Pema Chodron was asked to come out of her own retreat to offer a weekend retreat to a group at the Naropa Institute in Boulder, Colorado. Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, founder of Naropa, was one of her teachers, so of course she wasn’t going to refuse this request. Pema’s teachings over that weekend were recorded in front of the live audience and produced in audiobook format for everyone to enjoy. Pema had an assistant with her who read passages, and then she defined and explained each passage in an applicable manner. A few times throughout the audiobook there were question and answer portions between Pema and the audience.

Pema taught the Bodhisattva Mind: Teachings to Cultivate Courage and Awareness in the Midst of Suffering. I love that Buddhist teachings are extremely relatable to my daily life. To apply them is to do so with kindness and compassion towards self. Listening to these teachings can be repetitive for me, which I need, and provide me with new wisdom to apply. Immediately, Pema encouraged her students to view the world as wishing others could be as fortunate as I am. My takeaway is to be grateful for all of the blessings in my life and wish that others have many blessings in their lives too. Such a great way to support others in their endeavors.

I work in a stressful environment and I never know what difficulties I am going to experience in any given work day. Pema told a funny story about a conversation between Roshi Joan Halifax and a chef. The moral of it stuck with me: If you want a calm kitchen, calm your mind. I appreciate the perspective that my mind causes the suffering I experience at work; it’s not the external conditions. I know everyday when I walk into my place of employment that stressors will arise from a variety of sources. It’s up to me to calm my mind as I navigate each experience.

Pema initially spoke a lot on how to practice mindfulness meditation and the benefits. I have been meditating for a few years now, so this portion of the audiobook was helpfully repetitive. I am grateful for the reminder...

I have photos and additional information that I'm unable to include here. It can all be found on my blog, in the link below.
A Book And A Dog ( )

I love Pema Chodron. Could listen to her gentle teaching for hours and, in fact, have a lot recently.

I needed these teachings at this time. Very helpful, very gentle, very relatable to where I am.

I'm glad she's devoted her life to sharing her wisdom and approaches.

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Pema Chodron's teaching on Shantideva added much to my understanding of his work. ( )