🌊 Serene

Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.

The earth has music for those who listen.

Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them.

Confine yourself to the present.

True happiness is to enjoy the present, without anxious dependence upon the future.

Wealth consists not in having great possessions, but in having few wants.

Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.

Hope is a waking dream.

Autumn is a second spring when every leaf is a flower.

Peace is not an absence of war, it is a virtue, a state of mind, a disposition for benevolence, confidence, justice.

Demand not that events should happen as you wish; but wish them to happen as they do happen, and you will go on well.

Does it pass you by? Do not stop it. Is it not yet come? Do not stretch your desire towards it, but wait till it reaches you.

Be content, then, with being a philosopher in all things; and if you wish also to appear so to any one, appear so to yourself, and it will be enough.

When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everyone will respect you.

Never say about anything, 'I have lost it,' but only 'I have given it back.'

Practice not to be hurried away by the appearance; make delay, and you will more easily become master of yourself.

Silence is a source of great strength.

No great thing is created suddenly, any more than a bunch of grapes or a fig. If you tell me that you desire a fig, I answer you that there must be time.

Curb your desires, don't set your heart on so many things and you will get what you need.

Simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.

When you have closed your doors and made all dark within, remember never to say that you are alone, for you are not alone; God is within, and your genius is within.

Whose choices are unhampered, whose desires attain their end, whose aversions do not fall into what they would avoid.

He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.

The marks of a proficient man are that he censures no one, praises no one, blames no one, accuses no one, says nothing concerning himself as being any body, or knowing any thing.

If any one compliments him, he laughs to himself at the person who compliments him; and if any one censures him, he makes no defense.

He has suppressed all desire in himself, and transferred his aversion only to the things contrary to nature which are within his own power.

He uses moderate exertion in all things. If he appears foolish or ignorant, he does not care.

Do not seek for things to happen the way you want them to; rather, wish that what happens happens the way it happens: then you will be happy.

And if we preserve this in every action, we shall enter upon the action with greater safety.

Free from desire, you realize the mystery. Caught in desire, you see only the manifestations.

The Master acts without doing anything and teaches without saying anything.

Things arise and she lets them come; things disappear and she lets them go. She has but doesn't possess, acts but doesn't expect.

The supreme good is like water, which nourishes all of creation without trying to compete with it.

In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present.

Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.

Can you let your body become as supple and yielding as a newborn child's?

Can you cleanse your inner vision until you see nothing but the light?

See the world as yourself. Have faith in the way things are. Love the world as yourself; then you can care for all things.

They were watchful, like men crossing a winter stream; alert, like men aware of danger; courteous, like visiting guests.

Yielding, like melting ice; simple, like uncarved wood; empty, like a valley; obscure, like muddy water.

Empty your mind of all thoughts. Let your heart be at peace.

Each separate being in the universe returns to the common source. Returning to the source is serenity.

When you are at one with the Tao, you will live long and your life will be exempt from decay.

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.

Manifest plainness, embrace simplicity, reduce selfishness, have few desires.

I am different from other people: I drink from the Great Mother's breast.

He doesn't boast, therefore he has merit. He doesn't glorify himself, therefore he endures.

The ancient saying, 'Yield and overcome,' is not an empty phrase. Truly, if you yield, you will be whole.

It is the Mother of all things under heaven. I do not know its name, but I call it Tao.

The Master travels all day without leaving home. However splendid the views, she rests quietly in her being.

The Master sees things as they are, without trying to control them. She lets them go their own way, and resides at the center of the circle.

The Master avoids excess, extravagance, and complacency.

The Tao is like a great river that flows everywhere. It is the Mother of the world.

Those who know do not speak; those who speak do not know. Close your mouth, blunt your sharpness, untie your knots, soften your glare.

If you realize that you have enough, you are truly rich.

The great Tao flows everywhere, both to the left and to the right. All things depend on it for life, yet it doesn't hold on to them.

When they are transformed, and desire raises its head, I quell it with the nameless simplicity.

Nameless simplicity brings absence of desire. The absence of desire leads to stillness. And the world reaches peace of its own accord.

Simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures. Simple in actions and thoughts, you return to the source of being.

Patient with both friends and enemies, you accord with the way things are. Compassionate toward yourself, you reconcile all beings in the world.

Blessed are the forgetful: for they get the better even of their blunders.

My formula for greatness in a human being is amor fati: that one wants nothing to be different, not forward, not backward, not in all eternity.

I want to learn more and more to see as beautiful what is necessary in things; then I shall be one of those who make things beautiful.

