral Oneness." (Lao Tsu, "Hua Hu Ching: Teachings of Lao Tzu", cca. 4th century BC)
"To manage your mind, know that there is nothing, and then relinquish all attachment to nothingness." (Lao Tsu, "Hua Hu Ching: Teachings of Lao Tzu", cca. 4th century BC)
"The Noble Truth of Suffering is this: Birth is suffering, ageing is suffering; sickness is suffering; death is suffering; sorrow and lamentation, pain, grief and despair are suffering; association with the unpleasant is suffering; dissociation from the pleasant is suffering; not to get what one wants is suffering - in brief, the five aggregates of attachment are suffering." (Pāli Canon, "Samyutta-nikāya" ["Kindred Sayings"], [First Sermon of the Buddha] cca. 3rd century)
"What is called 'consciousness' (vijnana) is the 'continuing mind'. Because of their deep-rooted attachment, ordinary men imagine that I and Mine are real and cling to them in their illusions. As soon as objects are presented, this consciousness rests on them and discriminates the objects of the five senses and of the mind. This is called 'vijnana' [i.e., the differentiating consciousness] or the 'separating consciousness'." (Ashvaghosha, "The Awakening of Faith", cca. 2nd century)
"The objects of sense are originally empty and null; ordinary people arbitrarily create attachments and fixations. Nirvana and samsara are equal; who in the world gets differential treatment? The uncontrived Great Way is natural and spontaneous; you don’t need to use your mind to figure it out." (Pao-chih,"The Nonduality of Good and Evil", cca. 6th century)
"To live in the Great Way is neither easy nor difficult, but those with limited views are fearful and irresolute: the faster they hurry, the slower they go, and clinging cannot be limited: even to be attached to the idea of enlightenment is to go astray. Just let things be in their own way and there will be neither coming nor going. Obey the nature of things (your own nature), and you will walk freely and undisturbed." (Jianzhi Sengcan, "Xinxin Ming" ["Inscription on Faith in Mind"], 6th century)
"No-mind does not mean the unconsciousness of wood or tile. It means that when you come into contact with external objects, your mind is immovable and does not get attached to anything. There is total freedom and non-obstruction. You are not defiled by anything. On the other hand, you should not abide in non-defilement either. While you view the body and the mind as a dream and an illusion, you nevertheless do not abide in the emptiness of dreams and illusions. When you reach this state, you have then really achieved no-mind." (Ta-hui Tsung-kao, 12th century)
"You students, are you trying to learn zazen or are you trying to learn sitting Buddhahood? If you are learning zazen, Zen is not sitting and lying down. If you are learning sitting Buddhahood, Buddha is not a fixed form. According to the teaching of non-attachment or non-settling down, you should not adopt this or reject that. You students, if you try to become a sitting Buddha you kill the Buddha, and if you become attached to sitting you will not reach that principle." (Koun Ejo, "Shōbōgenzō Zuimonki" ["The Treasury of the True Dharma Eye: Record of Things Heard"], cca. 1239)
"The impurity of the mind is greed, and the impurity of the tongue is falsehood. The impurity of the eyes is to gaze upon the beauty of another man's wife, and his wealth. The impurity of the ears is to listen to the slander of others. O Nanak, the mortal's soul goes, bound and gagged to the city of Death. All impurity comes from doubt and attachment to duality. Birth and death are subject to the Command of the Lord's Will; through His Will we come and go." (Guru Nanak Dev Ji, cca. 16th century)
"If a warrior is not unattached to life and death, he will be of no use whatsoever. The saying that All abilities come from one mind sounds as though it has to do with sentient matters, but it is in fact a matter of being unattached to life and death. With such non-attachment one can accomplish any feat." (Yamamoto Tsunetomo, "Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai", cca. 1716)
"Meditate upon the Knowledge and Bliss Eternal, and you will also have bliss. The Bliss indeed is eternal, only it is covered and obscured by ignorance. The less your attachment is towards the senses, the more will be your love towards God." (Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita, cca. 1886)
"As soon as extreme attachment comes, a man loses himself, he is no more master of himself, he is a slave." (Swami Vivekananda,"The Preparation", [lecture] 1895)
"Our misery comes, not from work, but by our getting attached to something. Take for instance, money: money is a great thing to have, earn it, says Krishna; struggle hard to get money, but don't get attached to it. So with children, with wife, husband, relatives, fame, everything; you have no need to shun them, only don't get attached. There is only one attachment and that belongs to the Lord, and to none other." (Swami Vivekananda, "Karma Yoga", 1896)
