--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Sanity and enlightenment...I've been…" description: "\"Sanity and enlightenment...I've been reading a new book Dogen's Genjo Koan: Three Commentaries, and it contains a commentary on Genjo Koan by Shunryu S..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/brad-warner-3919_beginners_sanity-and-enlightenment-i-ve-been-readi_445342.png" --- # Sanity and enlightenment...I've been reading a new book… ![“Sanity and enlightenment...I've been reading a new book Dogen's Genjo Koan: Three Commentaries, and it contains a commentary on Genjo Koan by Shunryu Suzuki, the author who wrote Zen Mind, Beginners Mind. He doesn't mention sanity at all but I think that one possible definition of enlightenment…” quote by Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/brad-warner-3919_beginners_sanity-and-enlightenment-i-ve-been-readi_445342.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/brad-warner-3919_beginners_sanity-and-enlightenment-i-ve-been-readi_445342.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/66f/brad-warner-3919_beginners_sanity-and-enlightenment-i-ve-been-readi_445342.png) > “Sanity and enlightenment...I've been reading a new book Dogen's Genjo Koan: Three Commentaries, and it contains a commentary on Genjo Koan by Shunryu Suzuki, the author who wrote Zen Mind, Beginners Mind. He doesn't mention sanity at all but I think that one possible definition of enlightenment would be a kind of profound sanity, where being insane is no longer an option.” [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Enlightenment can be seen as a deep mental stability where irrationality loses its grip. **In simple terms:** Enlightenment is profound sanity. Key Takeaway Cultivate mental clarity and balance. Themes mindfulness sanity enlightenment psychology spirituality Mood contemplative serene Type philosophical spiritual When to use this quote - Meditation practice - therapy sessions - spiritual retreats - stressful decision making Key Concepts Zen Buddhism psychological stability philosophical insight Questions to Reflect On - How does mental stability influence spiritual insight? - Can one be enlightened without feeling sane? A Different Perspective Sanity alone may not guarantee enlightenment; other factors matter. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beginners](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginners/) [Book](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/book/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Buddhism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/buddhism/) [Commentary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/commentary/) [Definitions](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/definitions/) [Enlightenment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enlightenment/) [Enlightenment Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/enlightenment-kind-3896880/) [Insane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/insane/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Mind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mind/) [New books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new-books/) [Profound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/profound/) [Reading](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reading/) [Sanity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanity/) [Sanity Enlightenment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanity-enlightenment-3685635/) [Sanity Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sanity-think-1045096/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/shunryu-suzuki-224220/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Three](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/three/) [Would be](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/would-be/) ## Related quotes > [There's also something that is often mistaken for enlightenment which is a kind of insanity. Often, people will have some kind of weird experience…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/there-s-also-something-that-is-often-mistaken-for-enlightenment-which/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [If we really prefer basic sanity or enlightenment, it's irritatingly possible to get into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chogyam-trungpa/if-we-really-prefer-basic-sanity-or-enlightenment-it-s-irritatingly/) [Chogyam Trungpa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chogyam-trungpa/) > [I'm very much an Enlightenment kind of guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmy-wales/i-m-very-much-an-enlightenment-kind-of-guy/) [Jimmy Wales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmy-wales/) > [“Sometimes you have to go a little crazy before you can find sanity. I think I'm close.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tawny-lara/sometimes-you-have-to-go-a-little-crazy-before-you-can-find-sanity-i/) [Tawny Lara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tawny-lara/) > [“MOST OF US make a basic and reasonable assumption about sanity: we think it produces good results, and we believe insanity is a problem.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassir-ghaemi/most-of-us-make-a-basic-and-reasonable-assumption-about-sanity-we/) [Nassir Ghaemi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassir-ghaemi/) > [We are so accustomed to the apparently rational nature of our world that we can scarcely imagine anything happening that cannot be explained by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/we-are-so-accustomed-to-the-apparently-rational-nature-of-our-world/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [Every time I start on a new book, I am a beginner again. I doubt myself, I grow discouraged, all the work accomplished in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simone-de-beauvoir/every-time-i-start-on-a-new-book-i-am-a-beginner-again-i-doubt-myself/) [Simone de Beauvoir](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simone-de-beauvoir/) > [“Life is like stepping into a boat that is about to sail out to sea and sink. —SHUNRYU SUZUKI