Bing. Wisdom Publications :: Teachings of the Buddha Series. Buddhism - The Four Noble Truths, The Eightfold Path, Karma and Meditation Practice. 11 Easy Ways to Meditate (Or, There’s No Such Thing As Being Bad At Meditation) Buddhism and Buddhist schools. Pema Chodron. In order to have compassion for others, we have to have compassion for ourselves. In particular, to care about other people who are fearful, angry, jealous, overpowered by addictions of all kinds, arrogant, proud, miserly, selfish, mean —you name it— to have compassion and to care for these people, means not to run from the pain of finding these things in ourselves.
In fact, one's whole attitude toward pain can change. Instead of fending it off and hiding from it, one could open one's heart and allow oneself to feel that pain, feel it as something that will soften and purify us and make us far more loving and kind. The tonglen practice is a method for connecting with suffering —ours and that which is all around us— everywhere we go. It is a method for overcoming fear of suffering and for dissolving the tightness of our heart.
Primarily it is a method for awakening the compassion that is inherent in all of us, no matter how cruel or cold we might seem to be. 6 Questions That Will Make You Fee Peaceful and Complete. “The best place to find a helping hand is at the end of your own arm.” ~Swedish Proverb When I was in my mid-twenties an unhealthy relationship with an unhealthy guy sent me packing off to the corner of New Mexico to find myself. In a new age, self-discovery kind of world—a hubbub of a town filled with people in transition—I was graced to meet many powerful healers, gurus, shamans, and teachers. I became a workshop junkie. I went on Shamanic power journeys to spiritual centers around the world, chanted with Indian gurus, and became a certified yoga instructor and Reiki master. I got rolfed, (and got more intense body-work by thick-boned Maoris) and rebirthed with conscious breath work. I studied parapsychology and quantum dynamics, did past-life regressions, memorized mantras, unraveled koans, and collected crystals and tarot cards.
I know. I was a perpetual seeker. Even though my unhealthy relationship was dysfunctional, that man gave me a gift that I wouldn’t discover for years. 1. 2. The Great Bell Chant (The End of Suffering) Three Roots.