Answers from the Heart: Practical Responses to Life's Burning Questions

Our hearts are like the river. They are large enough to transform suffering and bring joy, not just to ourselves but to all those around us.

If we don’t have the cloud, we have the rain. If we don’t have the rain, we have the tea. That is the practice.

Your body, your presence, and your consciousness overlap and occupy all of time and space. In that sense there is no “before” and “after” we die. We should generate enough of the energy of mindfulness and concentration so we’re able to have this awareness. Then we’ll transcend the notion of birth and death.

Awakening means to see that truth—that you want to know how to enjoy, how to live deeply, in a very simple way. You don’t want to waste your time anymore. Cherish the time that you are given.

If you know how to handle the present in the best way you can, that’s all you can do for the future. Handling the present moment with all your attention, all your intelligence, is already building a future.

First you must find out whether your fear has been born from your wrong perception. The practice of mindful breathing in and out, deep and slow, can help you to look deeply into the nature and roots of your fear.

When a friend comes and holds your hand, you feel as if you can bear your pain and continue. There is strength and happiness within you. When you touch these elements, they will manifest and help restore your balance, and you’ll be able to bear your physical pain more easily.

Practicing the Dharma, using loving speech and deep listening, we can help each other remove wrong perceptions so that people will no longer be fearful and angry. That’s what we should do in order to stop wars, prevent terrorism, wipe out violence, and make peace.

You can keep the object of your contemplation alive by means of mindful breathing. If you don’t breathe consciously, sooner or later your thinking will settle back in, and the bird or the tree will disappear.