Buddhist teacher Pema Chodron shares life-changing practices for living with wisdom, confidence, and integrity amidst confusing situations and uncertain times
We live in difficult times. Life so often seems like a turbulent river threatening to drown us and destroy our world. Why, then, shouldn't we cling to the certainty of the comfortable--to our deep-seated habits and familiar ways? Because, Pema Chodron teaches, that kind of fear-based clinging keeps us from the infinitely more powerful experience of being fully alive. The Buddhist teachings she presents here--known as the "Three Commitments"--provide a treasure trove of wisdom for learning to step right into the unknown, to completely and fearlessly embrace the groundlessness of being human, for people of all faiths. When we do, we begin to see not only how much better it feels to live an openhearted life, but we find that we begin to naturally and more effectively reach out to help and heal all those around us.
Living Beautifully: with Uncertainty and Change, Pema Chodron, Shambhala Publications, Paperback, 144 pages, $16.95
Pema Chodron is an American Buddhist nun in the lineage of the Tibetan meditation master Chogyam Trungpa. She is resident teacher at Gampo Abbey, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, the first Tibetan Buddhist monastery for Westerners in North America. She is the author of numerous books, including Taking the Leap, The Wisdom of No Escape, and When Things Fall Apart.
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CONTENTS: Living Beautifully: with Uncertainty and Change
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Preface
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ix
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THE OVERVIEW
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1.
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The Fundamental Ambiguity of Being Human
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3
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2.
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Life without the Story Line
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15
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THE FIRST COMMITMENT:
COMMITTING TO NOT CAUSE HARM
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3.
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Laying the Foundation
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25
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4.
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Be Fully Present, Feel Your Heart, and Leap
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39
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5.
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Staying in the Middle
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49
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THE SECOND COMMITMENT:
COMMITTING TO TAKE CARE OF ONE ANOTHER
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6.
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Beyond Our Comfort Zone
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61
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7.
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Breathing In Pain, Breathing Out Relief
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73
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8.
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The Catalyst for Compassion
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81
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THE THIRD COMMITMENT:
COMMITTING TO EMBRACE THE WORLD JUST AS IT IS
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9.
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Nowhere to Hide
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91
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10.
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Awakening in the Charnel Ground
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105
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CONCLUDING WORDS
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11.
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We Are Needed
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119
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Acknowledgments
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125
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Related Readings
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127
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