“Around existence twine, (Oh, bridge that hangs across the gorge!) ropes of twisted vine.”

On a bare branch a crow is perched – autumn evening.

From all these trees, in the salads, the soup, everywhere, cherry blossoms fall.

There came a day when the clouds drifting along with the wind aroused a wanderlust in me, and I set off on a journey to roam along the seashores

I felt quite at home, / As if it were mine sleeping lazily / In this house of fresh air.

Do not seek to follow in the footsteps of the wise. Seek what they sought.

When I speak My lips feel cold – The autumn wind.

Nothing in the cry of cicadas suggests they are about to die.

Plunge Deep enough in order to see something that is hidden and glimmering.

From the pine tree, learn of the pine tree; And from the bamboo, of the bamboo.

The fact that Saigyo composed a poem that begins, “I shall be unhappy without loneliness,” shows that he made loneliness his master.

Sadly, I part from you; Like a clam torn from its shell, I go, and autumn too.

The temple bell stops but I still hear the sound coming out of the flowers.

Winter garden, the moon thinned to a thread, insects singing.

Between our two lives there is also the life of the cherry blossom.

When your consciousness has become ripe in true zazen-pure like clear water, like a serene mountain lake, not moved by any wind-then anything may serve as a medium for realization.

Come out to view / the truth of flowers blooming / in poverty.

Sex has become one of the most discussed subjects of modern times. The Victorians pretended it did not exist; the moderns pretend nothing else exists.

A thing constructed can only be loved after it is constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists.

I suppose it was easier to pretend I didn’t exist than it was to exorcise my demons.

I suspect that dreams are an integral part of existence, with far more use for us than we’ve made of them…The fine line between the dream state and reality is at times, for me, quite grey.

Everyone has a right to peaceful coexistence, the basic personal freedoms, the alleviation of suffering, and the opportunity to lead a productive life.

Knowledge no longer exists if one has ignored the attributes of the Almighty Great Creator.

When I reflect upon my blessings during my very nice lifetime, I am inspired to make sure that I spend the balance of the days of my existence in a productive way.

Fairy tales do not tell children the dragons exist. Children already know that dragons exist. Fairy tales tell children the dragons can be killed.