Product Description

With war and violence flaring  all over the world, many of us are left feeling vulnerable and utterly helpless. In this book Pema Chödrön draws on Buddhist teachings to explore the origins of aggression, hatred, and war, explaining that they lie nowhere but within our own hearts and minds. She goes on to explain that the way in which we as individuals respond to challenges in our everyday lives can either perpetuate a culture of violence or create a new culture of compassion.

"War and peace begin in the hearts of individuals," declares Pema Chödrön at the opening of this inspiring and accessible book. She goes on to offer practical techniques any of us can use to work for peace in our own lives, at the level of our habits of thought and action. It's never too late, she tells us, to look within and discover a new way of living and transform not only our personal lives but our whole world.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #472430 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-29
• Released on: 2006-08-29
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 128 pages

From Publishers Weekly
This gifty little book by the American Buddhist nun Chödrön is a solid reinforcement of what she has been saying for many years and in many books. Here, her focus is on the relationship between aggression within and the aggression that fuels war. Chödrön begins with some disquieting observations, such as that we can all be fundamentalists—that is, self-righteous and closed-minded—and that peace demonstrators are not terribly peaceful. Like other Buddhist teachers on the subject of political action, she sees a direct connection between what is in the heart and expressed in outward actions. She teaches how to stop the reflexive and habitual emotional reaction to perceived hostility through patience, pausing, breathing. It's not easy, but it is simple. Chödrön is also provocative: insecurity has a positive function, she suggests, so don't run away from it. Some of what this skillful teacher says is almost too simple or underexplained, which can happen when a talk becomes a book, as is the case here. "Don't spin off" is a condensed instruction that is a little too condensed. While it may intrigue beginners, this book will be a better gift for those who are already familiar with Chödrön's body of work. (Sept. 5)
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About the Author
Pema Chödrön is an American Buddhist nun in the lineage of Chögyam Trungpa. She is resident teacher at Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia, the first Tibetan monastery in North America established for Westerners. She is also the author of many books and audiobooks, including the best-selling When Things Fall Apart and Don't Bite the Hook.

Customer Reviews

Let There be Peace ... And Let It Begin With Me
This is not a long read, but it takes time to go through it.

In a veryto-the-point manner, Chodron explains how the seeds of peace and war start with the individual reaction to life situations. We have the choice to effect others by our reaction to potentially violent situations. We can choose to get angry when someone cuts off off, or we can continue on our way. Like the inmate in San Quentin, we can take out our frustrations on a sea gull blown in by a storm or we can tell the crowd to back off because "the bird has my wings."

For therapists who use cognitive behavior therephy, the third chapter is the best description of how to engage cognitive thinking when faced with a situation which can trigger a patterned response.

A book that will linger with you long after reading. Get 2 copies. You will want to pass it along to a friend. Once you do, it will be sent out never to return!

Practicing Peace
Love this tiny book, which fits in my purse. I can refer to it when I'm running errands. I am becoming aware of how powerful my ego is. I am "awakening" slowly and it helps me get my head around this ego issue and how detramental ego is to me, personally.

A little classic of straight-talking compassion
Choderon's books keep getting shorter and clearer. Here she gives a little classic of straight-talking compassion. In a world obsessed with finding security she speaks of living with "positive insecurity". In a simple, honest way she demonstrates how to culivate our own peace step by step, and why it matters so much:

"If we arn't training inch by inch, one moment at a time, in overcoming our fear of pain, then we'll be very limited in how much we can help. We'll be limited in helping ourselves, and limited in helping anyone else. So, let's start with ourselves just as we are, here and now." (p. 78)