There is no more self-contradictory concept than that of idle thoughts. What gives rise to the perception of a whole world can hardly be called idle. Every thought we have either contributes to truth or to illusion.

If a man going down into a river, swollen and swiftly flowing, is carried away by the current - how can he help others across?

The trouble is you think you have time.

A wrong action may not bring its reaction at once, even as fresh milk turns not sour at once: like a smouldering fire concealed under ashes it consumes the wrongdoer, the fool.

Stop, stop. Do not speak. The ultimate truth is not even to think.

The fragrance of sandalwood and rosebay does not travel far. But the fragrance of virtue rises to the heavens.

There is a way to be purified, to overcome sorrows and grief, to release suffering, to secure the right path to realize nirvana. This is to be mindful.