The unawakened mind tends to make war against the way things are.

The heart is like a garden. It can grow compassion or fear, resentment or love. What seeds will you plant there?

If your compassion does not include yourself, it is incomplete.

The things that matter most in our lives are not fantastic or grand. They are the moments when we touch one another.

Most of us have spent our lives caught up in plans, expectations, ambitions for the future; in regrets, guilt or shame about the past. To come into the present is to stop the war.

We do not have to improve ourselves; we just have to let go of what blocks our heart.

Do not doubt your own basic goodness. In spite of all confusion and fear, you are born with a heart that knows what is just, loving, and beautiful.

In the end, just three things matter: How well we have lived How well we have loved How well we have learned to let go

Have respect for yourself, and patience and compassion. With these, you can handle anything.

Let go of the battle. Breathe quietly and let it be. Let your body relax and your heart soften. Open to whatever you experience without fighting.

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

A team is where a boy can prove his courage on his own. A gang is where a coward goes to hide.

Religious belief, like history itself, is a story that is always unfolding, always subject to inquiry and ripe for questioning. For without doubt there is no faith.

I don't mind dating younger men now.

Awake before the sun is risen, I call for my pen and papers and desk.

The God who hates trees is the founding father of patriarchy.

A place where you can see a good view is also a good place to sit and dream!

It's always difficult for anyone trying to compete against their past achievements.

In general I don't think the image of the state as a divinity is very helpful.

The most sacred of the duties of a government [is] to do equal and impartial justice to all its citizens.

You don't have to be an elected official to be a public servant.