ROSHI A”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/life-is-like-stepping-into-a-boat-that-is-about-to-sail-out-to-sea-2/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“I look over at my hero shelf and see Philip Levine, Rainer Maria Rilke, Virginia Woolf, Shunryu Suzuki, Adrienne Rich, Pablo Neruda, Subcomandante Marcos,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/i-look-over-at-my-hero-shelf-and-see-philip-levine-rainer-maria-rilke/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [“Many experts lose the creativity and imagination of the less informed. They are so intimately familiar with known patterns that they may fail to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-de-becker/many-experts-lose-the-creativity-and-imagination-of-the-less-informed/) [Gavin de Becker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-de-becker/) > [Tai Shimano visited Shunryu Suzuki. "How are you feeling these days?" Suzuki replied, "They have a new name for me: Cancer!"](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/tai-shimano-visited-shunryu-suzuki-how-are-you-feeling-these-days/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [“Zen teacher Lewis Richmond tells the story of hearing Shunryu Suzuki sum up Buddhism in two words. Suzuki had just finished giving a talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-jackson/zen-teacher-lewis-richmond-tells-the-story-of-hearing-shunryu-suzuki/) [Phil Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-jackson/) > [Some writers are writing one great, big book and just taking all these different avenues towards it. They might seem on the outside to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chang-rae-lee/some-writers-are-writing-one-great-big-book-and-just-taking-all-these/) [Chang-Rae Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chang-rae-lee/) > [According to a new book coming out by a Pulitzer Prize-winning author, apparently when he was in high school, President Obama smoked large amounts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-leno/according-to-a-new-book-coming-out-by-a-pulitzer-prize-winning-author/) [Jay Leno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-leno/) > [There is something incomparably thrilling in first opening a brand new book.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evelyn-waugh/there-is-something-incomparably-thrilling-in-first-opening-a-brand/) [Evelyn Waugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evelyn-waugh/) ## More by Brad Warner > [One of the things I regret about not putting in that book or I think it's there but I didn't really elaborate on it,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/one-of-the-things-i-regret-about-not-putting-in-that-book-or-i-think/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [The real goal of Zen is to find a way of life that's easy and undramatic. Strong attachments lead to upset and drama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/the-real-goal-of-zen-is-to-find-a-way-of-life-that-s-easy-and/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [ If he'd \[Jesus\] been a little more concerned for his own safety and well being he may have toned things down a little bit… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/if-he-d-jesus-been-a-little-more-concerned-for-his-own-safety-and/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [ So he \[Shoko Asahara\] was insane but managed to convince a couple thousand people that he was enlightened. Western culture, which Japan is now… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/so-he-shoko-asahara-was-insane-but-managed-to-convince-a-couple/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [I was living in Japan at the time, Shoko Asahara was an important figure and you could say his name and people would immediately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/i-was-living-in-japan-at-the-time-shoko-asahara-was-an-important/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [So that's Godzilla, he's ultimately going to get you regardless of what you do. Maybe the people who made the American Godzilla film were…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/so-that-s-godzilla-he-s-ultimately-going-to-get-you-regardless-of/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [We always imagine that there's got to be somewhere else better than where we are right now; this is the Great Somewhere Else we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/we-always-imagine-that-there-s-got-to-be-somewhere-else-better-than/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [“Thus a person can be a Buddha one minute and a jackass three minutes later. You don't just become Buddha at the moment of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/thus-a-person-can-be-a-buddha-one-minute-and-a-jackass-three-minutes/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [“It’s hard for most of us to admit, but when you start paying attention you’ll notice that you actually enjoy being angry. There’s this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/it-s-hard-for-most-of-us-to-admit-but-when-you-start-paying-attention/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [I really thought Reagan was going to push the button and blow us all up. It was scary. So when they did the 1998…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/i-really-thought-reagan-was-going-to-push-the-button-and-blow-us-all/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [“This world is better than Utopia because - and follow this point carefully - you can never live in Utopia . Utopia is always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/this-world-is-better-than-utopia-because-and-follow-this-point/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [The state of ambiguity - that messy, greasy, mixed-up, confused, and awful situation you're living through right now - is enlightenment itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/the-state-of-ambiguity-that-messy-greasy-mixed-up-confused-and-awful/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [Truly compassionate action arises spontaneously without thought and