Zen Quotes on Patience
11 real, sourced lines — every attribution checked
Patience, in Zen, is not gritted teeth — it is trusting the pace of things you cannot rush. Lines for the seasons that take their time.
The quotes
“When you plant lettuce, if it does not grow well, you don't blame the lettuce.”
“When you walk in the mist, you get wet without knowing it.”
— Dogen
“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know.”
“Patience is not learned in safety.”
“If you continue this simple practice every day, you will obtain a wonderful power.”
“After you have practiced for a while, you will realize that it is not possible to make rapid, extraordinary progress.”
“So even if the hot loneliness is there, and for 1.6 seconds we sit with that restlessness when yesterday we couldn't sit for even one, that's the journey of the warrior.”
“Sitting quietly, doing nothing, spring comes, and the grass grows by itself.”
“One moment of patience may ward off great disaster. One moment of impatience may ruin a whole life.”
— Traditional Zen
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
— Traditional Zen
“Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear.”
— Traditional Zen
More themes
Letting GoImpermanence & Changethe Present MomentInner PeaceStillness & SilenceAcceptanceAll themes →
One teaching like this each morning — and Mu, a companion who remembers your path.
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