A bulging portfolio of spiritual experiences matters little if it does not have the power to sustain us through the inevitable moments of grief, loss, and change. Knowledge and achievements matter little if we do not yet know how to touch the heart of another and be touched. Wisdom is alive only as long as it is lived, understanding is liberating only as long as it is applied.

Even the most exalted states and the most exceptional spiritual accomplishments are unimportant if we cannot be happy in the most basic and ordinary ways, if we cannot touch one another and the life we have been given with our hearts.

The work of your heart, the work of taking time, to listen, to help, is also your gift to the whole of the world

Peace requires us to surrender our illusions of control.

Only a deep attention to the whole of our life can bring us the capacity to love well and live freely.

When we have for so long been judged by everyone we meet, just to look into the eyes of another who does not judge us can be extraordinarily healing.

The basic principle of spiritual life is that our problems become the very place to discover wisdom and love.