--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Leave your front door and your back door…" description: "\"Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your thoughts to come and go. Just don't serve them tea.\" — Shunryu Suzuki" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/shunryu-suzuki-1280_back-doors_leave-your-front-door-and-your-back-door_1255370.jpg" --- # Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your… ![“Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your thoughts to come and go. Just don't serve them tea.” quote by Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/shunryu-suzuki-1280_back-doors_leave-your-front-door-and-your-back-door_1255370.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/shunryu-suzuki-1280_back-doors_leave-your-front-door-and-your-back-door_1255370.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/aef/shunryu-suzuki-1280_back-doors_leave-your-front-door-and-your-back-door_1255370.jpg) > “Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your thoughts to come and go. Just don't serve them tea.” [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Allow thoughts to pass without attachment, like open doors, but don’t entertain them. **In simple terms:** Let thoughts flow, don’t feed them. Key Takeaway Practice mindful observation without engagement. Themes mindfulness impermanence mental freedom Mood calm thoughtful Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - meditation - stress relief - creative thinking Key Concepts Zen non‑attachment thought observation Questions to Reflect On - How do you notice thoughts without reacting? - What practices help you let go? A Different Perspective Thoughts can become overwhelming if nurtured. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Allow Thoughts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/allow-thoughts-1593001/) [Back doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-doors/) [Comes and goes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/comes-and-goes/) [Door Open](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/door-open-249243/) [Doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doors/) [Front door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/front-door/) [Front doors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/front-doors/) [Fronts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fronts/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Leave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leave/) [Leave Door](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/leave-door-254558/) [Serve Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/serve-tea-258962/) [Tea](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/tea/) ## Related quotes > [I don't think it's a very Christian thing to come in by the back door rather than the front door,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-abbott/i-don-t-think-it-s-a-very-christian-thing-to-come-in-by-the-back-door/) [Tony Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-abbott/) > [I shut the front door upon Christ and Einstein, and at the back door hold out a welcoming hand to little frogs and periwinkles.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-fort/i-shut-the-front-door-upon-christ-and-einstein-and-at-the-back-door/) [Charles Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-fort/) > [Mexico is the front door to South America - and the back door to the states.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tennessee-williams/mexico-is-the-front-door-to-south-america-and-the-back-door-to-the/) [Tennessee Williams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tennessee-williams/) > [It's not as if the stories merge to a point where you think they are your life, but you do let them in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tori-amos/it-s-not-as-if-the-stories-merge-to-a-point-where-you-think-they-are/) [Tori Amos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tori-amos/) > [If you're a star you go through the front door carrying the roses, instead of through the back door carrying the garbage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-stack/if-you-re-a-star-you-go-through-the-front-door-carrying-the-roses/) [Robert Stack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-stack/) > [We have to find the back door to peoples' hearts because the front door is heavily guarded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/we-have-to-find-the-back-door-to-peoples-hearts-because-the-front/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [When enthusiasm runs in the front door, worry runs out the back door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/napoleon-hill/when-enthusiasm-runs-in-the-front-door-worry-runs-out-the-back-door/) [Napoleon Hill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/napoleon-hill/) > [The discontent with the existing order of things pervaded the atmosphere, wherever the conditions were favorable, long before Columbus, seeking the back door of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-russell-lowell/the-discontent-with-the-existing-order-of-things-pervaded-the/) [James Russell Lowell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-russell-lowell/) > [“Human locks? Please," Tamani said. "May as well leave the door open.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aprilynne-pike/human-locks-please-tamani-said-may-as-well-leave-the-door-open/) [Aprilynne Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aprilynne-pike/) > [“I'd ask my parents to leave the door open just a little bit so I wouldn't be stuck in the prison of my bedroom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/caspar-vega/i-d-ask-my-parents-to-leave-the-door-open-just-a-little-bit-so-i/) [Caspar Vega](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/caspar-vega/) > [Leave the door open for the unknown, the door into the dark. That’s where the most important things come from, where you yourself came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/leave-the-door-open-for-the-unknown-the-door-into-the-dark-that-s/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [Leave my door open just a crack.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/owl-city/leave-my-door-open-just-a-crack/) [Owl City](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/owl-city/) > [“I was hoping you’d leave the back door open for me, I said as he turned around to bend over and pick up his…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-was-hoping-you-d-leave-the-back-door-open-for-me-i-said-as-he/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“So you’re going to ask Ress and Brullo to just leave a back door open so you can sneak in?” “Don’t be so simpleminded.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-j-maas/so-you-re-going-to-ask-ress-and-brullo-to-just-leave-a-back-door-open/) [Sarah J. Maas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-j-maas/) > [May as well leave the door open.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aprilynne-pike/may-as-well-leave-the-door-open/) [Aprilynne Pike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aprilynne-pike/) ## More by Shunryu Suzuki > [The point we emphasize is strong confidence in our original nature.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/the-point-we-emphasize-is-strong-confidence-in-our-original-nature/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [If you continue this simple practice every day, you will obtain some wonderful power. Before you attain it, it is something wonderful, but after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/if-you-continue-this-simple-practice-every-day-you-will-obtain-some/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [You want to eliminate your evil desires in order to reveal your Buddha nature, but where will you throw them away?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/you-want-to-eliminate-your-evil-desires-in-order-to-reveal-your/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [Ego is a social institution with no physical reality. The ego is simply your symbol of yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/ego-is-a-social-institution-with-no-physical-reality-the-ego-is/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [“In the beginner's mind there are many possibilities; in the experts mind, there are few.