"Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don't even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child -- our own two eyes. All is a miracle."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Because you are alive, everything is possible."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"When another person makes you suffer, it is because he suffers deeply within himself, and his suffering is spilling over. He does not need punishment; he needs help. That's the message he is sending."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"People have a hard time letting go of their suffering. Out of a fear of the unknown, they prefer suffering that is familiar."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"We are here to awaken from our illusion of separateness."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Life is available only in the present moment."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Taming the Tiger Within: Meditations on Transforming Difficult Emotions)

"The seed of suffering in you may be strong, but don't wait until you have no more suffering before allowing yourself to be happy."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching)

"Smile, breathe and go slowly."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"When we are mindful, deeply in touch with the present moment, our understanding of what is going on deepens, and we begin to be filled with acceptance, joy, peace and love."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Our own life has to be our message."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"My actions are my true belongings."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"By eating meat we share the responsibility of climate change, the destruction of our forests, and the poisoning of our air and water. The simple act of becoming a vegetarian will make a difference in the health of our planet."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The World We Have: A Buddhist Approach to Peace and Ecology)

"Feelings come and go like clouds in a windy sky. Conscious breathing is my anchor."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"If you suffer and make your loved ones suffer, there is nothing that can justify your desire."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The Art of Power)

"Breathing in, I calm body & mind. Breathing out, I smile. Dwelling in the present moment, I know that this is the only moment."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Drink your tea slowly and reverently, as if it is the axis on which the world earth revolves - slowly, evenly, without rushing toward the future."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"“Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.”"
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Each moment is a chance for us to make peace with the world, to make peace possible for the world, to make happiness possible for the world."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"The true miracle is not walking on water or walking in air, but simply walking on this earth."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"The past is gone, the future is not yet here, and if we do not go back to ourselves in the present moment, we cannot be in touch with life."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Root out the violence in your life, and learn to live compassionately and mindfully. Seek peace. When you have peace within, real peace with others is possible."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"The wave does not need to die to become water. She is already water."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching)

"Hope is important because it can make the present moment less difficult to bear. If we believe that tomorrow will be better, we can bear a hardship today."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Waking up this morning, I smile. Twenty-four brand new hours are before me. I vow to live fully in each moment and to look at all beings with eyes of compassion."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"We have more possibilities available in each moment than we realize."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"The source of love is deep in us and we can help others realize a lot of happiness. One word, one action, one thought can reduce another person’s suffering and bring that person joy."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"When you say something really unkind, when you do something in retaliation your anger increases. You make the other person suffer, and he will try hard to say or to do something back to get relief from his suffering. That is how conflict escalates."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Anger)

"Keeping your body healthy is an expression of gratitude to the whole cosmos - the trees, the clouds, everything."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"People deal too much with the negative, with what is wrong. Why not try and see positive things, to just touch those things and make them bloom?"
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Through my love for you, I want to express my love for the whole cosmos, the whole of humanity, and all beings. By living with you, I want to learn to love everyone and all species. If I succeed in loving you, I will be able to love everyone and all species on Earth... This is the real message of love."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Teachings on Love)

"Feelings, whether of compassion or irritation, should be welcomed, recognized, and treated on an absolutely equal basis; because both are ourselves. The tangerine I am eating is me. The mustard greens I am planting are me. I plant with all my heart and mind. I clean this teapot with the kind of attention I would have were I giving the baby Buddha or Jesus a bath. Nothing should be treated more carefully than anything else. In mindfulness, compassion, irritation, mustard green plant, and teapot are all sacred."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The Miracle of Mindfulness)

"Many people think excitement is happiness.... But when you are excited you are not peaceful. True happiness is based on peace."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The Art of Power)

"Thanks to impermanence, everything is possible."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Going Home: Jesus and Buddha as Brothers)

"The fact is that when you make the other suffer, he will try to find relief by making you suffer more. The result is an escalation of suffering on both sides."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Anger)

"I promise myself that I will enjoy every minute of the day that is given me to live."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Anger)

"The kingdom of God is available to you in the here and the now. But the question is whether you are available to the kingdom. Our practice is to make ourselves ready for the kingdom so that it can manifest in the here and the now. You don't need to die in order to enter the kingdom of heaven. In fact, you have to be truly alive in order to do so."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Attachments to views is the greatest impediment to the spiritual path."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Our true home is in the present moment. To live in the present moment is a miracle. The miracle is not to walk on water. The miracle is to walk on the green earth in the present moment, to appreciate the peace and beauty that are available now."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"There is no enlightenment outside of daily life."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"We who have touched war have a duty to bring the truth about war to those who have not had a direct experience of it. We are the light at the tip of the candle. It is really hot, but it has the power of shining and illuminating. If we practice mindfulness, we will know how to look deeply into the nature of war and, with our insight, wake people up so that together we can avoid repeating the same horrors again and again."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Love in Action: Writings on Nonviolent Social Change)

"Until there is peace between religions, there can be no peace in the world."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"if we are not fully ourselves, truly in the present, we miss everything."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"In true love, you attain freedom."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (True Love: A Practice for Awakening the Heart)

"We often think of peace as the absence of war, that if powerful countries would reduce their weapon arsenals, we could have peace. But if we look deeply into the weapons, we see our own minds- our own prejudices, fears and ignorance. Even if we transport all the bombs to the moon, the roots of war and the roots of bombs are still there, in our hearts and minds, and sooner or later we will make new bombs. To work for peace is to uproot war from ourselves and from the hearts of men and women. To prepare for war, to give millions of men and women the opportunity to practice killing day and night in their hearts, is to plant millions of seeds of violence, anger, frustration, and fear that will be passed on for generations to come. "
— Thich Nhat Hanh (Living Buddha, Living Christ)

"If our love is only a will to possess, it is not love."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"It is my conviction that there is no way to peace - peace is the way."
— Thich Nhat Hanh (The Art of Power)

"From time to time, to remind ourselves to relax and be peaceful, we may wish to set aside some time for a retreat, a day of mindfulness, when we walk slowly, smile, drink tea with a friend, and enjoy being together as if we are the happiest people on earth."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Suffering is not enough. Life is both dreadful and wonderful...How can I smile when I am filled with so much sorrow? It is natural--you need to smile to your sorrow because you are more than your sorrow."
— Thich Nhat Hanh

"Peace is present right here and now, in ourselves and in everything we do and see. Every breath we take, every step we take, can be filled with peace, joy, and serenity. The question is whether or not we are in touch with it. We need only to be awake, alive in the present moment."
— Thich Nhat Hanh