Amor fati: let that be my love henceforth! I do not want to wage war against what is ugly. I do not want to accuse; I do not even want to accuse those who accuse.

What is the seal of liberation? No longer being ashamed in front of oneself.

It is the quietest words that bring on the storm. Thoughts that come on doves' feet guide the world.

All truly great thoughts are conceived while walking.

The greatest events—they are not our loudest but our stillest hours.

Raise your words, not your voice. It is rain that grows flowers, not thunder.

The voice of beauty speaks softly: it steals only into the most awakened souls.

You must learn to love yourself with a healthy, wholehearted love, so that you can bear being with yourself and not need to roam.

You didn't come into this world. You came out of it, like a wave from the ocean. You are not a stranger here.

We do not 'come into' this world; we come out of it, as leaves from a tree.

You are the universe expressing itself as a human for a little while.

To have faith is to trust yourself to the water. When you swim you don't grab hold of the water, because if you do you will sink and drown. Instead you relax, and float.

The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.

If you cannot enjoy the present moment, you can never enjoy anything at all. For there is never any time at which you can live except the present.

You and I are all as much continuous with the physical universe as a wave is continuous with the ocean.

You are that vast thing that you see far, far off with great telescopes.

You are not something that is a visitor on the earth and doesn't belong here. You are the earth.

To breathe in, you must breathe out. To live, you must give up the clutch on life.

The more you try to hold on to your life, the more elusive it becomes. It is like trying to clasp water in your hand.

When you try to stay on the surface of the water, you sink; but when you try to sink, you float.

Zen does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.

The art of living does not consist in careless drifting on the one hand or in fearful clinging on the other. It consists in being sensitive to each moment.

Treat each moment as utterly new and unique, having no past and no future.

When we open our eyes and look at the world without words, what is seen is just this: a magnificent, shimmering dance of energy.

Real wealth consists in having clean water, fresh air, healthy food, and good friends with whom to share them.

Light cannot exist without darkness, nor solid without space. They go together like crest and trough of a wave.

A genuine saint never considers himself holy. He considers himself a normal human being who knows how to be himself.

Zen is a liberation from time. For if we open our eyes and see clearly, it becomes obvious that there is no other time than this instant.

The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white. Neither need you do anything but be yourself.

Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is always arrived at in the immediate moment.

It is not something you do in order to get somewhere else. It is the realization that you are already there.

The water does not intend to reflect the moon, and the moon has no desire to be reflected in the water.

Wild geese do not intend to cast their reflection; the water has no mind to receive their image.

You are already that which you are seeking.

Trust in dreams, for in them is hidden the gate to eternity.

To love someone is to grant them the space to be completely themselves.

The world is not a collection of objects, but a communion of subjects.

We do not need to invent meaning; we are meaning. Every leaf, every bug, every cloud is an answer to a question no one needed to ask.

When you get into a cloud, you find that there is nothing to grasp. Life is cloud-like: soft, billowy, and ungraspable.

The clouds in the sky do not worry about where they are going. They go where the wind takes them, and in doing so, they water the earth.

If you see yourself in the correct way, you are all as much extraordinary phenomenon of nature as trees, clouds, the patterns in running water.

When you listen to the birds singing, do you ask what they mean? The song of the bird is its own meaning.

The purpose of the eye is to see; the purpose of the flower is to bloom; the purpose of your life is simply to be.

If you want to understand the universe, listen to the silence beneath the noise.

Silence is the great canvas on which the music of existence is painted.

Relax into the current. The river knows the way to the sea.

Let go, and you find that the universe catches you every single time.

You are the eyes through which the cosmos gazes upon its own glory.

You are the ears through which the universe listens to its own harmony.

Muddy water is best cleared by leaving it alone.

There is no rush, nowhere else you need to be. Just breathe, and be here.

Your visions will become clear only when you can look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakes.

The shoe that fits one person pinches another; there is no recipe for living that suits all cases.

As far as we can discern, the sole purpose of human existence is to kindle a light in the darkness of mere being.

Where wisdom reigns, there is no conflict between thinking and feeling.

This is the real secret of life - to be completely engaged with what you are doing in the here and now.

Synchronicity is an ever-present reality for those who have eyes to see.

The dream is a little hidden door in the innermost and most secret recesses of the soul.

Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.

It is far better to take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.

The debt we owe to the play of imagination is incalculable.

Things are as they are. Looking out into the universe at night, we make no comparisons between right and wrong stars, nor between well and badly arranged constellations.

