Kodo Sawaki Quotes & Sayings

No matter how many years you sit doing zazen, you will never become anything special. — Kodo Sawaki

To be born as a human being is a rare thing, something to be grateful for. But being born as a human being is worthless if you spend your whole life in a mental hospital. It is worthless if you worry about not having money. It is worthless if you become neurotic because you cannot get a prestigious job. It is worthless if you weep because you lose your girlfriend. — Kodo Sawaki

Religion means living your own life, completely fresh and new, without being taken in by anyone. — Kodo Sawaki

Gain is delusion; loss is enlightenment. — Kodo Sawaki

You don't seek the way. The way seeks you. — Kodo Sawaki

We stop the one who can't cease from seeking things outside, and practice with our bodies with a posture that seeks absolutely nothing. This is zazen. — Kodo Sawaki

Live the Self that fills the whole Universe. — Kodo Sawaki

Only a lion can recognize a lion's roar. — Kodo Sawaki

Heaven and Earth give themselves. Air, water, plants, animals, and humans give themselves to each other. It is in this giving-themselves-to-each-other that we actually live. Whether you appreciate it or not, it is true. — Kodo Sawaki

Satori has no beginning; practice has not end! — Kodo Sawaki

You can't even trade a single fart with the next guy. Each and every one of us has to live out his own life. Don't waste time thinking about who's most talented. — Kodo Sawaki