Overcoming Fear in Difficult Times: A Guide to Finding Fearlessness in The Places That Scare You

Roslyn: My yoga teacher introduced me to Pema Chodron. She is a buddhist nun and her books are inspiring. Thank you so much.

Australia on Nov 03, 2023

Bird buffet organizer: The book is in excellent condition. Some stickers with numbers were put on the cover. That took away from the book's appearance. Since it is intended to be a gift that was not appreciated .

United States on Aug 24, 2023

Mary: I think this has come into my life at a pivotal time. I'm on my second time reading this book in the past week. It is changing my perspective on life, on myself, my thoughts, on others, and the power I hold in my own life. I am feeling a sense of hope that maybe I can be at some level of peace in this life. I loved reading this book and I will be reading it again.

United States on Apr 20, 2023

Lorraine D.: Hits all fears head on!Helps to put inperspective and not lose it!

Canada on Mar 20, 2023

Jayaitch: I found this book helpful

United Kingdom on Nov 24, 2022

Ray F: Can this book about disciplined Buddhist training for an enlightened heart help us face this scary time, fearlessly?

A BOOK FOR THE SEEKER-WARRIOR

The Places That Scare You begins with a description of bodhichitta, which basically means “enlightened heart or mind.” Ms. Chodron tells us that achieving this enlightened heart is the work of seekers training with the discipline of warriors. Such seekers are called, bodhisattvas, and what they are questing for is described in this book by connected essays based on Buddhist concepts.

Among these concepts, meditation is emphasized as a primary technique in bodhichitta training—staying still and observing. Another technique is reciting the slogans, chants, and aspirations of Buddhism, and a selection of them is included in the appendix.

On the way to that appendix, other concepts are described that build the foundation of bodhichitta. Among them are Tonglen (a method for developing compassion), four qualities to develop and so oppose suffering and bad habits, how to develop forgiveness, patterns of laziness to avoid, the value of embracing groundlessness, how to find and appreciate a spiritual teacher,...

United States on Jan 23, 2021

Raquel: A very insightful book on meditation. It talks about opening ourselves while taking a hard look at who we are and not escaping our problems. Is not a cheesy self help book... in fact, it's very no-nonsense. I would not recommend it to a beginner, because it speaks about the struggles you can find during the practice. Even though is short, it is not an easy read, not because it's boring - is actually, fascinating - but because it is complex. You may find yourself trying to absorb the words and re-reading them to fully understand the message (maybe I'm just dumb). The main reason I say is not for beginners is that you need to be a meditaton practicioner, without the practice you won't relate to the problems she's addressing. If you worry that your meditation practice is failing you, or you have neglected it, or you simply worry about it not being perfect, this book is for you. It's definitely more than what meets the eye, I know this because the first two pages I was not convinced and then I ended up completely blown away but it's realistic, analytical approach and sometimes even cold hard truths.

United Kingdom on Jun 27, 2016

Sam Woodward: I’ve been interested in meditation for most of my adult life & have practiced a wide range of different techniques with different organisations. Favouring more secular practices, I always shied away from Tibetan Buddhism & its esoteric cultural trappings. For instance, when I was first taught Ton Glen meditation, it involved visualizing myself as a Buddha with a particular symbolic meaning, who was holding various symbolic objects, etc. Even though I was briefly told what they were, a lack of familiarity with this image made it difficult to relate to. Then I recently attended a Mindfulness course in which the teacher taught a secularized, Western-friendly variation of Ton Glen. Rather than a Buddha, he asked us to visualise ourselves at an earlier age, and then give this earlier self all the compassion, forgiveness & emotional support which they had needed at the time. This was an incredibly powerful experience for me. And, as it turned out, it was the version of Ton Glen which features heavily in this book.

Prior to this, I hadn’t really used visualizations in meditation & it wasn’t something which appealed to me. Yet I found this version of Ton Glen...

United Kingdom on May 17, 2016

Jack Frost: I have listened to Pema's audio books and retreat dharma talks such as "when things fall apart" and "wisdom of no escape" and have even read her pocket book cover to cover with much interest and came out feeling whole and steadfast, but only lasting for a couple of days. I totally admire and love Pema and her teachings. So I decided to read "the places that scare you" not only because my prevalent ego defense is doubt and fear (point 6 on Enneagram) but to investigate what it is that make Pema's audio teachings so attractive and at the same time so transitory in not lasting to me. Listening to Pema's dharma talk is learning with joy but reading her book is more: it is also practice. Pema knowingly drafted this book that reads as practice. The 22 chapters are short and at most have six pages or so and each chapter has at least one practice from Tibetan Buddhist tradition (Mahayana) although there are practices from other schools of Buddhism including Zen. It makes justice to list the chapters with relevant practice in parenthesis:
1. The Excellence of Bodhicitta (chanting the eternal law)
2. Tapping into the spring (unblocking addictions and reactivity to three lords of...

United States on Jan 16, 2015