Quotes about Mindfulness

The opposite of contemplation is not action, it is reaction.

When you are concerned with either attacking or defending, manipulating or resisting, pushing or pulling, you cannot be contemplative. When you are preoccupied with enemies, you are always dualistic. You can take that as axiomatic: in most cases, you become a mirror image of both what you oppose and what you love (see Ephesians 5:14).

If you can see silence as the ground of all words and the birth of all words, then you will find that when you speak, your words will be more well-chosen and calm. Francis

We cannot attain the presence of God because we're already totally in the presence of God. What's absent is awareness

How do you sell emptiness, vulnerability, and nonsuccess?

Watch your thoughts; they become words. Watch your words; they become actions. Watch your actions; they become habits. Watch your habits; they become character. Watch your character; it becomes your destiny.

The ability to stand back and calmly observe my inner dramas, without rushing to judgment, is foundational for spiritual seeing.

To keep the mind space open, we need some form of contemplative or meditation practice. This has been the most neglected in recent centuries, substituting the mere reciting and "saying" of prayers, which is not the same as a contemplative mind, and often merely confirms us in our superior or fear-based system.

Before you speak of peace, you must first have it in your heart. —St. Francis of Assisi13

When you are present, you will know the Presence. It is that simple, and it is that hard.

Whenever we get defensive or go emotionally up and down, this is a sign that we are attached to a self-image.

Words and complex rituals almost get in the way at this point. All you can really do is return such Presence with your own presence.