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: #481856 in Books
• Published on: 2006-08-29
• Released on: 2006-08-29
• Original language: English
• 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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Review
“A solid reinforcement on how to stop the reflexive and habitual emotional reaction to perceived hostility through patience, pausing, and breathing. It’s not easy, but it is simple.”—Publishers Weekly

“In her timely new book, Pema Chödrön offers her insights on the origins of world conflict. Anger originates in our own hearts, she asserts, not on the battlefield. Only by checking our aggression on a personal level can we hope to sow the seeds of peace.”—Body & Soul 



"Pema Chödrön's writings have been helpful to countless people trying to find some ground for their being in this chaotic world."—Bill Moyers

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

The courage to just be
This small book (95 small format pages of text) reflects Pema's prior works. It contains 6 of her lectures edited by Sandy Boucher (author of "Dancing in the Dharma" & "Turning the Wheel"). The chapter titles are provocative (e.g. "Compassionate Abiding & Positive Insecurity"), but the Table of Contents is numbered incorrectly (the small Roman numerals in the T of C are Arabic numbered in the book so each chapter is low by 14 pages in the T of C). As in other books, Pema provides valuable Jarvis Masters' stories from San Quentin, lojong mind training principles (see "Start Where You Are"), & Shenpa or emotional attachment (see "Getting Unstuck" CD set). Her main premises here are that individuals create culture & karma: to change them, change yourself (not unique to Pema), & that mindfulness helps us catch habitual patterns of emotional reaction (often centered on a personal history of attachment & pain avoidance) before they manifest--allowing one to act differently in the present & future. But to succeed one needs patience & fearlessness--p. 44: "learning to sit still with the edginess of the discomforting energy." This is consistent with Frank Herbert's "Dune"--"Bene Gesserit Litany Against Fear:

I must not fear. Fear is the mind killer. Fear is the little death that brings total obliteration. I will face my fear. I will permit it to pass over me & through me. And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path. Where the fear has gone there will be nothing. Only I will remain."

Per "Awakening Compassion," Pema invokes Tonglen whereby p. 81: "Your own discomfort can connect you with the aversion & pain of other people & awaken your compassion." Furthermore, with mindfulness p. 80: "We can see our interpretations & our opinions as just that," you can p. 50: "`Lower your standards & relax as it is.' That's a slogan for patience," & p. 50: "I've come to find that patience also has humor & playfulness." This reminds me of Theodore Tilton's poem:

"Once in Persia reigned a king, Who upon his signet ring
Graved a maxim true and wise, Which, if held before his eyes
Gave him counsel at a glance Fit for any change or chance;
Solemn words, and these are they: "Even this shall pass away."

It seems to me that Pema's "patient abiding" parallels Shamatha (calm abiding) like two facets of the same gem. Thus, with patience we can let the thoughts (Shamatha) or issues (patient abiding) dissolve of their own accord--observing the process vs. the content--p. 71: "Becoming intimate with pain is the key to changing at the core of our being--staying open to everything we experience." The courage to just be.

Simple and to the Point
Chodron argues for change one person at a time. To practice peace(a very deliberate verb choice) is to pause and reflect when we are hardwired to go on automatic pilot when others hurt or harm us. Don't seek resolution of potential conflict, just let it happen in the moment. Understand that those who hate harm themselves more than those hated. The book can be read as a stand alone, without any knowledge of Buddhism, although a basic grounding helps. It is simply and clearly written.

A potentially life-changing book
I must respectfully disagree with the reviewer who said this book is only good if you are familiar with the author's other work. I was attracted to this book by the title as it was sitting and calling out to me on the new books table at my local bookstore. I looked at the back flap and recognized the author from an interview she did with Bill Moyers on his recent "Faith and Reason" series.

This little book contains 6 essays edited from speeches the author gave. Each one contains grains of truth that can help you stop reacting in fear and anger to situations around you and instead to embrace patience and refrain from acting (or reacting), thus stopping the chain reaction of violence that seems to be swallowing our world.

Although I am not a Christian, this book seems to reflect the core teachings of Jesus when he advised his disciples to "turn the other cheek," "go the extra mile," and when he encouraged them to realize that the person who needs the most help is our neighbor, not the person we feel most alike.

This book has the potential to change your life (and mine) if we simply read the text and allow its messages to sink into our hearts.