Sakyong Mipham Quotes

33 Sourced Quotes

To shift the direction of our planet, we must now be willing to experiment with the theory that within the speed and stress, we are good.

Sakyong Mipham
We can't hire out our own inner work, but we can do the manual labor with delight and decency.

Sakyong Mipham
When the mind is totally present, it is relaxed, nimble, and sensitive. It feels lighter and clearer. It notices everything, but it is not distracted by anything. It is the feeling of knowing exactly where you are and what you are doing.

Sakyong Mipham
Each of us holds human destiny in our hands. It will be completely determined by how the mind feels about itself.

Sakyong Mipham
Our power comes not from suppressing others but from uplifting them.

Sakyong Mipham
When people say that meditation makes them calm, they are often referring to this stability of the mind. A stable mind creates the foundation for a happier and more contented person.

Sakyong Mipham
When I was going into one of my first meditation retreats, I asked my father, Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, for some advice. He said, "How you act when you're alone affects the rest of your life." Even in solitude, the ruler engages in virtue.

Sakyong Mipham
If we do not appreciate the sensitivity and subtlety of the human heart, how can we appreciate the sensitivity and subtlety of the natural world?

Sakyong Mipham
This is bravery: using the challenge of daily life to sharpen our mind and open our heart.

Sakyong Mipham
When we have gone beyond the boundaries of hope and fear, we are able to work with whatever comes our way.

Sakyong Mipham
As the conceptual, material world increases its hold on us, and inanimate objects become more lifelike, we humans must become more human. Open hearts, kindness and care-these are our most precious gifts.

Sakyong Mipham
Meditation practice is relevant because in meditation our conceptual mind relaxes and we can feel who we are at heart.

Sakyong Mipham
You need to eat well, sleep well, and have a roof over your head, but don't go much further than that before extending yourself to others.

Sakyong Mipham
If we can feel confident in our goodness, it will illuminate our life and society

Sakyong Mipham
In looking for my mind, I discovered that it seems to be in many different places. Sometimes it is drinking a glass of water, remembering swimming in the summer, feeling the breeze. In this contemplation I observed that the self is more elusive than I thought.

Sakyong Mipham
Being fooled into trying to make things work out for 'me' is called samsara.

Sakyong Mipham
Even when we speak of selflessness, the mind goes to "me." We think, "I'm selfless," but everything is selfless.

Sakyong Mipham
If we do not push ourselves enough, we do not grow, but if we push ourselves too much, we regress. What is enough will change, depending on where we are and what we are doing. In that sense, the present moment is always some kind of beginning.

Sakyong Mipham
The most outrageous thing we can do in this world is to accept what happens and fly with it.

Sakyong Mipham
Being human is a precious situation, and we shouldn't waste time in useless activities.

Sakyong Mipham
The bones and tendons of the mind are mindfulness and awareness. Mindfulness is the mind's strength, and awareness is its flexibility. Without these abilities, we cannot function. When we drink a glass of water, drive a car, or have a conversation, we are using mindfulness and awareness.

Sakyong Mipham
The self-assured strength that grows from knowing that we already have what we need makes us gentle, because we are no longer desperate.

Sakyong Mipham
Changing our decision sets up a bad habit. It reinforces decision-making as an expression of bewilderment and ignorance, instead of wisdom and freedom.

Sakyong Mipham
Whatever we do lays a seed in our deepest consciousness, and one day that seed will grow.

Sakyong Mipham
If you want to be miserable, think of yourself. If you want to be happy, think of others.

Sakyong Mipham
This jewel is the wisdom and compassion that it takes to act not on behalf of ourselves but for all beings. This is where real confidence and competence come from. Once we possess this jewel, our life becomes blessed.

Sakyong Mipham
When stress is the basic state of mind, even good things stress us out. We have to learn to let go.

Sakyong Mipham
It is said that if our intention is to help others-even if we are unable to follow it through-we will never have any regret. Regret is a result of trying to make "me" happy.

Sakyong Mipham
We want to infuse our day with good habits so that we can turn seemingly mundane situations into a ceremony of goodness.

Sakyong Mipham
Karma moves in two directions. If we act virtuously, the seed we plant will result in happiness. If we act non-virtuously, suffering results.

Sakyong Mipham