The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times - Hardcover

Pema Chödrön

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1570624097 ISBN 13: 9781570624094

Publisher: Shambhala, 2001

Synopsis

In The Places That Scare You, Pema Chödrön continues the teachings of When Things Fall Apart, showing how at the core of the most painful experiences lie the seeds of spiritual awakening. Here she presents key teachings on recognizing and cultivating the "soft spot" that is the gateway to compassion and open-heartedness. In this book she discusses:

   ·  The four great catalysts of awakening, and how to integrate them into our lives
   ·  Why the "soft spot" is necessary for spiritual awakening
   ·  The basic goodness that is inherently ours
   ·  How the three noble principles can enrich everything we do
   ·  The maitri meditation that multiplies love
   ·  Why an attitude of "don't know" can be wiser than the world's greatest spiritual teachings
   ·  How to keep the heart open with equal fearlessness to both heartache and delight

About this title

Review:

Pema Chödrön may have more good one-liners than a Groucho Marx retrospective, but this nun's stingers go straight to the heart: "The essence of bravery is being without self-deception"; "When we practice generosity, we become intimate with our grasping"; "Difficult people are the greatest teachers." These are the punctuations to specific teachings of fearlessness. In The Places That Scare You, Chödrön introduces a host of the compassionate warriors' tools and concepts for transforming anxieties and negative emotions into positive living. Rather than steeling ourselves against hardship, she suggests we open ourselves to vulnerability; from this comes the loving kindness and compassion that are the wellsprings of joy. How do we achieve it? Through meditation, mindfulness, slogans, aspiration, and several other practices, such as tonglen, which is taking in the pain and suffering of others while sending out happiness to all--emphasis on the all. Chödrön introduces each of these practices in turn, backing them up with succinct practical reasoning and a framework of ideas that offers fresh interpretations of familiar words like strength, laziness, and groundlessness. Chödrön is the type of person you'd like to have with you in an emergency, and to deal with the extremes of daily life. In her absence, The Places That Scare You will do nicely. --Brian Bruya

Book Description:

Our first response to troubled emotions is to distance ourselves from the pain. But true healing comes from doing just the opposite. In this inspiring new program, beloved Buddhist teacher Pema Chvdrvn teaches us how to embrace vulnerability and the "soft" feeling that lives in the center of our hearts to ignite our inborn bodhichitta - our power of compassion for ourselves and others. Includes basic instruction in core Buddhist teachings.

About this edition

• Publisher: Shambhala
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 1570624097
• ISBN 13: 9781570624094
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 140