Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as an enlightened person. There is only enlightened activity.

The true practice to meditation is to sit as if you where drinking water when you are thirsty.

For Zen students a weed is a treasure. With this attitude, whatever you do, life becomes an art.

Faith is a state of openness or trust...In other words, a person who is fanatic in matters of religion, and clings to certain ideas about the nature of God and the universe, becomes a person who has no faith at all. Instead they are holding tight. But the attitude of faith is to let go, and become open to the truth, whatever it might turn out to be.

If you were not born in this world, there would be no need to die. To be born in this world is to die, to disappear [laughing].

To cook is not just to prepare food for someone or to cook for yourself; it is to express your sincerity. So when you cook you should express yourself in your activity in the kitchen. You should allow yourself plenty of time.

Our tendency is to be interested in something that is growing in the garden, not in the bare soil itself. But if you want to have a good harvest, the most important thing is to make the soil rich and cultivate it well.