Outgrowing requires a new level of consciousness. Some higher or wider interest appeared on the patient's horizon, and through this broadening of his outlook, the insoluble problem lost its urgency.

What is necessary is to give space to the quiet, subtle processes of the soul that happen when we cease to force our will.

The mandala is an archetypal image whose occurrence is attested throughout the ages. It signifies the wholeness of the Self.

Through the creation of mandalas, the soul heals itself and restores its inner balance.

Every life is a story, whether it is written down or not.

Know all the theories, master all the techniques, but as you touch a human soul be just another human soul.

Faith, Hope, Love, and Insight: these are the four great healing powers.

Your heart will never find rest until you find your home within yourself.

He who has not found the silence within will be battered by the noise without.

But one must learn to know oneself in order to know who one is.

Do not hold on to someone who is leaving, for you will not meet the one who is arriving.

Your soul has its own timing. Be patient with its ripening.

As a plant produces its flower, so the psyche creates its symbols. Every dream is evidence of this process.

Those who follow the Tao are of one with the Tao. Those who follow virtue are of one with virtue.

My barrenness of wisdom is no defect, but an invitation for truth to take birth in those who listen.

Flow with whatever may happen, and let your mind be free. Stay centered by accepting whatever you are doing.

We approach nearest to the gods when we have the fewest wants.

He is richest who is content with the least, for contentment is the true abundance of nature.

Happiness is the absence of the striving for happiness.

No evil can happen to a good man, either in life or after death, nor are his affairs neglected by the gods.

Pray simply for what is good, leaving the gods to decide what is truly good for us.

The secret of human freedom lies not in expanding our desires, but in learning to need less.

Do not grieve for that which you have not, but rejoice for that which you have.

The beauty of the soul shines outward when a man bears with equanimity one heavy mischance after another, not because he does not feel them, but because he is a man of high and heroic temper.

I think it would be better for my lyre to be out of tune, and that the multitude should disagree with me, rather than that I, being one, should be out of harmony with myself.

Do not let the noise of the marketplace drown the still, small voice of your inner daimonion.

Be of good cheer about death, and know of this truth: that no evil can happen to a good man, whether in life or after death.

Crito, we owe a cock to Asclepius; pay it and do not neglect it.

The greatest blessing granted to human beings is love, when guided by the yearning for divine wisdom.

Beloved Pan, and all ye other gods who haunt this place, give me beauty in the inward soul; and may the outward and the inward man be at one.

May I reckon the wise to be the wealthy, and may I have such a quantity of gold as a temperate man and he alone can bear and carry.

To be self-controlled, patient, and content with simple things is the true nobility of the philosopher.

Happiness belongs to those who are self-sufficient.

The activity of philosophical contemplation is admittedly the pleasantest of all virtuous activities; its pleasure is marvelously pure and enduring.

The end of labor is to gain leisure, and the end of war is to cultivate peace.

Even in the midst of misfortunes, nobility of soul shines forth when a man bears many heavy burdens with calm patience, not from lack of feeling, but from greatness of heart.

A generous person is one who gives to the right people, the right amounts, at the right times, and with pleasure.

A true friend is someone who desires what is good for his companion for his companion's sake.

Distance does not break off the friendship absolutely, but only the activity of it.

In poverty and other misfortunes of life, true friends are a sure refuge.

We should behave to our friends as we would wish our friends to behave to us.

Shared joys are doubled, while shared griefs are halved.

Friendship is an equality of loving, where each partner receives back what they bestow.

Nature does nothing in vain.

In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.

Even under the most humiliating conditions, the inner freedom of the soul cannot be taken away.

For the first time in my life I saw the truth as it is set into song by so many poets, proclaimed as the final wisdom by so many thinkers: The truth that Love is the ultimate and highest goal to which man can aspire.

The salvation of man is through love and in love.

The more one forgets himself—by giving himself to a cause to serve or another person to love—the more human he is and the more he actualizes himself.

Like an eye that sees everything except itself, the healthy human soul looks outward toward reality.

The voice of conscience does not command from outside; it calls from the deepest ground of personal being.

The attempt to develop a sense of humor and to see things in a humorous light is some kind of a trick learned while mastering the art of living.

A healthy mind does not demand the absence of trouble, but possesses the humor and resilience to face it.

Through humor, the soul reclaims its dignity even in the shadow of tragedy.

Instead of envying the young for their possibilities, the old person can look with pride on the realities he has achieved, the values he has actualized, and the suffering he has borne.