"This attachment of Love to God is indeed one that does not bind the soul but effectively breaks all its bondages." (Swami Vivekananda, "Para-Bhakti" ["Supreme Devotion"], cca. 1900)
"Meditate upon the Knowledge and Bliss Eternal, and you will also have bliss. The Bliss indeed is eternal, only it is covered and obscured by ignorance. The less your attachment is towards the senses, the more will be your love towards God." (Sri Ramakrishna, 1916)
"God is directly perceived by the mind, but not by this ordinary mind. It is the pure mind that perceives God, and at that time this ordinary mind does not function. A mind that has the slightest trace of attachment to the world cannot be called pure. When all the impurities of the mind are removed, you may call that mind Pure Mind or Pure Ātman." (Sri Ramakrishna Kathamrita, "The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna", 1942)
"Even in the world, the yogi who faithfully discharges his responsibilities, without personal motive or attachment, treads the sure path of enlightenment." (Mahavatar Babaj [in Paramahansa Yogananda's "Autobiography of a Yogi", 1946])
"In the spiritual life one becomes just like a little child, without resentment, without attachment, full of life and joy." (Paramahansa Yogananda, Self-realization Magazine, 1960)
"And we should forget, day by day, what we have done; this is true non-attachment. And we should do something new. To do something new, of course we must know our past, and this is alright. But we should not keep holding onto anything we have done; we should only reflect on it. And we must have some idea of what we should do in the future. But the future is the future, the past is the past; now we should work on something new." (Shunryu Suzuki, "Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind", 1970)
"When we are absorbed in other things, in the not-self, we forget the self. There is nothing unnatural about it. But, why forget the self through excess of attachment? Wisdom lies in never forgetting the self as the ever-present source of both the experiencer and his experience." (Nisargadatta Maharaj, "I Am That", 1973)
"Clear mind is like the full moon in the sky. Sometimes clouds come and cover it, but the moon is always behind them. Clouds go away, then the moon shines brightly. So don't worry about clear mind: it is always there. When thinking comes, behind it is clear mind. When thinking goes, there is only clear mind. Thinking comes and goes, comes and goes, You must not be attached to the coming or the going." (Seungsahn Haengwon, "Dropping Ashes on the Buddha by Zen", 1976)
"Craziness is good. Crazy people are happy, free, they have no hindrance. But since you have many attachment, you are only a little crazy. This is not crazy enough. You must become completely crazy. Then you will understand." (Seungsahn Haengwon, "Dropping Ashes on the Buddha by Zen", 1976)
"Attachment to views is the greatest impediment to the spiritual path." (Thich Nhat Hanh, "Old Path White Clouds: Walking in the Footsteps of the Buddha", 1987)
"As human beings we have the capacity to enjoy limitless, blissful happiness...there is nothing wrong with having pleasures and enjoyments. What is wrong is the confused way we grasp onto these pleasures, turning them from a source of happiness into a source of pain and dissatisfaction. It is grasping and attachment that is the problem, not the pleasure themselves [...]" (Thubten Yeshe, "Introduction to Tantra: The Transformation of Desire", 1987)
"The near enemy of love is attachment. Attachment masquerades as love. It says, I will love this person because I need them. Or, I'll love you if you'll love me back. I'll love you, but only if you will be the way I want. This isn't love at all - it is attachment - and attachment is rigid, it is very different from love." (Jack Kornfield & Joseph Goldstein, "Seeking the Heart of Wisdom: The Path of Insight Meditation", 1987)
"Materialism, attachment to things of the world, includes pride. Many religious people suffer from pride: taking pleasure or even delight in being good, or religious." (Idries Shah, "Sufi Thought and Action", 1990)
"To study Buddhism and then use it as a weapon in order to criticize others' theories or ideologies is wrong. The very purpose of religion is to control yourself, not to criticize others. Rather, we must criticize ourselves. How much am I doing about my anger? About my attachment, about my hatred, about my pride, my jealousy? These are the things which we must check in daily life with the knowledge of the Buddhist teachings." (Tenzin Gyatso [14th Dalai Lama], "The Dalai Lama: A Policy of Kindness", 1990)
"Understanding that everything is impermanent, that happiness is transformed into suffering, and that all phenomena are lacking reality in themselves and are only projections of our mind, will permit us to counteract the first hindrance to meditation, that is, our attachment to this world." (Bokar Tulku Rinpoche, "Meditation: Advice to Beginners", 1993)
