How can we go on living "when things fall apart" - when we are overcome by pain, fear, and anxiety? Pema Chodron's answer to that question contains some spectacularly good news: there is a fundamental happiness readily available to each one of us, no matter how difficult things seem to be. To find it, according to traditional Buddhist teaching, we must learn to stop running from suffering and instead actually learn to approach it - fearlessly, compassionately, and with curiosity. This radical practice enables us to use all situations, even very painful ones, as means for discovering the truth and love that are utterly indestructible.
When Things Fall Apart, Pema Chodron, Shambhala Publications, 2 CDs, 2.5 hrs, $19.95
Pema Chodron is an American Buddhist nun and one of the foremost students of Chogyam Trungpa, the renowned meditation master. She is director of Gampo Abbey, in Nova Scotia, the first Tibetan monastery in North America establied for Westerners. Ani (a Tibetan honorific for a nun) Pema has written many books, and has recorded on DVD, Video, Cd's and Cassettes many teachings, such as The Places That Scare You, Comfortable With Uncertainty, The Wisdom of No Escape, Start Where You Are, and the best seller, When Things Fall Apart.
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