The root of samsara and nirvana ~ Saraha

Realize the nature of mind,
Because it is at the root of both samsaric suffering
And nirvanic bliss.
When you realize this,
Rest the mind without meditating,
Because only deluded people seek enlightenment
By abandoning their own minds.

Saraha

Seeing a student’s potential ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

A guru should be able to see a student’s potential and know that any negative quality the student exhibits can be transformed and that therefore that student is a worthy recipient of aspiration. There should be no competition, no preference for some students to get enlightened faster; it’s not a race. If the guru judges too much, valuable time will be wasted. Excessive judgment indicates a lack of understanding of the fundamental view of dependent arising and equanimity. A path designed by such a guru will have a panicky and finicky quality.

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Yearning for the Dharma ~ Buddha Shakyamuni

Beings who yearn for the Dharma
And generate effort for the sake of the Dharma are rare.
Anyone who makes the wheel of Dharma turn
Will attain supreme wisdom.

Buddha Shakyamuni

There is no limit to our spiritual potential ~ 14th Dalai Lama

In spiritual matters, we should not allow ourselves to be too easily content, because truly there is no limit to our spiritual potential. All of us — any of us — can develop infinitely; and any of us can attain buddhahood. The mind we possess right now, though it may presently be full of ignorance and suffering, can eventually become the mind of an enlightened being, of a buddha. Where our material possessions are concerned, finding contentment makes sense. But since there is no limit to our spiritual potential and there is a limit to the span of our life, we must make every effort to utilize what little time we have as well as we possibly can with this precious human lifetime.

14th Dalai Lama

Transmission ~ Mingyur Rinpoche

The Guru or teacher is of utmost importance because of the interdependent connection between teacher and disciple. The Buddha who lived thousands of years ago cannot guide us to our own Buddhahood as effectively and expediently as the Guru. The living teacher embodies the wisdom of the practice lineage and functions like a lit lamp that has the energetic power to ignite the mind of the student. If you make a connection, you will get lit, too. This is what we call transmission.

Mingyur Rinpoche

Using illness on the path ~ Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche

There is no certainty that we will not fall victim to disease, evil forces and so on. If we are afflicted by serious illness, we should think, “There are countless beings in this world suffering in the same way as I.” In this way we should generate strong feelings of compassion. If, for example, we are struck by heart disease, we should think, “Wherever space pervades, there are beings suffering like this,” and imagine that all their illnesses are concentrated in our own hearts.
If we are struck by evil forces, we should think, “By making me suffer, these evil beings are helping me to practise Bodhichitta; they are of great importance for my progress on the path, and rather than being expelled, they should be thanked.” We should be as grateful to them as we are towards our Teachers.

Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche

Compassion ~ Thrangu Rinpoche

What makes the bodhisattvas, the children of the buddhas, appear? First they generate strong compassion for all sentient beings. They appear because they have the mind of compassion and bodhicitta. Therefore, what we should really have the most interest in and the most faith in is compassion. The root from which all the happiness and good things in this world arise is compassion.

Thrangu Rinpoche

Fearlessness ~ Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Fear and anxiety are the dominant psychological states of the human mind. Behind the fear lies a constant longing to be certain. We are afraid of the unknown. The mind’s craving for confirmation is rooted in our fear of impermanence.
Fearlessness is generated when you can appreciate uncertainty, when you have faith in the impossibility of these interconnected components remaining static and permanent. You will find yourself, in a very true sense, preparing for the worst while allowing for the best.

Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Extend yourself and connect ~ 17th Karmapa

In order to make your sense of closeness more vivid, you could take a further step in connecting to the people who have benefited you from afar. You could take a look at the labels on the clothes you are wearing to see where they were made. Taking advantage of the easy access to information and images that the Internet affords you, you can investigate to actively educate yourself about working conditions and the experiences of factory workers in the place your clothes were made. Do not wait for news of their lives to reach you. Extend yourself and connect with them. Do this with the awareness that, no matter how different the backdrop of their lives appears, just like you they yearn to be happy and free of suffering.

