Master Thich Nhat Hanh encompasses every attribute of not ‘finding peace’, but becoming the embodiment of peace itself. When I think of him, I feel that he is the epitome of acceptance and compassion— the conquest of stillness in chaos. A true master of Zen, here are a few of the most inspirational lessons we can learn from him.
1.“When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That’s the message he is sending.”
2. “People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar.”
3. “To be beautiful means to be yourself. You don’t need to be accepted by others. You need to accept yourself.”
4. “Because you are alive, everything is possible.”
5. “Many people think excitement is happiness…. But when you are excited you are not peaceful. True happiness is based on peace.”
6. “My actions are my only true belongings. I cannot escape the consequences of my actions. My actions are the ground on which I stand.”
7. “You must love in such a way that the person you love feels free.”
8. “For things to reveal themselves to us, we need to be ready to abandon our views about them.”
9. “We are here to awaken from our illusion of separateness.”
10. “If you love someone, the greatest gift you can give them is your presence”
11. “Keeping your body healthy is an expression of gratitude to the whole cosmos — the trees, the clouds, everything.”
12. “Understanding means throwing away your knowledge.”
13.“When you begin to see that your enemy is suffering, that is the beginning of insight.”
14. “Some people live as though they are already dead. There are people moving around us who are consumed by their past, terrified of their future, and stuck in their anger and jealousy. They are not alive; they are just walking corpses.”
15. “At any moment, you have a choice, that either leads you closer to your spirit or further away from it.”
source and courtesy: isoulscience.com