I recently began reading Pema Chodron's books and wondered if anyone else out there has read any of her books. I love the peacefulness and introspection aspects of Eastern philosphies. There seems a lot to learn from them, things that benefit the person and that is where goodwill, acceptance, kindness, generosity.. all those good things come from that make the world a kinder gentler place.

Have you read this author? Or, are there similar authors you like to read that you would want to share?

[Rapunzel]

I have read only a little of her work. I went to a meditation class where her work was read, and listened to a book that summarized many religious books and told about who the authors are and how they lived their lives, and hers was included. I would like to read more, as I did like what she had to say. It makes sense.

[spiritual_emergency]

Re: Pema Chodron

I'm very fond of her. I believe the first book of hers I came across was The Places that Scare You closely followed by When Things Fall Apart. Both books were very pertinent, very meaningful to me and where I was at, at that time. I especially appreciated Pema's direct yet down-to-earth conversational style.

The featured link in my profile leads to an article by Pema Chodron related to tonglen practice -- a very simple meditation practice that I recommend to others as a method of pain relief. I also have a small collection of her links at the bottom of this blog entry: Spirituality & Trauma. The mere fact that those links appear on that entry serve as my personal endorsement that I found the works of Pema Chodron to be very helpful during a very difficult period of my life. Here's a brief excerpt from one of those articles...

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<font color="purple">Fearlessness in Difficult Times: An enlightened way to cope with fear requires awakening to courage, love, and compassion.

By Pema Chödrön

When I was about six years old I received the essential bodhichitta teaching from an old woman sitting in the sun. I was walking by her house one day feeling lonely, unloved, and mad, kicking anything I could find. Laughing, she said to me, "Little girl, don't you go letting life harden your heart." Right there, I received this pith instruction: We can let the circumstances of our lives harden us so that we become increasingly resentful and afraid, or we can let them soften us and make us kinder and more open to what scares us. We always have this choice. If we were to ask the Buddha, "What is bodhichitta?" he might tell us that this word is easier to understand than to translate. He might encourage us to seek out ways to find its meaning in our own lives. He might tantalize us by adding that it is only bodhichitta that heals, that bodhichitta is capable of transforming the hardest of hearts and the most prejudiced and fearful of minds.

Chitta means "mind" and also "heart" or "attitude." Bodhi means "awake," "enlightened," or "completely open." Sometimes the completely open heart and mind of bodhichitta is called the soft spot, a place as vulnerable and tender as an open wound. It is equated, in part, with our ability to love. Even the most vicious animals love their offspring. As Trungpa Rinpoche put it, "Everybody loves something, even if it's only tortillas."

Bodhichitta is also equated, in part, with compassion--our ability to feel the pain that we share with others. Without realizing it, we continually shield ourselves from this pain because it scares us. We put up protective walls made of opinions, prejudices, and strategies, barriers that are built on a deep fear of being hurt. These walls are further fortified by emotions of all kinds: anger, craving, indifference, jealousy and envy, arrogance and pride. But fortunately for us, the soft spot--our innate ability to love and to care about things--is like a crack in these walls we erect. It's a natural opening in the barriers we create when we're afraid. With practice we can learn to find this opening. We can learn to seize that vulnerable moment--love, gratitude, loneliness, embarrassment, inadequacy--to awaken bodhichitta.

Source: Fearlessness in Difficult Times</font>


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She is relaxing to read. Simple, humorous. I'm really enjoying the current book and looking forward to trying the meditation.

Hi. I like some of the simpler things too. Like when she talks about 'reaching our limits' she talks about an aunt who 'reaches her limit when I move a lamp in her living room'. Funny!

[mlyn]

The peace is from within not with a name or being. It is way beond anything anyone can imagine or put into words all though we try. Is why it is written to trust in no man. And I wonder why my doubt?!

Hi mlyn, yes the peace (and happiness and contentedness...) are within and that is why I like reading this author.