17th Karmapa

Renouncing this life is a mental action ~ Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Nobody can tell from external appearances who has renounced this life and who hasn’t. Renunciation is a state of mind and having lots of possessions is no indication at all. Even though somebody is a king with countless servants, stores of jewels and possessions and many rich apartments, we can’t conclude that his mind is not living in renunciation. Renouncing this life is a mental action, not physical one.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Useful rational attitude ~ 14th Dalai Lama

Illness happens. It is not something exceptional; it is part of nature and a fact of life. Of course we have every right to avoid illness and pain, but in spite of that effort, when illness happens it is better to accept it. While you should make every effort to cure it as soon as possible, you should have no extra mental burden. As the great Indian scholar Shantideva has said:
‘If there is a way to overcome the suffering, then there is no need to worry; if there is no way to overcome the suffering, then there is no use in worrying.’
That kind of rational attitude is quite useful.

14th Dalai Lama

Dharma Centers and Monastries ~ Thinley Norbu Rinpoche

Rigzin Jigme Lingpa said,
“If you really aren’t weary of samsara, monasteries and centers become just like a big house. If you really want to have pure practice, then you’d better not go from a small house to a big house.”
Whenever there are monasteries or centers, there are also Lamas, directors, and systems. If they don’t set up classical systems, then they are not a benefit to the monastery. If they do, then they create a bureaucracy involved in very much work, secretly whispering behind closed doors and conspiring to oust those outside their clique who have pure Dharma intentions, offering extravagant banquets with inner black intentions, and in general being constantly overwhelmed by worldly business. In this sense, the only difference between a monastery and a government are the clothes and the name; otherwise, everything is the same. So don’t make spiritual gangster groups with the retinue and sponsors of high Lamas who by their conniving are more dangerous than Hitler or Mao Zedong. Murder kills the body of one lifetime; wrong intentions destroy innumerable lifetimes.
Nevertheless, I don’t mean to criticize monasteries or centers. If we can keep our inner practice and pure motivation within the center’s traditional environment, then they can be the basis of Sangha and an opportunity to benefit all sentient beings. Moreover, in such places we may encounter sublime individuals, and associating with them and assimilating their spiritual qualities can lead even ordinary persons toward enlightenment.

Thinley Norbu Rinpoche

Awareness is always present ~ Mingyur Rinpoche

One of the first qualities of buddhanature that my teachers introduced me to was awareness. Awareness is like a thread that runs through every experience we have. Our thoughts and emotions are constantly changing. Our reactions and perceptions come and go. Yet despite these changes, awareness is always present. It is wide open and accommodating like the sky, immeasurably deep and vast like the ocean, and stable and enduring like a massive mountain.
Awareness doesn’t get better when we have an inspired thought or a sublime emotion. It doesn’t get worse when we’re completely neurotic. Awareness just is. It’s not something we do. It’s who we are.
Since awareness is always there, the only thing we need to do is recognize it. We don’t need to improve it, and we couldn’t even if we tried.
The biggest challenge with awareness is that it’s so close, we don’t see it. It’s so ordinary, we don’t believe it. It’s just knowing, effortless presence.

Mingyur Rinpoche

When the root of the mind is severed ~ Tilopa

A tree spreads its branches and puts forth leaves,
But when its root is cut its foliage withers;
So too, when the root of the mind is severed,
The branches of the tree of samsara die.

Tilopa

Motivation to achieve enlightenment ~ Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

Please understand that all sentient beings, all our past parents, want nothing but happiness. Unfortunately, through their negative actions they only create the causes for further pain and suffering. Take this to heart and consider all our parents, wandering blindly and endlessly through painful samsaric states. When we truly take this to heart, out of compassion we feel motivated to achieve enlightenment to truly help all of them. This compassionate attitude is indispensable as a preparation for practice.

Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

Your own mind ~ Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye

All of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are your own mind;
They don’t arise from anything else in the slightest.
Everything, such as joy and suffering, good and bad,
High and low, are the conceptual constructs of mind.
If your mind is pure, you are buddha:
Wherever you reside is a pure realm;
Whatever you do is from the state of the dharmatā;
Whatever appears is the jewel display of wisdom.
If your mind is of an impure nature,
You’ll see faults even in the buddhas,
You’ll get angry even at your parents,
Most things will appear as if they were your enemies.

Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye

The art of creating a happy moment ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

We want to know where we come from and where we are going. And most of all, we want to be happy. Humanity has given rise to many talented artists, musicians, and architects, but how many of us have mastered the art of creating a happy moment — for ourselves and those around us?

Thich Nhat Hanh

Like Mirages ~ Buddha Shakyamuni

Like mirages and cities of gandharvas,
Illusions and dreams,
all characteristics you entertain are empty of any essence.
Know all phenomena are this way.