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/in-the-beginner-s-mind-there-are-many-possibilities-in-the-experts/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [The seed has no idea of being some particular plant, but it has its own form and is in perfect harmony with the ground,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/the-seed-has-no-idea-of-being-some-particular-plant-but-it-has-its/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [Whereever you are, you are one with the clouds and one with the sun and the stars you see. You are one with everything.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/whereever-you-are-you-are-one-with-the-clouds-and-one-with-the-sun/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [When we become truly ourselves, we just become a swinging door, and we are purely independent of, and at the same time, dependent upon…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/when-we-become-truly-ourselves-we-just-become-a-swinging-door-and-we/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [“Zen is not some fancy, special art of living. Our teaching is just to live, always in reality, in its exact sense. To make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/zen-is-not-some-fancy-special-art-of-living-our-teaching-is-just-to/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [So the secret is just to say 'Yes!' and jump off from here. Then there is no problem. It means to be yourself, always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/so-the-secret-is-just-to-say-yes-and-jump-off-from-here-then-there-is/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [Our tendency is to be interested in something that is growing in the garden, not in the bare soil itself. But if you want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/our-tendency-is-to-be-interested-in-something-that-is-growing-in-the/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [The world is its own magic.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/the-world-is-its-own-magic/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [People say that practicing Zen is difficult, but there is a misunderstanding as to why. It is not difficult because it is hard to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/people-say-that-practicing-zen-is-difficult-but-there-is-a/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [Each one of us must make his own true way, and when we do, that way will express the universal way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/each-one-of-us-must-make-his-own-true-way-and-when-we-do-that-way/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) > [The purpose of our practice is just to be yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shunryu-suzuki/the-purpose-of-our-practice-is-just-to-be-yourself/) [Shunryu Suzuki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) [Explore all 262 Shunryu Suzuki quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shunryu-suzuki/) ## More Back doors quotes > [Being a Catholic, I was drawn to the mystery of the Latin and the smoke and the mirrors and all of that. That part…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-sarandon/being-a-catholic-i-was-drawn-to-the-mystery-of-the-latin-and-the/) [Susan Sarandon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-sarandon/) > [I don't think it's a very Christian thing to come in by the back door rather than the front door,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-abbott/i-don-t-think-it-s-a-very-christian-thing-to-come-in-by-the-back-door/) [Tony Abbott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-abbott/) > [Last night we had three small zucchini for dinner that were grown within fifty feet of our back door. I estimate they cost somewhere…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-rooney/last-night-we-had-three-small-zucchini-for-dinner-that-were-grown/) [Andy Rooney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-rooney/) > ["Compromise" means giving up more than the other side is big enough to take; if and when they have the muscle, they'll be back…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neal-knox/compromise-means-giving-up-more-than-the-other-side-is-big-enough-to/) [Neal Knox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neal-knox/) > [If the wolf had ever come to our back door, he'd have had to bring a picnic lunch.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-anderson/if-the-wolf-had-ever-come-to-our-back-door-he-d-have-had-to-bring-a/) [Bill Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-anderson/) > [The Government have consistently made it clear that the mechanism in the United Kingdom whereby the European draft constitutional treaty could be implemented is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-alexander/the-government-have-consistently-made-it-clear-that-the-mechanism-in/) [Douglas Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-alexander/) > [To fight oppression, and to work as best we can for a sane organization of society, we do not have to abandon the state…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-dos-passos/to-fight-oppression-and-to-work-as-best-we-can-for-a-sane/) [John Dos Passos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-dos-passos/) > [I don't know if I call myself a poet or not. I would like to, but I'm not really qualified to make that decision,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-dylan/i-don-t-know-if-i-call-myself-a-poet-or-not-i-would-like-to-but-i-m/) [Bob Dylan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-dylan/) > [Fiction allows for moral questioning, but through the back door. Personally, I like books that make you think - books you're still wondering about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodi-picoult/fiction-allows-for-moral-questioning-but-through-the-back-door/) [Jodi Picoult](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodi-picoult/) > [Comedy's been really liberating for me because I've been able to sneak the singing part in through the back door.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ana-gasteyer/comedy-s-been-really-liberating-for-me-because-i-ve-been-able-to/) [Ana Gasteyer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ana-gasteyer/) > [Sneaking out the back door to hand out with those hoodlum friends of mine.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stevie-wonder/sneaking-out-the-back-door-to-hand-out-with-those-hoodlum-friends-of/) [Stevie Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stevie-wonder/) > [marrows - alas! - are arriving in a steady stream at the back door. ... Oddly enough, the majority of people who grow them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miss-read/marrows-alas-are-arriving-in-a-steady-stream-at-the-back-door-oddly/) [Miss Read](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miss-read/) > [In regard to tenacity of life, no old yellow cat has anything on a prejudice. You may kill it with your own hands, bury…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nellie-l-mcclung/in-regard-to-tenacity-of-life-no-old-yellow-cat-has-anything-on-a/) [Nellie L. McClung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nellie-l-mcclung/) > [I'm also conscious of what this confidence that has been placed in me means. I'm going to the Games through the back door but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-boukpeti/i-m-also-conscious-of-what-this-confidence-that-has-been-placed-in-me/) [Benjamin Boukpeti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-boukpeti/) > [ We both \[with Alixandra Kolesky MacKenzie\] got into ceramics, you might say, by the back door. Looking back on it, I think this was… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-mackenzie/we-both-with-alixandra-kolesky-mackenzie-got-into-ceramics-you-might/) [Warren MacKenzie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-mackenzie/) [Browse all 58 Back doors quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/back-doors/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Leave your front door and your back door open. Allow your thoughts to come and go. 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