After listening to me rage, blame, and lose myself in hatefulness for 5 years after a very painful breakup a dear friend loaned me her cds of Pema Chodron talks. I am SO grateful for my friend and for Pema! I'm not a Buddhist(with a capital B) but I found myself again while listening to her(Pema). I have since bought many books and cds and continue to learn more about loving kindness for myself and others (yes, even HIM).

After listening to me rage, blame, and lose myself in hatefulness for 5 years after a very painful breakup a dear friend loaned me her cds of Pema Chodron talks. I am SO grateful for my friend and for Pema! I'm not a Buddhist but I found myself again while listening to her(Pema). I have since boughten many books and cds and continue to learn more about loving kindness for myself and others (yes, even HIM).

Do you find yourself caught in maybe a lifetime of negative reactions to certain events, people, or addictive behaviors in certain situations? Do you find it almost impossible to control yourself from reacting negatively to certain relatives, TV shows, or politicians? Have you ever bought something just because you felt like it was something you should buy, or it was "you," and then gotten it home and felt sick because you didn't need it or shouldn't have spent the money? Who hasn't? Pema Chodron's easy to understand discourse can help you get beyond these self-destructive behaviors in no time. The freedom and peace that lies outside of living in reaction is your reward for listening to this teaching. There is nothing here that will contradict any religious beliefs you may hold, but if more churches, for example, were teaching what she offers here in this simple and straightforward way, utterly without judgment, I think they would find their Sunday attendance would increase significantly. Pema Chodron is entirely sympathetic to the human condition, and rather than condemn it, she helps us clearly identify the behaviors that keep us from living in lovingkindness and joy. I recommend all her books and tapes highly, but if you can only get one to start with, start here.

This recording is ok. I had not heard Pema speak before and she does have an engaging speakers voice. I was disappointed however as I did not realize this recording is mostly about interpreting verses from Shantideva's writings. I wanted more practical advice (from a buddhist perspective) on how to deal with anger. I don't believe this recording provided that. Would I buy it again knowing what I know now? No, there is not a lot of substance to it.

Good practical advice that allows you to get to know yourself. This CD helps you to practice spiritual principles in our daily lives. Loved it!

Pema Chodron explains the Buddhist philosophy in this as well as her many other CDs in a clear, relevant manner with just the right touch of humor relating to the human condition. She has mastered the philosophy, yet her modesty lets the listener know that she has been where we listeners often are. Easier to absorb than reading, for me, and a lot more fun. A great way to clear the mind at night when trying to get negative thoughts out of my head and helpful to prepare for sleep. I actually fall asleep with the headphones on and hope that perhaps my subconscious is learning her explanations of various instructions. Super for the novice or the more advanced student.

The content of these three CD's is excellent. When Pema speaks there is a continual popping-clicking sound which is not present when Robert the reader speaks. This indicates to me a defect in the original recording. This recording should never have been released for public sale with such a defect.

The entire book is wonderful -- after reading so many works (and listening to some talks) by noted teachers and other Buddhist practitioners about this or that element of the philosophy/faith, it's refreshing to just hear someone talk. That is, rather than innundating a lay listening like myself with this or that concept in Sanskrit or Pali and using confusing allegories that made perfect sense when they were related several thousand years ago, listening to the wonderful words of Pema Chodron is so nice.
Above all other teachers, she talks to me -- and the many thousands of others who listen to hear -- as if she were a friend. She tells me about her own experiences and then makes fun of herself and so I don't feel like she's someone above me, someone to work at trying to be. She just seems to be someone who is further along the same path I'm walking down.
The only reason that I have any problem with this audio book is that the idea of Shenpa in the book was still a little unclear to me after I had finished it. Although now I know that Shenpa is a bit ephemeral; this was never explained, clearly at least, in the book.

