Pema Chodron
Pema Chodron
Pema Chödrönis an American, Tibetan Buddhist. She is an ordained nun, acharya and disciple of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. Chodron has written several books and is the director of the Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia, Canada...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionClergyman
Date of Birth14 July 1936
CountryUnited States of America
begins clearly closing darkness illuminate itself longer meditation shut
What's encouraging about meditation is that even if we shut down, we can no longer shut down in ignorance. We see very clearly that we're closing off. That in itself begins to illuminate the darkness of ignorance.
emotional meditation reactions
The more we witness our emotional reactions and understand how they work, the easier it is to refrain.
letting-go old-habits meditation
It is only when we begin to relax with ourselves that meditation becomes a transformative process. Only when we relate with ourselves without moralizing, without harshness, without deception, can we let go of harmful patterns. Without maitri (metta), renunciation of old habits becomes abusive. This is an important point.
spiritual self meditation-practice
Meditation is not a matter of trying to achieve ecstasy, spiritual bliss, or tranquillity, nor is it attempting to become a better person. It is simply the creation of a space in which we are able to expose and undo our neurotic games, our self-deceptions, our hidden fears and hopes.
meditation awake our-lives
We don’t sit in meditation to become good meditators. We sit in meditation so that we’ll be more awake in our lives.
moving giving meditation
Sitting meditation gives us a way to move closer to our thoughts and emotions and to get in touch with our bodies.
long meditation way
In meditation, you learn how to get out of your own way long enough for there to be room for your wisdom to manifest
meditation achieve something-better
Meditation is not about getting out of ourselves or achieving something better. It is about getting in touch with what you already are.
meditation everyday patterns
Meditation isn't really about getting rid of thoughts, it's about changing the pattern of grasping on to things, which in our everyday experience is our thoughts.
crazy meditation joy
The mind is very wild. The human experience is full of unpredictability and paradox, joys and sorrows, successes and failures. We can't escape any of these experiences in the vast terrain of our existence. It is part of what makes life grand-and it is also why our minds take us on such a crazy ride. If we can train ourselves through meditation to be more open and more accepting toward the wild arc of our experience, if we can lean into the difficulties of life and the ride of our minds, we can become more settled and relaxed amid whatever life brings us.
buddhist ignorance meditation-practice
What's encouraging about meditation is that, even if we shut down, we can no longer shut down in ignorance. We see very clearly that we're closing off. That in itself begins to illuminate the darkness of ignorance.
wisdom meditation-practice helpful
It's helpful to remind yourself that meditation is about opening and relaxing with whatever arises, without picking and choosing.
opposites meditation trying
In practicing meditation, we're not trying to live up to some kind of ideal -- quite the opposite. We're just being with our experience, whatever it is.
meditation-practice meditation-and-yoga trying
Meditation practice isn't about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better. It's about befriending who we are already.