YB Madeline > YB's Quotes

“A mind that is racing over worries about the future or recycling resentments from the past is ill equipped to handle the challenges of the moment. By slowing down, we can train the mind to focus completely in the present. Then we will find that we can function well whatever the difficulties. That is what it means to be stress-proof: not avoiding stress but being at our best under pressure, calm, cool, and creative in the midst of the storm.”
― Eknath Easwaran, Take Your Time: The Wisdom of Slowing Down

“Always say “yes” to the present moment. What could be more futile, more insane, than to create inner resistance to what already is? what could be more insane than to oppose life itself, which is now and always now? Surrender to what is. Say “yes” to life — and see how life suddenly starts working for you rather than against you.”
― Eckhart Tolle

“To a mind that is still the whole universe surrenders.”
― Lao Tzu

“Try something different. Surrender.”
― Rumi

“Instead of resisting to changes, surrender. Let life be with you, not against you. If you think ‘My life will be upside down’ don’t worry. How do you know down is not better than upside?”
― Shams Of Tabriz

“We are not going to change the whole world, but we can change ourselves and feel free as birds. We can be serene even in the midst of calamities and, by our serenity, make others more tranquil. Serenity is contagious. If we smile at someone, he or she will smile back. And a smile costs nothing. We should plague everyone with joy. If we are to die in a minute, why not die happily, laughing? (136-137)”
― Sri S. Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Pantanjali

“At various points in our lives, or on a quest, and for reasons that often remain obscure, we are driven to make decisions which prove with hindsight to be loaded with meaning. (225)”
― Sri S. Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Pantanjali

“Mere philosophy will not satisfy us. We cannot reach the goal by mere words alone. Without practice, nothing can be achieved. (3)”
― Sri S. Satchidananda, The Yoga Sutras of Pantanjali

“Happiness is not be sought outside. It can never come from outside or from inside--because it simply is. It is always. Where? Everywhere.”
― Swami Satchidananda, To Know Your Self: The Essential Teachings

“Out beyond ideas of wrongdoing
and rightdoing there is a field.
I'll meet you there.

When the soul lies down in that grass
the world is too full to talk about.”
― Rumi

“To have some deep feeling about Buddhism is not the point; we just do what we should do, like eating supper and going to bed. This is Buddhism.”
― Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind: Informal Talks on Zen Meditation and Practice

“When life is empty, with respect to the past, and aimless, with respect to the future, the vacuum is filled by the present - normally reduced to a hairline, a split second in which there is no time for anything to happen.”
― Alan W. Watts, The Way of Zen

“[T]he joy of travel is not nearly so much in getting where one wants to go as in the unsought surprises which occur on the journey.”
― Alan W. Watts, The Way of Zen

“Shohaku Okumura ~ We cannot expect any ecstasy greater than right here, right now—our everyday lives.”
― Kosho Uchiyama Roshi, Zen Teaching of Homeless Kodo

“In the study of Zen, the power of an all-illuminating insight must go hand in hand with a deep sense of humility and meekness of heart.”
― D.T. Suzuki, An Introduction to Zen Buddhism

“Why Not You?

Today, many will awaken with a fresh sense of inspiration. Why not you?

Today, many will open their eyes to the beauty that surrounds them. Why not you?

Today, many will choose to leave the ghost of yesterday behind and seize the immeasurable power of today. Why not you?

Today, many will break through the barriers of the past by looking at the blessings of the present. Why not you?

Today, for many the burden of self doubt and insecurity will be lifted by the security and confidence of empowerment. Why not you?

Today, many will rise above their believed limitations and make contact with their powerful innate strength. Why not you?

Today, many will choose to live in such a manner that they will be a positive role model for their children. Why not you?

Today, many will choose to free themselves from the personal imprisonment of their bad habits. Why not you?

Today, many will choose to live free of conditions and rules governing their own happiness. Why not you?

Today, many will find abundance in simplicity. Why not you?

Today, many will be confronted by difficult moral choices and they will choose to do what is right instead of what is beneficial. Why not you?

Today, many will decide to no longer sit back with a victim mentality, but to take charge of their lives and make positive changes. Why not you?

Today, many will take the action necessary to make a difference. Why not you?

Today, many will make the commitment to be a better mother, father, son, daughter, student, teacher, worker, boss, brother, sister, & so much more. Why not you?

Today is a new day!

Many will seize this day.

Many will live it to the fullest.

Why not you?”
― Steve Maraboli, Life, the Truth, and Being Free

“Gratitude builds a bridge to abundance.”
― Roy T. Bennett, The Light in the Heart

“The good news is that the moment you decide that what you know is more important than what you have been taught to believe, you will have shifted gears in your quest for abundance. Success comes from within, not from without.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

“Today expect something good to happen to you no matter what occurred yesterday. Realize the past no longer holds you captive. It can only continue to hurt you if you hold on to it. Let the past go. A simply abundant world awaits. (January 11)”
― Sarah Breathnach, Simple Abundance: A Daybook of Comfort of Joy

“According to this law [the law of Dharma], you have a unique talent and a unique way of expressing it. There is something that you can do better than anyone else in the whole world--and for every unique talent and unique expression of that talent, there are also unique needs. When these needs are matched with the creative expression of your talent, that is the spark that creates affluence. Expressing your talents to fulfill needs creates unlimited wealth and abundance.”
― Deepak Chopra

“The measure of intelligence is the ability to change.”
― Albert Einstein

“The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.”
― George Bernard Shaw, Man and Superman

“Intelligence is the ability to adapt to change. ”
― Stephen Hawking

“Adapt what is useful, reject what is useless, and add what is specifically your own.”
― Bruce Lee

“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”
― Leon C. Megginson

“Mindfulness practice means that we commit fully in each moment to be present; inviting ourselves to interface with this moment in full awareness, with the intention to embody as best we can an orientation of calmness, mindfulness, and equanimity right here and right now.”
― Jon Kabat-Zinn, Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life

“You have control over doing your respective duty, but no control or claim over the result. Fear of failure, from being emotionally attached to the fruit of work, is the greatest impediment to success because it robs efficiency by constantly disturbing the equanimity of mind.”
― Ramananda Prasad, The Bhagavad Gita

“Equanimity is the hallmark of spirituality. It is neither chasing nor avoiding but just being in the middle.”
― Amit Ray, Meditation: Insights and Inspirations

“When force of circumstance upsets your equanimity, lose no time in recovering your self-control, and do not remain out of tune longer than you can help. Habitual recurrence to the harmony will increase your mastery of it.”
― Marcus Aurelius, Meditations

“A modern definition of equanimity: cool. This refers to one whose mind remains stable & calm in all situations.”
― Allan Lokos, Pocket Peace: Effective Practices for Enlightened Living