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.

Wherever you are is the perfect place to awaken. This moment is the exact place to practice compassion and loving awareness. You have all the ingredients to breathe and find freedom just where you are.

The unawakened mind tends to make war against the way things are. To follow a path with heart, we must understand the whole process of making war within ourselves and without, how it begins and how it ends. War’s roots are in ignorance. Without understanding we can easily become frightened by life’s fleeting changes, the inevitable losses, disappointments, the insecurity of our aging and death. Misunderstanding leads us to fight against life, running from pain or grasping at security and pleasures that by their nature can never be satisfying.

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

Train your mind the same way you’d train a puppy: Be patient, be consistent, and have some fun along the way.

Through practice, gently and gradually we can collect ourselves and learn how to be more fully with what we do.

Though outer events may be difficult, the key to our happiness is how our mind responds to them.