Quotes from Thich Nhat Hanh

When we cannot communicate, we suffer, and we spill our suffering on to other people. We can find ways to open the doors of communication again.

We are imprisoned in our small selves, thinking only of the comfortable conditions for this small self, while we destroy our large self.

There is no single entity whose identity is changeless. All things are constantly changing. Nothing endures forever or contains a changeless element called a self.

True love includes a sense of responsibility and accepting the other person as she is, with all her strengths and weaknesses. If you only like the best things in a person, that is not love.

Whenever I feel sad or a little fragile, I invoke their presence (the ancestors) for support, and they never fail to be there.

Death is essential to making life possible. Death is transformation. Death is continuation. When we die, something else is born, even if it takes time to reveal itself or for us to be able to recognize it.

True love is made of four elements: loving kindness, compassion, joy, and equanimity. In Sanskrit, these are, maitri, karuna, mudita, and upeksha.

The only way to ease our fear and be truly happy is to acknowledge our fear and look deeply at its source.

A few years ago, I asked some children, What is the purpose of eating breakfast? One boy replied, To get energy for the day. Another said, The purpose of eating breakfast is to eat breakfast. I think the second child is more correct.

When conditions are sufficient, we manifest. When conditions are no longer sufficient, we no longer manifest. It does not mean that we do not exist. Like radio waves without a radio, we do not manifest.

We may have suffered a lot because of our attachment to those things, but we don't have the courage to release them; it doesn't feel safe to do so. But it may be that we continue to suffer because of our attachment to those things. It may be a person, a material object, or a position in society, anything. We think that without that person or thing we will not be safe, and that is why we're caught by it.

When a feeling or thought arises, your intention should not be to chase it away, even if by continuing to concentrate on the breath the feeling or thought passes naturally from the mind. The intention isn't to chase it away, hate it, worry about it, or be frightened by it. So what exactly should you be doing concerning such thoughts and feelings? Simply acknowledge their presence.