Just know what is happening in your mind - not happy or sad about it, not attached. If you suffer see it, know it, and be empty. It's like a letter - you have to open it before you can know what's in it.
Interpretation
Awareness of one's thoughts and emotions leads to inner peace.
This quote emphasizes the importance of mindfulness and self-awareness regarding one's mental state. By observing our thoughts and feelings without judgment or attachment, we can better understand ourselves and alleviate suffering, much like reading a letter to comprehend its contents.
In practice
In a meditation group, sharing this quote can inspire members to focus on their internal experiences without judgment.
Once you understand non-self, then the burden of life is gone. You'll be at peace with the world. When we see beyond self, we no longer cling to happiness and we can truly be happy. Learn to let go without struggle, simply let go, to be just as you are - no holding on, no attachment, free.
When sitting in meditation, say, "That's not my business!" with every thought that comes by.
If you haven't wept deeply, you haven't begun to meditate.
To observe and watch one's own mind is something really interesting. The untrained mind will run and follow its old habit patterns. Because it has not been trained and taught, it will get lost in all kinds of stories and issues. Therefore we have to train our mind. The meditation practice in Buddhism is all about training one's own mind.
Meditation is like a single log of wood. Insight and investigation are one end of the log; calm and concentration are the other end. If you lift up the whole log, both sides come up at once. Which is concentration and which is insight? Just this mind.
The heart is just the heart; thoughts and feelings are just thoughts and feelings. Let things be just as they are.
Modesty is of no use to a beggar.
Self-esteem starts out as a personal blessing, but it becomes nothing less than an evolutionary force.
There is more than one way to burn a book. And the world is full of people running about with lit matches.
The sign of vigour, the sign of life, the sign of hope, the sign of health, the sign of everything that is good, is strength. As long as the body lives, there must be strength in the body, strength in the mind, [and strength] in the hand.
I don't want people to be inspired or offended by what I do. If you determine your behavior by what [other people] want, you're screwed.
Associate with the noblest people you can find; read the best books; live with the mighty; but learn to be happy alone.
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