The problem is whether we are determined to go in the direction of compassion or not. If we are, then can we reduce the suffering to a minimum? If I lose my direction, I have to look for the North Star, and I go to the north. That does not mean I expect to arrive at the North Star. I just want to go in that direction.
Nhat HanhI am inviting you to go deeper, to learn and to practice so that you become someone who has a great capacity for being solid, calm, and without fear, because our society needs people like you who have these qualities, and your children, our children, need people like you, in order to go on, in order to become solid, and calm, and without fear.
Nhat HanhIf we are too busy, if we are carried away every day by our projects, our uncertainty, our craving, how can we have the time to stop and look deeply into the situation-our own situation, the situation of our beloved one, the situation of our family and of our community, and the situation of our nation and of the other nations?
Nhat HanhWe all need a place that is safe and wholesome enough for us to return for refuge. In Buddhism, that refuge is mindfulness.
Nhat HanhIf you have a friend who suffers, you have to help him.ยซMy dear friend, you are on safe ground. Everything is okay now. Why do you continue to suffer? Don't go back to the past. It's only a ghost; it's unrealยป. And whenever we recognize that these are only movies and pictures, not reality, we are free. That is the practice of mindfulness.
Nhat Hanh