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Pema Chodron Quotes - Page 4

All Quotes Acceptance Acting Addiction Appreciation Attitude Awakening Awareness Belief Bravery Buddhism Certainty Challenges Change Character Children Choices Clarity Commitment Compassion Confusion Curiosity Desire Determination Disappointment Drama Earth Ego Empathy Energy Enlightenment Experience Fear Feelings Finding Yourself Freedom Giving Giving Up Grief Happiness Healing Heart Honesty Humanity Hurt Identity Ignorance Insecurity Inspirational Inspiring Journey Joy Justice Karma Kindness Learning Letting Go Life Loneliness Meditation Mindfulness Opportunity Pain Peace Peace Of Mind Perfection Perspective Pleasure Prejudice Quality Reality Resentment Revenge Running Sadness Sleep Sorrow Spirituality Struggle Suffering Teaching Train Training Understanding Waiting Warrior Water Wisdom

Sticking with that uncertainty, getting the knack of relaxing in the midst of chaos, learning not to panic-this is the spiritual path.

Sticking with that uncertainty, getting the knack of relaxing in the midst of chaos, learning not to panic-this is the spiritual path.

Spiritual, Knack, Panic

Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.14, Shambhala Publications

In order to have compassion for others, we have to have compassion for ourselves.

Compassion, Order, Compassion For Others

The best spiritual instruction is when you wake up in the morning and say, 'I wonder what's going to happen today.' And then carry that kind of curiosity through your life.

Spiritual, Morning, Curiosity

Rather than going after our walls and barriers with a sledgehammer, we pay attention to them. With gentleness and honesty, we move closer to those walls. We touch them and smell them and get to know them well. We begin a process of acknowledging our aversions and our cravings. We become familiar with the strategies and beliefs we use to build the walls: What are the stories I tell myself? What repels me and what attracts me? We start to get curious about what’s going on.

Wall, Honesty, Moving

Every moment is unique, unknown, completely fresh.

Unique, Moments

Pema Chodron (2002). “The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times”, p.27, Shambhala Publications

When things fall apart in your life, you feel as if your whole world is crumbling. But actually it’s your fixed identity that’s crumbling. And as Chögyam Trungpa used to tell us, that’s cause for celebration.

Fall, Identity, Crumbling

Pema Chodron (2012). “Living Beautifully: with Uncertainty and Change”, p.8, Shambhala Publications

When you begin to touch your heart or let your heart be touched, you begin to discover that it's bottomless.

Soulmate, Heart, Opening Our Hearts

Pema Chodron (2001). “Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living”, p.128, Shambhala Publications

Anyone who stands on the edge of the unknown, fully in the present without reference point, experiences groundlessness. That's when our understanding goes deeper, when we find that the present moment is a pretty vulnerable place and that this can be completely unnerving and completely tender at the same time.

Understanding, Vulnerable, Moments

Pema Chodron (2003). “Comfortable with Uncertainty: 108 Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion”, p.91, Shambhala Publications

Since death is certain and the time of death is uncertain, what is the most important thing?

Important, Uncertain, Certain

To stay with that shakiness-to stay with a broken heart, with a rumbling stomach, with the feeling of hopelessness and wanting to get revenge-that is the path of true awakening. Sticking with that uncertainty, getting the knack of relaxing in the midst of chaos, learning not to panic-this is the spiritual path.

Broken Heart, Spiritual, Buddhist

Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.14, Shambhala Publications

We work on ourselves in order to help others, but also we help others in order to work on ourselves.

Inspirational, Spiritual, Peace

Pema Chodron (2008). “The Pocket Pema Chodron”, p.78, Shambhala Publications

It's a transformative experience to simply pause instead of immediately filling up space.

Filling Up, Space, Spaciousness

Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.46, Shambhala Publications

It's hard to know whether to laugh or to cry at the human predicament. Here we are with so much wisdom and tenderness, and—without even knowing it—we cover it over to protect ourselves from insecurity. Although we have the potential to experience the freedom of a butterfly, we mysteriously prefer the small and fearful cocoon of ego.

Butterfly, Knowing, Laughing

Pema Chodron (2002). “The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times”, p.12, Shambhala Publications

Learning how to be kind to ourselves, learning how to respect ourselves, is important. The reason it's important is that, fundamentally, when we look into our own hearts and begin to discover what is confused and what is brilliant, what is bitter and what is sweet, it isn't just ourselves that we're discovering. We're discovering the universe.

Inspirational, Life, Spiritual

Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.98, Shambhala Publications

The future is completely open and we are writing it moment to moment.

Writing, Live In The Moment, Moments

Welcome the present moment as if you had invited it. Why? Because it is all we ever have.

Acceptance, Curiosity, Welcome

To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest. To live fully is to be always in no-man's-land, to experience each moment as completely new and fresh. To live is to be willing to die over and over again.

Men, Land, Alive

Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.93, Shambhala Publications

Clarity and decisiveness come from the willingness to slow down, to listen to and look at what’s happening.

Looks, Clarity, Slow Down

Pema Chodron (2001). “Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living”, p.184, Shambhala Publications

The treasure we seek requires no lengthy expedition, no expensive equipment, no superior aptitude or special company. All we lack is the willingness to imagine that we already have everything we need. The only thing missing is our consent to be where we are.

Needs

"An Altar in the World: Finding the sacred beneath our feet". Book by Barbara Brown Taylor, 2009.

Never underestimate the power of compassionately recognizing what's going on.

Underestimate, Recognizing, Never Underestimate

Pema Chodron (2002). “The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times”, p.48, Shambhala Publications

If we want there to be peace in the world, we have to be brave enough to soften what is rigid in our hearts, to find the soft spot and stay with it. We have to have that kind of courage and take that kind of responsibility. That’s the true practice of peace.

Heart, Responsibility, Practice

If you follow your heart, you're going to find that it is often extremely inconvenient.

Heart, Follow Your Heart, Ifs

Pema Chodron (2001). “The Wisdom of No Escape: And the Path of Loving Kindness”, p.123, Shambhala Publications

Although it is embarrassing and painful, it is very healing to stop hiding from yourself. It is healing to know all the ways that you’re sneaky, all the ways that you hide out, all the ways that you shut down, deny, close off, criticize people, all your weird little ways. You can know all of that with some sense of humor and kindness. By knowing yourself, you’re coming to know humanness altogether. We are all up against these things. We are all in this together.

Kindness, Healing, Knowing

All the terrible things we do to ourselves and others from alcoholism to character assignation to abuse to murder come from one cause: the inability to stay present with an uncomfortable feeling in the body and seek short-term relief.

Philosophy, Character, Medicine

Some of us can accept others right where they are a lot more easily than we can accept ourselves. We feel that compassion is reserved for someone else, and it never occurs to us to feel it for ourselves. My experience is that by practicing without 'shoulds,' we gradually discover our wakefulness and our confidence. Gradually, without any agenda except to be honest and kind, we assume responsibility for being here in this unpredictable world, in this unique moment, in this precious human body.

Responsibility, Unique, Compassion

Pema Chodron (2000). “When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times”, p.182, Shambhala Publications

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