Quote of The Day (181)
This section contains short teachings extracted from the messages that Sifu Kuan Ming received over the years, since 1979. The quotes contained herein are a collection of the daily quotes for your contemplation.
The fifteenth day of the lunar month is a very auspicious day for the beings who revere it. On this day, the moon is at its brightest, and so is the receptivity of those capable of feeling the wholeness and oneness of its influence. Keep this day pure, keep this day holy, and keep this day calm, just as you can feel the calmness of the moon, just as the light of the moon can bring such indescribable feelings of serenity to your mind and to the universe. (D-820208-1)
There will be temptations for those who are seriously cultivating because in their being in this state, they bring forth all manners of tests for the mind. To face your mind squarely, those tests squarely, you need to seek to improve, and then you will retain that mind which is clear enough for you to see the problems that are surrounding the mind. (D-820122-1)
What have you done today? What have you achieved? There is no need to achieve in the material sense in order to consider it as an achievement. As long as you have spent your time fruitfully and have brought about no harm to others but have instead been in the position to make the day more pleasant for others, and as long as you know what you are doing each moment, you’re living! (D-820126-3)
Kuan Yin worship is the most natural thing in the universe. Just by being a true person who cares for others and helps others at any time they need your help or at any time you are confronted with a situation and you provide the help—that is Kuan Yin worship. When you are able to hold on to noble aspirations and all your actions of body, speech, and mind are motivated by compassion, that kind of worship is very much better and purer than any of the established methods of worship, no matter how long they have been founded. (D-831123-1)
Do not be half-hearted in your practice and cultivation, as it will mean you are cheating yourself. Wake up from the dream, from the illusion that the conditions of the world have trapped your mind into believing that they are real and permanent. Nothing is permanent, not even your own life. (D-831121-3)
Go about your life with a grander purpose and learn to live in happiness with your own self and then with others. If that is already your purpose, then practise compassion and cultivate the virtues of life so as to avoid any act that is unwholesome and brings harm to yourself and to others. (D-831121-2)
Try to learn to accept life as it comes. Be content with what you have. When your family is well, be grateful; when you have enough to provide for your family, be satisfied; when you have good health, be joyful that you have more happiness than others already, and this should start you to cultivate diligently and give some thoughts to the sufferings of others. (D-831121-1)
Reading a book or many books will not liberate you because life is an experience that consists of myriads of experiences that are the true teachers if you are aware of their inner meanings. Do not just hope and pray that things will happen to you according to your wishes. This is the lowest form of cultivation. Rise above this level, get up from the dreamy state, and read, see, and practise Dharma, the way that is beneficial to yourself and to others. (D-831115-2)
Aspirations are the greatest motivations in the search for liberation. No one can tell you how you should practice or how you should live your life. By yourself you will commit yourself to the Path that is good, that will lead you to liberation. There is no need to seek the help of a guru or a god to help you through, for there is no convenient way. Dharma must be learned by oneself and then practised to know the meanings. One cannot wish for attainment. (D-831115-1)
The mind needs nothing, just the purification of all defilements that are causing you to be in this state of living, of trapping you into miserable existences. Nothing can be of any real benefit to you. Leave that which brings about encrustments, want nothing, fear nothing, just live each day well and in full awareness of the actions of body, speech, and mind, and ensure that non-virtuous deeds are avoided. Practise the good qualities of the bodhisattvas and see the real joy within them; all other worldly joys are really empty joys, temporary and ending in suffering and disappointment. (D-831109-4)
Some people pray for the ability to feel the divine, to communicate, to be able to cure others, and all other kinds of motivations that may sound noble at first glance. But it is wrong aspiration, it is wrong understanding, for the purpose of worship is not for any self-gain that may confuse the mind and riddle it with delusions. All kinds of mystical powers are useless in the practice of compassion, in the search for Buddhahood. Only the ego is developed, only pride will be strengthened, and only greed will be established within the mind, setting the way to unwholesome thoughts, desires, and actions. (D-831109-2)
In your prayers, open up your heart and mind and embrace all; pray for all—those whom you love, yourself, and those whom you have no idea of loving, especially your enemies. Pray for peace of mind, within oneself and others, and pray for the well-being, the wholesomeness, and the strength to practise virtues throughout life. Let your prayers be kind to all, let your actions be beneficial to all, let your petitions be for all kinds of beings, and then you are all-embracing, a Kuan Yin! (D-831109-1, 831029-6)
Each time you breathe in, remember Me; each time you breathe out, also remember Me. Whenever you breathe in, that is the vibration of “Kuan,” and each time you breathe out, that is “Yin”. “Kuan Yin” is you, is your life, is in you and outside you. As long as you live, Kuan Yin is part of you; that is the way to be a true disciple so that moment to moment, I am in your mind, within your awareness, so how could you not remember your cultivation? (D-831029-5)
The feelings of joy and sadness, all such emotions that arise out of your sincere care for others—they too are aspects of Me, your Kuan Shih Yin. To find Me in yourself is to see Me in others. Others who cause you to be gentle, sympathetic, loving, generous, noble, righteous, etc., are manifestations of My spirit. They become your trainers, they become your teachers, so you must respect them and be grateful to them for playing those parts. (D-831029-4)
Happy Chinese New Year of the Horse 2026! May your noble spirit of self-reliance, fortified by the teachings, faith, and diligence, empower you to overcome all challenges, obstacles, and hindrances in the year ahead!
