Three days of practicing the mind becomes a treasure for a thousand years; an object coveted for a hundred years becomes dust in a single morning. The study of any science has limits to its use, but if you learn how to make the mind function, this study can be utilized without a moment’s interruption. Therefore, mind practice becomes the basis for all other studies.

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Those who have made a great vow to the great Way should not hope to accomplish it quickly. With quick steps one cannot walk a long distance; with an impatient mind one cannot achieve the great Way. That tall tree is the result of a small shoot growing for many years without decaying; Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are the result of accumulating merits over a long period of time without going back on their original vow.

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An authentic person’s mind is free from pretense, so everything one does proves genuine. A sage’s mind is free from mutual harm, so everything one does proves virtuous. Therefore, an authentic person’s mind is always upright and thus free from perversity; a sage’s mind is always serene and thus free from distress.

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Nature is the original substance. Spirit is a function of nature; spirit is almost identical with nature but the former contains numinous awareness. Mind is the discriminatory aspect of spirit. The will appears in the mind; the will is that to which the mind moves.