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I honor businesses for what they do, I honor nonprofits for what they do, I honor government for what it does, and then I invite everyone to the table so that together we can come up with innovative and broad-based solutions that can serve as many people as possible.

Bernie Glassman

It’s very rare to be in a state where there’s nothing in, where you have no attachment to any idea or concept about yourself.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Attachment Compassion Experience Yourself
The reason we get overwhelmed is that we’re attached to a certain result or taht we want to achieve a certain result or that we to achieve a certain goal.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Achieve Attached Certain Overwhelmed Result
Our work may be important, but we don’t take it too seriously. Otherwise, we get attached to one relatively small thing and ignore the rest of life.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Important Life May Rest
Let me give you a wonderful Zen practice. Wake up in the morning…look in the mirror, and laugh at yourself.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Laughter Morning Wisdom
The pursuit of enlightenment is for the purpose of the world, not merely for the purpose of the individual. Practices for enlightenment must lead to action in the world.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Enlightenment Practice Purpose
In that state you’ve immediately raised the mind of compassion, because if nothing is in, everything is in, and you are now free to experience yourself as the world.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Compassion Experience Immediately Mind World
Don’t power yourself or blast through; rock with the way things are.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Blast Power Things Way Yourself
Most important, once we study NVC we can’t ignore the potential for transformation that lies in any difficult relationship – if we only bother to communicate with skill and empathy.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Empathy Most Relationship Skill Transformation
Sometimes you come to a fall and sometimes you come to white water. Your rowing has to adapt to the situation.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Fall Rocks Wind
The fewer or less diverse voices you invite to the table, the smaller and narrower your solution will be and the fewer people it will serve.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Fewer Less Narrower People Serve The Solution
When I spend time with students, they tell me that they’ve read something in a book or heard something from a teacher that they don’t think they’re living up to. And I tell them, “Take care of yourself right now.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Book Care Living Something Spend Take Teacher Tell
I always have this red nose in my pocket, and if it looks like I’m taking things too seriously, or the person I’m talking to is taking them too seriously, I put the nose on. It doesn’t matter what we’re doing or talking about, it doesn’t matter if we agree or disagree, the nose changes everything.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Looks Pockets Talking
The basic problem, actually, is how to get rid of the idea that we’re going to get rid of our problems. Only then can we relate directly with the real issues of our life.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Ideas Issues Problem Real Relate
When we bear witness, when we become the situation – homelessness, poverty, illness, violence, death – the right action arises by itself. We don’t have to worry about what to do.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Buddhist Death Inspirational
When we don’t ask, we don’t let others give. When we fear rejection, we don’t let generosity arise.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Generosity Giving Rejection
You can’t do the same stroke coming down a small stream as you would coming down Niagara Falls.
BERNIE GLASSMAN

Falls Small Steam Strokes

I honor businesses for what they do, I honor nonprofits for what they do, I honor government for what it does, and then I invite everyone to the table so that together we can come up with innovative and broad-based solutions that can serve as many people as possible.

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I honor businesses for what they do, I honor nonprofits for what they do, I honor government for what it does, and then I invite everyone to the table so that together we can come up with innovative and broad-based solutions that can serve as many people as possible.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Bernie Glassman Quotes