“To my mind, the idea that doing dishes is unpleasant can occur only when you aren’t doing them… If I am incapable of washing dishes joyfully, if I want to finish the quickly so I can go and have dessert or a cup of tea, I will be equally incapable of enjoying my dessert or my tea when I finally have them… Each thought, each action in the sunlight of awareness becomes sacred. In this light, no boundary exists between the sacred and the profane.”
Thich Nhat Hanh, via Think Like A Monk (Page 135)
Mindfulness Quotes
“To purify our thoughts, monks talk about the process of awareness, addressing, and amending. I like to remember this as spot, stop, swap. First, we become aware of a feeling or issue—we spot it. Then we pause to address what the feeling is and where it comes from—we stop to consider it. And last, we amend our behavior—we swap in a new way of processing the moment.”
Jay Shetty, Think Like A Monk (Page 32)
“Be attentive to what you do; never consider anything unworthy of your attention.”
Confucius, A Calendar of Wisdom (Page 105)
“Have you ever sat very quietly without any movement? You try it, sit really still, with your back straight, and observe what your mind is doing. Don’t try to control it, don’t say it should not jump from one thought to another, but just be aware of how your mind is jumping. Don’t do anything about it, but watch it as from the banks of a river you watch the river flow by. In the flowing river there are so many things—fishes, leaves, dead animals—but it is always living, moving, and your mind is like that. It is everlastingly restless, flitting from one thing to another like a butterfly… just watch your mind. It is great fun. If you try it as fun, as an amusing thing, you will find that the mind begins to settle down without any effort on your part to control it. There is then no censor, no judge, no evaluator; and when the mind is thus very quiet of itself, spontaneously still, you will discover what it is to be gay. Do you know what gaiety is? It is just to laugh, to take delight in anything or nothing, to know the joy of living, smiling, looking straight into the face of another without any sense of fear.”
J. Krishnamurti, Think On These Things, via Sunbeams (Page 41)
20 Profound Thich Nhat Hanh Quotes from Peace Is Every Step
Excerpt: In the rush of life, we tend to lose touch with the peace that is available in each moment. These quotes from Peace Is Every Step will help…
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Herbert Simon Quote on Attention and How Eyes Communicate Priority
“A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention.”
Herbert Simon, via Stillness is the Key (Page 30)
Beyond the Quote (280/365)
The vast majority of the information that we use to process the world comes in through our eyes. Next most is through our ears. It follows, then, that where our eyes are pointed will determine where the majority of the information that we’ll obtain will come from. If our eyes are pointed at another person, the majority of the information that we’ll end up taking in will come from what we see while looking at that person. And the same is true if our eyes are pointed at a screen, at the road while we’re driving, at a stranger passing us down the street, etc. Eyes communicate priority.
Read More »Herbert Simon Quote on Attention and How Eyes Communicate PriorityThe Story of Two Wolves: A Tale About Handling Inner Conflict Mindfully
Excerpt: The story of two wolves. One is all things good. The other is all things bad. They both live inside. Which will win? The answer is in the tale…
Read More »The Story of Two Wolves: A Tale About Handling Inner Conflict Mindfully
Richard Carlson Quote on How Wherever You Go, There You Are.
“Something wonderful begins to happen with the simple realization that life, like an automobile, is driven from the inside out, not the other way around. As you focus more on becoming more peaceful with where you are, rather than focusing on where you would rather be, you begin to find peace right now, in the present. Then, as you move around, try new things, and meet new people, you carry that sense of inner peace with you. It’s absolutely true that, ‘Wherever you go, there you are.’”
Richard Carlson, Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff
Beyond the Quote (140/365)
One of the tragedies that we experience every day is missing out on the moment because we’re somewhere else. Our consciousness is constantly twisted up in what already happened and what we’re anticipating might happen next. And I’m not talking about a few moments out of every day—I’m talking about the vast majority of our moments every day. Let’s see how the following examples sits with you.
Read More »Richard Carlson Quote on How Wherever You Go, There You Are.
Tony Robbins Quote on Caring For Your Mind, Emotions, and Spirit Like A Garden—The Ultimate Garden
“Think of your mind, your emotions, and your spirit as the ultimate garden. The way to ensure a bountiful, nourishing harvest is to plant seeds like love, warmth, and appreciation, instead of seeds like disappointment, anger, and fear.”
Tony Robbins, Awaken the Giant Within
Beyond the Quote (78/365)
What seeds are you planting today? Are you planting seeds of love, warmth, and appreciation in the garden of your mind? What about in the minds of those around you? Seeds don’t just plant themselves. They need you to produce them first. Some are easier to produce and plant than others. Some get planted and start growing without you even knowing it. Some take a ton of careful attention and hard work to cultivate and nurture to maturity. One thing is for sure though, the ultimate garden of the mind requires constant effort and refinement in order to flourish—and mindfulness is the tool we need to use in order to see what needs to be done.
Read More »Tony Robbins Quote on Caring For Your Mind, Emotions, and Spirit Like A Garden—The Ultimate GardenLeo Babauta Quote on Practicing Mindfulness By Giving Your Actions Weight
“Practice this. Every action you take today, no matter how little… give it weight. Put some space around it. Start it intentionally, with the intention to be mindful, to inhabit that action fully, to notice with all of your senses the entire moment. When the action is done, don’t just rush to the next one, but take half a second to appreciate what you just experienced. Then move to the next with equal weight and space. If you don’t start treating this next action like it’s just as important as what’s coming later, you might never.”
Leo Babauta
Beyond the Quote (24/365)
So many things in life lose their weight when you learn to redistribute that weight to the present moment. What gives different thoughts, feelings, and situations in your life weight? Your mind. When you feel really drawn down and heavy from tough emotional situations, it’s because your mind is giving those tough emotional thoughts all of its weight.
Read More »Leo Babauta Quote on Practicing Mindfulness By Giving Your Actions Weight
20 Practical and Timely Sakyong Mipham Quotes on How To Turn the Mind Into An Ally
Excerpt: Read our 20 Sakyong Mipham Quotes from Turning the Mind Into An Ally and take control of your wandering, cycling, distracted mind… today!
Read More »20 Practical and Timely Sakyong Mipham Quotes on How To Turn the Mind Into An Ally
“Are you stressed? Are you so busy getting to the future that the present is reduced to a means of getting there? Stress is caused by being ‘here’ but wanting to be ‘there,’ or being in the present but wanting to be in the future. It’s a split that tears you apart inside. To create and live with such an inner split is insane. The fact that everyone else is doing it doesn’t make it any less insane. If you have to, you can move fast, work fast, or even run, without projecting yourself into the future and without resisting the present. As you move, work, run — do it totally. Enjoy the flow of energy, the high energy of that moment. Now you are no longer stressed, no longer splitting yourself in two. Just moving, running, working—and enjoying it. Or you can drop the whole thing and sit on a park bench. But when you do, watch your mind. It may say: ‘You should be working. You are wasting time.’ Observe the mind. Smile at it.” ~ Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now (Page 84)
“Are you resisting your here and now? Some people would always rather be somewhere else. Their ‘here’ is never good enough. Through self-observation, find out if that is the case in your life. Wherever you are, be there totally. If you find your here and now intolerable and it makes you unhappy, you have three options: remove yourself from the situation, change it, or accept it totally. If you want to take responsibility for your life, you must choose one of those three options, and you must choose now. Then accept the consequences. No excuses. No negativity. No psychic pollution. Keep your inner space clear.” ~ Eckhart Tolle, The Power of Now (Page 82)
