The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation

by Thich Nhat Hanh

While washing the dishes one should only be washing the dishes, which means that while washing the dishes one should be completely aware of the fact that one is washing the dishes.

“There are two ways to wash the dishes. The first is to wash the dishes in order to have clean dishes and the second is to wash the dishes in order to wash the dishes.”

A person who looks at the table and can see the universe is a person who can see the way.

Now I see that if one doesn’t know how to die, one can hardly know how to live—because death is a part of life.

Remember that there is only one important time and that is now. The present moment is the only time over which we have dominion. The most important person is always the person you are with, who is right before you, for who knows if you will have dealings with any other person in the future? The most important pursuit is making the person standing at your side happy, for that alone is the pursuit of life.”