Once an action has been committed, it is saved into eternity. It cannot be altered; it belongs to the irrevocable sanctuary of the past.

To say 'yes' to life is not to deny its sorrows, but to embrace them as the canvas upon which courage is painted.

The more of the details of our daily life we can hand over to the effortless custody of automatism, the more our higher powers of mind will be set free for their own proper work.

Keep your face to the sunshine and you cannot see a shadow.

Consciousness does not appear to itself chopped up in bits. It is nothing jointed; it flows. A 'river' or a 'stream' are the metaphors by which it is most naturally described.

The art of being wise is the art of knowing what to overlook.

Focalization, concentration of consciousness are of its essence.

The deepest thing in our nature is this benevolent whisper: that reality is more than what appears to the senses.

Refuse to express a passion, and it dies. Count ten before venting your anger, and its occasion seems ridiculous.

A sorrow which has found physical expression in wholesome activity is already half conquered.

The passion for peace of mind is one of the deepest instincts of the human heart.

Acceptance of what has happened is the first step to overcoming the consequences of any misfortune.

Give up the futile fight against the inevitable; yield to reality and find your power within it.

To be appreciated is the food that sustains the dignity of the spirit.

The unclouded breast conceives no terror of the coming days; it knows that tomorrow will be met as today has been.

Every thought has a bodily consequence; to cultivate serene thought is to build a healthy organism.

The trailing clouds of glory are never completely dispersed from our consciousness.

He who has learned to accept hardship without bitterness has achieved the summit of psychological freedom.

Nothing can dim the light which shines from within.

We are never so happy or so unhappy as we imagine.

A man who finds no satisfaction in himself seeks for it in vain elsewhere.

Neither the sun nor death can be looked at steadily.

True eloquence consists in saying all that is necessary, and nothing but what is necessary.

Grace is to the body what good sense is to the mind.

Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.

True friendship proves itself not in sharing happiness, but in sharing the burdens of sorrow without resentment.

A genuine man is not one who boasts of virtues, but one who is never surprised to discover his own weaknesses.

We should gain more by letting ourselves be seen as we are than by attempting to appear what we are not.

Nothing prevents us from being natural so much as the desire to appear so.

To love truth with all one's soul requires having unmasked every comforting lie of the ego.

The ultimate wisdom is to see the human comedy with gentle eyes, knowing that our own heart plays its part upon the stage.

You must not lose faith in humanity. Humanity is an ocean; if a few drops of the ocean are dirty, the ocean does not become dirty.

Trees are the earth's endless effort to speak to the listening heaven.

Your duty is to be, and not to be this or that. 'I am that I am' sums up the whole truth; the method is summed up in 'be still.'

Be as simple as you can be; you will be astonished to see how uncomplicated and happy your life can become.

Slowly, slowly, O mind, everything in its own time happens. The gardener may water with a hundred pots, but fruit arrives only in season.

Drop by drop is the water pot filled. Likewise, the wise man, gathering it little by little, fills himself with good.

Better than a thousand hollow words, is one word that brings peace.

Condemn none: if you can stretch out a helping hand, do so. If you cannot, fold your hands, bless your brothers, and let them go their own way.

The mind is like a lake; every thought is a ripple on its surface.

The moment I have realized God sitting in the temple of every human body, the moment I stand in reverence before every human being, that moment I am free.

As the different streams having their sources in different places all mingle their water in the sea, so all paths lead to Thee.

Give up all desire for fruit; do the work for the sake of the work, because it is good.

The highest manifestation of power is in being calm.

Meditation is the bridge that connects the human with the Divine.

Look upon every man, woman, and everyone as God. You cannot help anyone; you can only serve.

The veil of ignorance is thin when the heart is pure.

Be pure, be calm, and work on without ceasing.

He who sees the Supreme Lord dwelling equally in all beings, the imperishable in things that perish, he truly sees.

Purity of heart is the condition for seeing God.

Do not be anxious about results; focus entirely on the quality of your labor.

The spiritual horizon widens as the ego recedes.

The highest truth is always the simplest.

When you help another, you are helping yourself.

Silence is the great teacher of the soul.

The greatest strength is found in gentle forbearance.

Work is worship when offered with pure intent.

All power belongs to the calm mind.

A pure conscience fears no storm.

Let your heart be as wide as the ocean.

The highest philosophy is found in everyday kindness.

The divine spark is present in every beating heart.

The sun shines equally upon all; let your compassion do the same.

Silence is the best answer to anger.

There is more to life than simply increasing its speed.

Prayer is not an asking. It is a longing of the soul.

