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21 " One of the great misconceptions we often carry throughout our lives is that our perceptions of ourselves and the world are basically accurate and true, that they reflect some stable, ultimate reality. This misconception leads to tremendous suffering, both globally and in our personal life situations. "
― Joseph Goldstein , Mindfulness: A Practical Guide to Awakening
22 " Just as the light of a single candle can dispel the darkness of a thousand years, the moment we light a single candle of wisdom, no matter how long or deep our confusion, ignorance is dispelled. "
― Joseph Goldstein
23 " We can then see for ourselves the obvious truth that when we cling or hold on to that which changes, we suffer. "
24 " True humility is the absence of anyone to be proud.” Humility is not a stance; it is simply the absence of self. In the same way, relationship is the absence of separation, and it can be felt with each breath, each sensation, each thought, each cloud in the sky, each person that we meet. “And being nothing, you are everything. That is all. "
― Joseph Goldstein , Insight Meditation: A Psychology of Freedom
25 " On the deepest level, problems such as war and starvation are not solved by economics and politics alone. Their source is prejudice and fear in the human heart — and their solution also lies in the human heart. "
― Joseph Goldstein , The Path of Insight Meditation (Shambhala Pocket Classics)
26 " Our progress in meditation does not depend on the measure of pleasure or pain in our experience. Rather, the quality of our practice has to do with how open we are to whatever is there. "
27 " Generosity, love, compassion, or devotion do not depend on a high IQ. "
28 " Without the steadiness of concentration, it is easy to get caught up in the feelings, perceptions, and thoughts as they arise. We take them to be self and get carried away by trains of association and reactivity. "
29 " one of the most radical, far-reaching, and challenging statements of the Buddha is his statement that as long as there is attachment to the pleasant and aversion to the unpleasant, liberation is impossible. "
30 " Most people believe that we are the thoughts that come through our mind. I hope not, because if we are, we are in big trouble! Those thoughts coming through have clearly been conditioned by something: by different events in our childhood, our environment, our past lives, or even some occurrence that has happened two minutes before. "
31 " Love, compassion, and peace do not belong to any religion or tradition. They are qualities in each one of us, qualities of our hearts and minds.. "
― Joseph Goldstein , A Heart Full of Peace
32 " An emotion is like a cloud passing through the sky. Sometimes it is fear or anger, sometimes it is happiness or love, sometimes it is compassion. But none of them ultimately constitute a self. They are just what they are, each manifesting its own quality. With this understanding, we can cultivate the emotions that seem helpful and simply let the others be, without aversion, without suppression, without identification. "
33 " Aspirations inspire us, while expectations simply lead us into cycles of hope and fear: hope that what we want will happen; fear that it won’t. "
34 " whatever we frequently think of and ponder, that will become the inclination of our minds. "
35 " Hatred never ceases by hatred; it only ceases by love. "
36 " But after years of practice I’ve come to feel grateful when I observe these unskillful patterns arise, because now I would rather see them than not see them. It becomes another chance to unhook from these patterns, to see their essential transparency, and to let go of the burden they bring. "
― Joseph Goldstein , One Dharma: The Emerging Western Buddhism
37 " Why be unhappy about something if it can be remedied? And what is the use of being unhappy about something if it cannot be remedied? "
38 " If we try to practice meditation without the foundation of goodwill to ourselves and others, it is like trying to row across a river without first untying the boat; our efforts, no matter how strenuous, will not bear fruit. We need to practice and refine our ability to live honestly and with integrity. "
39 " All things arise when the appropriate conditions are present, and all things pass away as conditions change. Behind the process, there is no “self” who is running the show. "
40 " Unless a practice cools the fires of greed, aversion, and ignorance it is worthless. "