Read Online The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times by Pema Chödrön - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Pema Chödrön
Tags: Tibetan Buddhism
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working with the texture, the raw energy, of claustrophobia and spaciousness. The third stage is the essence of the practice: breathing in whatever is unwanted and breathing out a sense of relief. In the fourth stage we extend our compassion further by including others who are experiencing the same feelings. If we want, we can combine the third stage and the fourth stage, breathing in and out for self and other at the same time.
So the first stage of tonglen is a moment of open mind, or unconditional bodhichitta. Although this stage is crucial, it is difficult to describe. It relates to the Buddhist teaching of shunyata—often translated as “emptiness” or “openness.” Experiencing shunyata at an emotional level, we might feel as if we were big enough to accommodate everything, that there’s no place for things to get stuck. If we relax our mind and stop struggling, emotions can move through us without becoming solid and proliferating.
Fundamentally, experiencing openness is having trust in the living quality of basic energy. We develop the confidence to allow it to arise, to linger, and then to pass on. This energy is dynamic, ungraspable, always in a state of flux. So our training is, first of all, noticing how we block the energy or freeze it, how we tense up our bodies and minds. Then we train in softening, relaxing, and opening to the energy without interpretations or judgments.
The first flash of openness reminds us that we can always let go of our fixed ideas and connect with something open, fresh, and unbiased. Then, during the following stages, when we begin to breathe in the energy of claustrophobia and unwanted feelings, we breathe them into that huge space, as vast as the clear blue sky. Then we send out whatever we can to help all of us experience the freedom of an open, flexible mind. The longer we practice, the more accessible this unconditional space will be. Sooner or later we are going to realize that we are already awake.
Many of us have no idea what flashing openness is supposed to feel like. The first time I recognized it was simple and direct. In the hall where I was meditating a large fan hummed loudly. After a while I no longer noticed the sound, it was so ongoing. But then the fan abruptly stopped and there was a gap, a wide-open silence. That was my introduction to shunyata!
To flash openness, some people visualize a vast ocean or a cloudless sky—any image that conveys unlimited expansiveness. In group practice, a gong is rung at the beginning. Just listening to the sound of the gong can act as a reminder of open mind. The flash is relatively short, no longer than it takes for a gong to stop resonating. We can’t hold on to such an experience. We just touch in briefly and then go on.
In the second stage of tonglen we begin to breathe in the qualities of claustrophobia: thick, heavy, and hot. We might visualize the claustrophobia as coal dust or as yellow-brown smog. Then we breathe out the qualities of spaciousness: fresh, light, and cool. We might visualize this as brilliant moonlight, as sparkling sun on water, as the colors of a rainbow.
However we visualize these textures, we imagine breathing them in and out through all the pores of our body, not only through our mouth and nose. We do this until it feels synchronized with our breath and we are clear about what we are taking in and what we’re sending out. It’s fine to breathe a little more deeply than usual, but it’s important to give the inbreath and the outbreath equal time.
We may find, however, that we favor the inbreath or the outbreath instead of keeping them balanced. For example, we may not want to interrupt the freshness and brightness of the outbreath by taking in what’s thick, heavy, and hot. As a result the outbreath may be long and generous, the inbreath short and stingy. Or, we may have no trouble connecting with claustrophobia on the inbreath but feel we don’t have much to send out. Then our outbreath
So the first stage of tonglen is a moment of open mind, or unconditional bodhichitta. Although this stage is crucial, it is difficult to describe. It relates to the Buddhist teaching of shunyata—often translated as “emptiness” or “openness.” Experiencing shunyata at an emotional level, we might feel as if we were big enough to accommodate everything, that there’s no place for things to get stuck. If we relax our mind and stop struggling, emotions can move through us without becoming solid and proliferating.
Fundamentally, experiencing openness is having trust in the living quality of basic energy. We develop the confidence to allow it to arise, to linger, and then to pass on. This energy is dynamic, ungraspable, always in a state of flux. So our training is, first of all, noticing how we block the energy or freeze it, how we tense up our bodies and minds. Then we train in softening, relaxing, and opening to the energy without interpretations or judgments.
The first flash of openness reminds us that we can always let go of our fixed ideas and connect with something open, fresh, and unbiased. Then, during the following stages, when we begin to breathe in the energy of claustrophobia and unwanted feelings, we breathe them into that huge space, as vast as the clear blue sky. Then we send out whatever we can to help all of us experience the freedom of an open, flexible mind. The longer we practice, the more accessible this unconditional space will be. Sooner or later we are going to realize that we are already awake.
Many of us have no idea what flashing openness is supposed to feel like. The first time I recognized it was simple and direct. In the hall where I was meditating a large fan hummed loudly. After a while I no longer noticed the sound, it was so ongoing. But then the fan abruptly stopped and there was a gap, a wide-open silence. That was my introduction to shunyata!
To flash openness, some people visualize a vast ocean or a cloudless sky—any image that conveys unlimited expansiveness. In group practice, a gong is rung at the beginning. Just listening to the sound of the gong can act as a reminder of open mind. The flash is relatively short, no longer than it takes for a gong to stop resonating. We can’t hold on to such an experience. We just touch in briefly and then go on.
In the second stage of tonglen we begin to breathe in the qualities of claustrophobia: thick, heavy, and hot. We might visualize the claustrophobia as coal dust or as yellow-brown smog. Then we breathe out the qualities of spaciousness: fresh, light, and cool. We might visualize this as brilliant moonlight, as sparkling sun on water, as the colors of a rainbow.
However we visualize these textures, we imagine breathing them in and out through all the pores of our body, not only through our mouth and nose. We do this until it feels synchronized with our breath and we are clear about what we are taking in and what we’re sending out. It’s fine to breathe a little more deeply than usual, but it’s important to give the inbreath and the outbreath equal time.
We may find, however, that we favor the inbreath or the outbreath instead of keeping them balanced. For example, we may not want to interrupt the freshness and brightness of the outbreath by taking in what’s thick, heavy, and hot. As a result the outbreath may be long and generous, the inbreath short and stingy. Or, we may have no trouble connecting with claustrophobia on the inbreath but feel we don’t have much to send out. Then our outbreath
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