I have a long commute to work each day, so I find these cds' a blessing.
Yet it is not enough to listen, you have to apply the lessons in your life.
On the way to work I listen to cd so I can put the lessons I am learning into practice during the day. On my return trip home I listen again to see if I applied the lessons.
The good thing about Pema Chodron is she has not lost touch with people so you feel as though you can apply her teachings to your every day life

I have read numerous titles of Pema Chodron and this is some of her most succint and insightful work yet. Her interpretations of Shantideva's poem are accessible and applicable to anyone's life regardless of your religion or lack thereof. She has the ability to tap into all the the "hooks" that catch us and make us want to fuel the fire of our own anger, irritation etc. She illuminates the road to walk away from those reactions and explains how to not engage with those thoughts even though it is tempting to engage because of past habits. I appreciate her honesty as someone who has "been there" and her way of making an 8th century text something that applies right now. I have found myself listening to it repeatedly so that the teachings permeate my thinking. Loved it.

Pema Chodron has a great way to shine the light and give a light bulb moments
to learning about ones self. She is expresses this in a clear and loving way.

This is a seemingly extemporaneous western commentary (in front of an audience) on the 1st 51 verses of Shantideva's 8th c. The Way of the Bodhisattva: A Translation of the Bodhicharyavatara (Shambhala Dragon Editions). It complements Pema's recent book No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva & (probably, since I haven't heard it yet) her Bodhisattva Mind: Teachings to Cultivate Courage and Awareness in the Midst of Suffering 7 CD set which covers 106 verses of the text. So this is a shorter version. The 1st CD is 54:11 in 13 tracks with an avg. of 4:10 & max. of 8:24; the 2nd CD is 77:31 in 20 tracks with an avg. of 3:53 & max. of 11:04; the 3rd CD is 51:15 in 16 tracks with an avg. of 3:12 & max. of 15:52. Overall avg. is 3:53 per track. Total exceeds 3 hours, 9 minutes. The very last track is Q&A of 3 questions--practice vs. repression, medications, & crying. Robert Walker reads each verse before Pema comments on it. She believes Shantideva wrote it in response to his own anger. As usual, she compassionately teaches compassion, using humor, graphic examples (e.g. the Gregory Peck classic "To Kill a Mockingbird" & personal experiences (e.g. visiting prisons). Interestingly, she succeeds in relating lojong mind training to Bodhisattva compassion training. While much of the teaching is not new (see her other fine works) it bears repeating. It's easy to learn the theory but not to actually practice it--repetition & reinforcement can help, but mindfulness & alertness are essential.

More specifically, Pema extensively addresses "the austerity of patience" as armor against Karma, noting that humor aids patience. This helps to defuse the us/them binary mentality at the root of suffering = seeing people as "other." Rather, one can use life's difficulties to awaken your kinship with others--developing empathy. This ties in with Pema's tonglen practice--sending & receiving practice, esp. tonglen-on-the-spot (mentioned briefly here). Indeed, our anger can be our teacher (a la Vajrayana's propensity to turn poison into elixir). We can practice using small annoyances (Bourgeois suffering)--being patient rather than aggravating them by complaining--thus avoiding self-inflicted pain & negative habit-building. Rather than following addictive urges, "we are always working with our potential to be bothered" by reframing our attitude to discomfort & "finding out what intolerable feels like w/o reacting to it." As she points out, by practicing mind training, we have tools that others don't, so have patience, compassion, & tolerance for them as well as for yourself. Thus, we can develop Herbert Guenther's water logic vs. rock logic--flowing/open vs. rigid/fixed--fluidity vs. structure, resting in ambiguity. Thus, we ease our attachment (shenpa), the Hook in the title, the charge behind our likes & dislikes--even our commitment to the environment can be an obstacle (turning elixir into poison). We tend to identify with our own thoughts [my bumper sticker says: "You don't have to believe everything you think"]. Rather, per Mahamudra/Dzogchen teachings, "taming the mind is returning to the natural state of openness" & joyously appreciating the "magical apparition" (display). This is a lovely, user-friendly CD set.