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As long as our orientation is toward perfection or success, we will never learn about unconditional friendship with ourselves, nor will we find compassion.

Pema Chodron

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Pema Chodron
Age: 88
Born: 1936
Born: July 14
Clergyman
Philosopher
Writer
New York City
New York
Deirdre Blomfield-Brow
Toward
Compassion
Success
Learn
Find
Orientation
Long
Unconditional
Never
Perfection
Friendship

More quotes by Pema Chodron

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Inner # peace begins the moment you choose not to allow another person or event to control your # emotions
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If you’re aggressive in your dealings, that’s how you’ll be regarded in the world. You might smile and give generously, but if you frequently explode in anger, people never feel comfortable in your presence and you’ll never have peace of mind.
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The third noble truth says that the cessation of suffering is letting go of holding on to ourselves.
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Sticking with that uncertainty, getting the knack of relaxing in the midst of chaos, learning not to panic-this is the spiritual path.
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we come to realize that other people's welfare is just as important as our own. In helping them, we help ourselves. In helping ourselves, we help the world.
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Come back to square one, just the minimum bare bones. Relaxing with the present moment, relaxing with hopelessness, relaxing with death, not resisting the fact that things end, that things pass, that things have no lasting substance, that everything is changing all the time-that is the basic message.
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The more neurosis the more wisdom.
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Patience is the training in abiding with the restlessness of our energy and letting things evolve at their own speed.
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Use what seems like poison as medicine. Use your personal suffering as the path to compassion for all beings.
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To live is to be willing to die over and over again.
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Impermanence is a principle of harmony. When we don't struggle against it, we are in harmony with reality.
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One can appreciate & celebrate each moment — there’s nothing more sacred. There’s nothing more vast or absolute. In fact, there’s nothing more!
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If your everyday practice is open to all your emotions, to all the people you meet, to all the situations you encounter, without closing down, trusting that you can do that - then that will take you are far as you can go. And then you'll understand all the teachings that anyone has ever taught.
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Softening what is rigid in our hearts.
Pema Chodron
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People get into a heavy-duty sin and guilt trip, feeling that if things are going wrong, that means that they did something bad and they are being punished. That's not the idea at all.
Pema Chodron
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Most of us do not take these situations as teachings. We automatically hate them. We run like crazy. We use all kinds of ways to escape - all addictions stem from this moment when we meet our edge and we just can't stand it. We feel we have to soften it, pad it with something, and we become addicted to whatever it is that seems to ease the pain.
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Clarity and decisiveness come from the willingness to slow down, to listen to and look at what’s happening.
Pema Chodron
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Buddhism itself is all about empowering yourself, not about getting what you want.
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Whatever is happening is the path to enlightenment.
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It isn't what happens to us that causes us to suffer it's what we say to ourselves about what happens.
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