Thomas Merton Quotes

In this world, where everything happens so fast, it's hard to sit back, take the time and contemplate.

Reminding myself that listening is just as important a creative act as thinking is key for me.

What we lack is not so much leisure to do as time to reflect and time to feel. What we seldom "take" is time to experience the things that have happened, the things that are happening, the things that are still ahead of us.

The miracle of being able to pay attention to other people in your life, and the miracle of being in time, and to continue being in time.

We need time to dream, time to remember, and time to reach the infinite. Time to be.

You must treat the days respectfully, you must be a day yourself, and not interrogate it like a college professor.

Do not push so fast ahead, do slow down a bit! Otherwise you won't catch up with yourselves.

At a certain point, you say to the woods, to the sea, to the mountains, the world, Now I am ready. Now I will stop and be wholly attentive. You empty yourself and wait, listening.

Being in a hurry. Getting to the next thing without fully entering the thing in front of me. I cannot think of a single advantage I've ever gained from being in a hurry. But a thousand broken and missed things, tens of thousands, lie in the wake of all the rushing.... Through all that haste I thought I was making up time. It turns out I was throwing it away.

There is only now. And look! How rich we are in it!

Learn how to listen as things speak for themselves.

Always keep your ego in check and not be afraid to listen. Listening is a great art form.

It isn't necessary that you leave home. Sit at your desk and listen. Don't even listen, just wait. Don't wait, be still and alone. The whole world will offer itself to you.

I think people can find a breath and listen sometimes.

There is only one time that is important -- NOW! It is the most important time because it is the only time hat we have any power.

Limit time to the present. Meditate upon your last hour.

My ability to notice that kind of thing, the sanctity of the bubble that you create, has not been so good in a way, in that I notice it concurrently with actually doing the thing. I always notice it in retrospect.

All that you need is just to be silent and listen to existence.

I have always been fiery; I go after things. But what I learned from my mother is to step back and actually experience things that are happening. So for me, it's about meditating. My Everest is to have that become a real part of my life.

Listen widely to remove your doubts and be careful when speaking about the rest and your mistakes will be few.

If we only stopped to listen to them for a few minutes, kids could tell us that we move too fast, for their good and ours.

I did some years of therapy and self-realization, and I just move and think at a slower pace - doesn't make me sound very smart! But really not reacting and doing more listening than talking, and letting people say what they need to say, and then maybe not saying anything at all.

Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.

Take more time, cover less ground.

Without time for loss you don't have time for soul.