is carried out in real action with no anticipation of reward and, indeed, no concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/truly-compassionate-action-arises-spontaneously-without-thought-and/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [Buddha might be the one thing that could settle Godzilla down. He might say, "Listen Godzilla, you don't have to do all this. Just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/buddha-might-be-the-one-thing-that-could-settle-godzilla-down-he/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) > [It's sort of another innovation, probably a good innovation, of Western culture to separate the ideas between science and philosophy, but it's important to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-warner/it-s-sort-of-another-innovation-probably-a-good-innovation-of-western/) [Brad Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) [Explore all 119 Brad Warner quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-warner/) ## More Beginners quotes > [The whole secret to mastering the game of golf - and this applies to the beginner as well as the pro - is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-palmer/the-whole-secret-to-mastering-the-game-of-golf-and-this-applies-to/) [Arnold Palmer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-palmer/) > [“Personally, I believe in tools that close the gap between professionals and beginners, understanding that — push comes to shove — this is a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-busche/personally-i-believe-in-tools-that-close-the-gap-between/) [Laura Busche](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-busche/) > [Readers take in dialogue one thought at a time. A frequent mistake of beginners is to combine thoughts, which may be suitable for other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-stein/readers-take-in-dialogue-one-thought-at-a-time-a-frequent-mistake-of/) [Sol Stein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sol-stein/) > [Mr. Presley has no discernible singing ability. His specialty is rhythm songs which he renders in an undistinguished whine; his phrasing, if it can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-gould/mr-presley-has-no-discernible-singing-ability-his-specialty-is-rhythm/) [Jack Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-gould/) > [There never was a winner, who wasn't a beginner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-waitley/there-never-was-a-winner-who-wasn-t-a-beginner/) [Denis Waitley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-waitley/) > [If the angel deigns to come it will be because you have convinced her, not by tears but by your humble resolve to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rainer-maria-rilke/if-the-angel-deigns-to-come-it-will-be-because-you-have-convinced-her/) [Rainer Maria Rilke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rainer-maria-rilke/) > [I know now that everybody in the arts is forever a beginner. Experience counts for a great deal and very little. Every night onstage…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-rivers/i-know-now-that-everybody-in-the-arts-is-forever-a-beginner/) [Joan Rivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joan-rivers/) > [Starting out in a beginner class and really understanding the fundamentals of yoga is really important.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mariel-hemingway/starting-out-in-a-beginner-class-and-really-understanding-the/) [Mariel Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mariel-hemingway/) > [I thought yoga was easy - I went out and I bought a yoga video tape. I bought the beginners' yoga tape. I couldn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-regan/i-thought-yoga-was-easy-i-went-out-and-i-bought-a-yoga-video-tape-i/) [Brian Regan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-regan/) > [Amateurs look for challenges; professionals look for easy trades. Losers get high from the action; the pros look for the best odds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-elder/amateurs-look-for-challenges-professionals-look-for-easy-trades/) [Alexander Elder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-elder/) > [A fiery, good beginner always stands higher than a master in mediocrity...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-schumann/a-fiery-good-beginner-always-stands-higher-than-a-master-in-mediocrity/) [Robert Schumann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-schumann/) > [Indeed, being a beginner is very difficult right now. Book publishers are in a crisis, sales are dwindling, and publishing houses are losing money,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sergei-lukyanenko/indeed-being-a-beginner-is-very-difficult-right-now-book-publishers/) [Sergei Lukyanenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sergei-lukyanenko/) > [Beginners must master low stance and posture, natural body positions are for the advanced.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gichin-funakoshi/beginners-must-master-low-stance-and-posture-natural-body-positions/) [Gichin Funakoshi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gichin-funakoshi/) > [If he ever had a bright idea it would be beginner's luck.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-lashner/if-he-ever-had-a-bright-idea-it-would-be-beginner-s-luck/) [William Lashner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-lashner/) > [I would not be happy if I could not become a monk. They call it the beginner's mind - the deep intention, the deepest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/i-would-not-be-happy-if-i-could-not-become-a-monk-they-call-it-the/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) [Browse all 220 Beginners quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beginners/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Sanity and enlightenment...I've been reading a new book Dogen's Genjo Koan: Three Commentaries, and it contains a commentary on Genjo Koan by Shunryu Suzuki, the author who wrote Zen Mind, Beginners Mind. 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