To give pleasure to a single heart by a single act is better than a thousand heads bowing in prayer.

Faith is not something to grasp, it is a state to grow into.

Live in each season as it passes; breathe the air, drink the drink, taste the fruit, and resign yourself to the influence of the earth.

Service which is rendered without joy helps neither the servant nor the served.

Each one has to find his peace from within. And peace to be real must be unaffected by outside circumstances.

This world is but a canvas to our imagination.

The golden rule of conduct is mutual toleration, seeing that we will never all think alike.

Gentleness, self-sacrifice and generosity are the exclusive possession of no one race or religion.

True beauty consists in purity of heart.

Silence is the great teacher of restraint.

Simplicity is the essence of happiness.

Real wealth is the wealth of a clean conscience.

Generosity begins where calculation ends.

There is no school equal to a decent home and no teacher equal to a virtuous parent.

When ego dies, truth is born.

Purity of mind is the greatest shield against adversity.

Contentment is the greatest treasure a human can possess.

Speak only when your words are a balm.

Let your daily labor be an offering of love.

The fragrance of virtue spreads far beyond the flowers.

Forgiveness is the highest ornament of the brave.

Cultivate stillness in the center of the storm.

True friendship is a communion of pure souls.

The light within cannot be extinguished by darkness without.

The beauty of the soul is invisible to the greedy eye.

Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience.

Peace is its own reward.

Kindness is the universal language of the heart.

Faith is the bird that feels the light and sings when the dawn is still dark.

Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm, but to add color to my sunset sky.

The butterfly counts not months but moments, and has time enough.

Let my thoughts come to you, when I am gone, like the afterglow of sunset at the margin of quiet skies.

Death is not extinguishing the light; it is only putting out the lamp because the dawn has come.

Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man.

The roots below the earth claim no rewards for making the branches fruitful.

Music fills the infinite between two souls.

We live in the world when we love it.

Let your life lightly dance on the edges of Time like dew on the tip of a leaf.

Love does not claim possession, but gives freedom.

The one who plants trees, knowing that he will never sit in their shade, has at least started to understand the meaning of life.

The river has its burden of water, but it carries it forward to the sea.

Beauty is truth's smile when she beholds her own face in a perfect mirror.

I understand the voice of your stars and the silence of your trees.

Do not say, 'It is morning,' and dismiss it with a name of yesterday. See it for the first time as a newborn child that has no name.

The mountain remains unmoved by the passing storm.

In the rhythm of nature, there is no haste.

Silence will carry what words can never bear.

The mountains are calling and I must go.

Let the beauty of what you love be what you do.

The evening sky is a canvas of quiet prayer.

The flute must be empty for the breath of the singer to create sweet music.

The stars are not afraid to appear like fireflies.

Every petal of the lotus unfolds in its appointed time.

In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.

The greatest song is the one that echoes in the heart after the music ceases.

The flower which is single need not envy the thorns that are numerous.

Tears are the nectar with which the soul waters its hidden blossoms.

To the birds of the air, the sky has no frontiers.

The touch of the infinite is felt in the gentle breeze of evening.

The tree that yields sweet fruit bows lowest to the ground.

Let your love surround your loved ones like sunlight giving them free space.

The darkness departs not when you fight it, but when you light a candle.

The soul sings when it forgets its separate vanity.

Every leaf in the forest carries the watermark of eternity.

The rhythm of the heart matches the music of the cosmos.

Let kindness be your signature upon every path you walk.

He who carries peace within his chest walks unharmed through fire.

The soul yearns for the boundless, yet loves the intimate flower.

Keep close to Nature's heart... and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.

The morning light does not inquire of your past before warming your face.

A single pure thought can elevate a lifetime of striving.

The sacred dwells in the quiet clearing of the heart.

Dance with the winds of change, but stay anchored in your center.

Let gratitude be the perfume of your daily life.

The night reveals the stars that the bright day concealed.

Speak the language of peace, and the universe will echo back.

Between every two pines there is a door to a new world.

Let wisdom be your companion and wonder your daily guide.

The dewdrop reflects the entire sky without becoming heavy.

The gentle stream cuts through granite through relentless patience.

Love is the nectar that turns the mortal into the immortal.

The highest prayer is a life lived in harmony with truth.

The heart is an endless spring; the more you give, the more it flows.

In the garden of existence, every flower has its fragrance.

Live lightly, love deeply, and leave gentle footprints upon the earth.

The soul's song is heard only when the clamor of vanity dies.

The stars shine brightest when the night is deepest.