Life is for the moment, and it is the moment of the day that we must learn to live. Live for the day, from moment to moment, face the day with calmness and with true understanding, and all problems arising will be received and solved. (D-820126-1)
Do not fear what is in store for the coming year. Live it well through right understanding, and a good harvest will come by. Always appreciate each day and make good use of it. Life is short and uncertain; do not waste it in fruitless actions. Do not waste time moaning over the past or fearing the future. Life is now, and time is running out. Set your mind to cultivation! (D-881213-3)
There is nowhere to seek Kuan Yin except within your own heart, within your own mind. The body, speech, and mind become Kuan Yin whenever purity is manifested. So, there must be true love and compassion in all your daily actions if you are seeking Me. (D-831029-3)
The action of selfless love brings immeasurable benefits to all. Selfless love is free from being possessive in any way; it is an energy that flows from one to others, to those who wish to receive. Do not measure how much that you can give but give freely. Each time your heart is filled with love and mercy for others, you become Me, My embodiment. Each time a being is kind and acts compassionately towards others, I am there, within his body, speech, and mind. (D-831029-2)
Like the sun that shines for all, like the rain that falls for all, like the love and compassion of the Buddhas of the Universe, let your actions too be for all. Allow no discrimination, entertain no unwholesome thoughts, and desist from opinions; whatever you do, do it for the benefit of all beings. (D-831029-1)
Those who allow the sound of Om Mani Padme Hum to flow from their lips must practise compassion, must practise gentleness and kindness, and must practise severe discipline in order to gain wisdom. Any development that leads to attachment should be avoided. (D-831109-3)
Chant the Om. Bring to mind the wonderful sound of the Om; dwell upon it, merge with it! Be part of the Universe! Surrender your body and mind and feel only the vibrations of love and compassion; that is the real nature of you. The sound of Om is pure, is mighty, is infinite. Let Om become you! (D-830301-1)
By sitting in meditation, one does not only benefit from a relaxed mind, but one actually gains a pure and calm mind, which is then the Cause. To have attained such a pure and calm mind, which is developed out of steady meditation, you will begin to enjoy a peaceful and calm life, which brings harmony and happiness not only to yourself but to all those who are in your life as well; this, then, is the Effect of the good Cause of meditation. (D-820129-1)
To sustain your cultivation, you must spend time in daily contemplation and meditation. Sit to know what your mind is made up of. Learn to sit alone and to be alone and yet with the whole world. If it is meaningless and difficult in the beginning, you must discipline yourself to continue until the no-meaning becomes meaningful. You must bring that meaning into your life before you can understand what life is for. (D-820120-1)
To want to reach Me, you must be sincere in your heart. There are no halfway feelings; there must be no half-hearted approach to life, and there cannot be any result unless you have decided to act on it with a single-minded effort.
To reach Me with a true heart is easy because when the desire to reach Me is there, I shall make the Way more meaningful to you so that cultivation may become much easier. It will be your very own effort once you have discovered the Way. (D-820118-3)
To reach Me is easy. It requires only faith and devotion; it requires the will to live a life that is righteous and beneficial to others; it requires the cultivation of loving-kindness and compassion and the practise of understanding towards others. It requires a mind that is pure and free from wants and rewards, and it requires your acceptance of Me into your heart and mind so that you are able to be aware of My presence in you at any moment. (D-820118-2)
Many people struggle to concentrate because they have not understood the meaning or importance of one-pointedness in whatever they are doing. They allow their minds to be flooded with thoughts, and they end up performing actions driven by automatic reflexes rather than mindfulness.
Set aside all thoughts whenever you are engaged in any task. This is the way to truly be in whatever you do. This is the way to be in full concentration, and this is how you practice meditation even in the midst of activity. (D-820112-1-1,2)
One must learn to accept the challenges of life; otherwise, one will never arrive at any realisation; one will become too dependent. It will be by your own cultivation that you will be rewarded. It will be by great and relentless efforts that you will complete the journey to liberation. Once you become a Kuan Yin disciple, learn to understand the Spirit that you have reached out for, and no matter how difficult it is, you know that you must make it! (D-820111-2)
Bowing is a ritual that modern man has abolished even though they come in front of some who are worthy of such respect. Being on your knees when you begin to offer homage too should not be treated as an inferior gesture, and greetings between friends and acquaintances in places of worship should be with the gesture of both hands placed palm to palm, which is a sign of respect for each other’s Buddha Nature, for all human beings are ‘Buddhas-to-be’, and a sign of peace and kindness. (D-820104-1)
One will need to spend time to study and practice contemplation and meditation to know and to attain a calm mind. Guidance is given only so much as to stir your interest and to help you to awaken. It is up to you to follow through with acquiring proper understanding through daily practices of contemplation or meditation. It is up to you to understand that to realise your Buddha nature will not be an easy task. It will take a lot of faith in yourself and in the method that the Buddha has shown. (D-820107-1, 820109-5)
Happiness and power are what everyone hopes to achieve in life. This is the natural trend of human thinking. And happiness and power, too, are within the reach of any of you, only that they are limited, and that is how far you can get. Do not yearn for more than you can receive; do not expect a good life to always be with you. Because most people do not understand ‘contentedness’, they begin to suffer for want of more. (D-820105-4)
It is to be remembered by one and all that worship and prayers alone do not lead anyone to liberation. Knowing and doing are two separate aspects towards achieving the goal in life. One must act; one must work for salvation. Knowing the method is helpful, but only through true, dedicated cultivation in this and future lifetimes will one reach the final goal. (D-820102-2)