"Just know what is happening in your mind - not happy or sad about it, not attached. If you suffer see it, know it, and be empty. It's like a letter - you have to open it before you can know what's in it." (Ajahn Chah, "A Tree in the Fores", 1995)
"The tragedy of an attachment is that if its object is not attained it causes unhappiness. But if it is attained, it does not cause happiness – it merely causes a flash of pleasure followed by weariness, and it is always accompanied, of course, by the anxiety that you may lose the object of your attachment." (Anthony de Mello, "The Way to Love", 1995)
"Always recognize the dreamlike qualities of life and reduce attachment and aversion. Practice good-heartedness toward all beings. Be loving and compassionate, no matter what others do to you. What they will do will not matter so much when you see it as a dream. The trick is to have positive intention during the dream. This is the essential point. This is true spirituality." (Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, "Life in Relation to Death" 2nd. ed., 2000)
"Attachment constrains our vision so that we are not able to see things from a wider perspective." (Tenzin Gyatso [14th Dalai Lama], "Transforming the mind: teachings on generating compassion", 2000)
"You have everything and you want more. It's natural in human beings. You don't need to give away your house, money, and car, and leave your family to find God. The only thing necessary is to understand attachment." (Baba Hari Dass, "Everyday Peace: Letters for Life", 2000)
"A feeling of aversion or attachment toward something is your clue that there's work to be done." (Ram Dass, "One-Liners: A Mini-Manual for a Spiritual Life", 2002)
"Attachment to being right creates suffering. When you have a choice to be right, or to be kind, choose kind and watch your suffering disappear." (Wayne Dyer, "Everyday Wisdom", 2005)
"According to Buddhist psychology most of our troubles stem from attachment to things that we mistakenly see as permanent." (Tenzin Gyatso [14th Dalai Lama], "How to See Yourself As You Really Are", 2006)
"Enjoy everything that happens in your life, but never make your happiness or success dependent on an attachment to any person, place, or thing." (Wayne Dyer, "Everyday Wisdom for Success", 2006)
"The aim of meditation lies in introspection. Meditation without self-examination is useless because distortion of the mind is not corrected. As a result, you may easily succumb to temptation or your mind may not function properly. Your preoccupation with attachment makes you vulnerable to temptation. Consequently, attachment grows even stronger, preventing you from engaging in introspection." (Kazumi Tabata, "Mind Power: Secret Strategies for the Martial Arts", 2010)
"To pursue enlightenment is to search for immeasurable truth, to acquire the ability manipulate life at will, to investigate phenomena that originate in our mind, and to undergo training to recall what our ancestors and predecessors had learned. The aim of the martial arts is not only to unveil the true nature and the laws of the universe through mental and physical exercises, but also to attain eternal tranquility. Enlightenment is achieved when the mind and body are guided to a higher dimension. An enlightened person holds no attachment to his skill or mind, let alone other worldly matters. This means that such a person knows how to practice the middle path." (Kazumi Tabata, "Mind Power: Secret Strategies for the Martial Arts", 2010)
"Letting go of attachment to any way of believing or thinking has made me feel more expanded and almost transparent so that universal energy can just flow through me." (Anita Moorjani, "Dying to Be Me", 2012)
"Don’t be attached to visions or lights in meditation, don’t rise or fall with them. What’s so great about brightness? My flashlight has it. It can’t help us rid ourselves of our suffering." (Ajahn Chah)
"Once you understand non-self, then the burden of life is gone. You'll be at peace with the world. When we see beyond self, we no longer cling to happiness and we can truly be happy. Learn to let go without struggle, simply let go, to be just as you are - no holding on, no attachment, free." (Ajahn Chah)
"There needs to be understanding that anger never helps to solve a problem. It destroys our peace of mind and blinds our ability to think clearly. Anger and attachment are emotions that distort our view of reality." (Dalai Lama) [attributed]
"You are your own teacher. Looking for teachers can’t solve your own doubts. Investigate yourself to find the truth - inside, not outside. Knowing yourself is most important. Read yourself, not books. Just know what is happening in your mind - not happy or sad about it, not attached. If you suffer see it, know it, and be empty." (Ajahn Chah)
