Buddhism is a practice in which we learn to avoid injuring others, and ourselves. It's a practice in which we learn to respond to beauty, and to respond to difficult circumstances with patience, with a sense of calm, with clarity.

Life exists in countless forms in countless dimensions, in places that we simply cannot see. The essence of life - while it might not appear so when we watch television or watch our loved ones suffer - is good.

A realistic recognition of the human condition is that it is corrupt beyond belief. What do you suppose would happen if the police all took a week off?

So what you are accomplishing is entrenching yourself more and more in this world.

There is an alternative. It's an old alternative. It's not for everybody. It's only for people who are smart, limited market. It's enlightenment.

I have graduate students who have developed this ability to love and want to perfect it. Those are the students I spend a lot of time with because at this time they need that.

Expect forces to interfere with you and expect to conquer them all, if you are serious about the study. Just as there are powers that interfere with those who seek enlightenment, there are forces that will help.