Dogen Zenji

The valley stream’s rushing sound is the eloquent tongue of Buddha. The mountain’s vibrant colours are nothing but the Buddha’s form.

I come to realize that mind is no other than mountains and rivers and the great wide earth, the sun and the moon and stars.

The whole moon and the entire sky are reflected in one dewdrop on the grass.

[on enlightenment] Body and mind dropped off.

If you are unable to find the truth right where you are, where else do you expect to find it?

You should study not only that you become a mother when your child is born, but also that you become a child.

When you get there, there isn’t any there there.

It ain’t those parts of the Bible that I can’t understand that bother me, it is the parts that I do understand.

Man is a Religious Animal. He is the only Religious Animal. He is the only animal that has the True Religion – several of them. He is the only animal that loves his neighbor as himself and cuts his throat if his theology isn’t straight. He has made a graveyard of the globe in trying his honest best to smooth his brother’s path to happiness and heaven.

If God lived on earth, people would break his windows.

I have a bit of supernatural take on life. For a moment, I went over to the other side. Since then, I can feel the presence of the departed. I’m very sensitive to it.

One who conquers himself is greater than another who conquers a thousand times a thousand on the battlefield.

In heaven all the interesting people are missing.

I am not a saint, unless you think of a saint as a sinner who keeps on trying.

As a bee gathering nectar does not harm or disturb the color & fragrance of the flower; so do the wise move through the world.

The whole moon and the entire sky are reflected in one dewdrop on the grass.

I would like to believe there is a God, but I think it is better to say I’m not sure there is a God and live your life with kindness and respect for people than to say I know there is a God and then do bad things,

Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.

I have too much respect for the idea of God to make it responsible for such an absurd world.

Zen mind is not Zen mind. Throwing away Zen mind is correct Zen mind.

I lost my faith in God when I lost my daughter to Cancer, the beast. I begged, I cried, I offered my life for hers, and day by day, I watched that beautiful little Angel slip off. So, excuse me for not taking my seat next to you on Sunday in Church, I feel too cheated to worship.