Where You Are Is Where To Start: A Guide to Compassionate Living - Notes

Where You Are Is Where To Start: A Guide to Compassionate Living - Notes

Book Information

  • Author: Pema Chödrön
  • Publisher: Shambhala
  • Publication Year: 2004

Key Concepts

  • The book focuses on ancient teachings that offer guidance and encouragement for dealing with life's difficulties and awakening compassion.
  • It emphasizes working with difficult emotions and situations, rather than running away from them.

Lojong Teachings

  • Lojong, meaning "mind training," is central to the book, providing 59 essential points for awakening the heart.
  • It incorporates slogans that remind us how to awaken our hearts during difficulties.

Tonglen Practice

  • Tonglen means "taking in and sending out," . A meditation practice is designed to connect with the openness and tenderness of our hearts.
  • It encourages embracing human experiences and expanding our compassion.

Gratitude and Compassion

  • True compassion arises from a sense of kinship with all beings, not from feeling superior. It stresses developing compassion for oneself to extend it genuinely to others.

Transforming Difficulties

  • We can use difficulties and problems to awaken our hearts. Turning unwanted experiences into necessities for arousing authentic compassion.

Key Practices

  1. Shamatha-Vipassanā meditation: (Calm abiding and insight meditation)(\text{Calm abiding and insight meditation}) It helps in knowing oneself.
  2. Working with Nares (slogans): Applying the slogans in all situations.
  3. Tonglen (taking in and sending out): It helps to live compassionately.

Three Helpful Exercises:

  1. Shamatha-Vipassanā Meditation
  2. Working with Slogans
  3. Tonglen Practice: Taking in and sending out

Main Ideas:

  1. Impermanence: Recognising the transient nature of experiences.
  2. Compassion: The ability to be present during pain.

Importance of Compassion

  • Compassion is the warmth of heart available in awareness and spaciousness.
  • Essential to develop compassion for oneself before extending it to others.

Initial Practices:

  1. Shamatha-Vipassanā meditation: Foundation to understand mind and madness.
  2. Consider everything as a dream: Helps to not take things seriously.
  3. Look into nature unborn awareness
  4. Relinquish even the antidote

Taglen Practice:

  • Taglen meditation is a key highlight for the book
  • The practice involves breathing in the suffering of others and breathing out relief and compassion.

Shamatha-Vipassanā meditation (detailed):

  • Recognising thoughts and labeling with kindness.

Four Doors of Mind Training

  1. Aspiration - How intense is one willing to go?
  2. Tenacity - How deep are we regarding ourselves?
  3. Application - Wherewithal to use meditation instruction
  4. Integration - See all circumstances in all conditions

Four Practices to Overcome Obstacles:

  1. Accumulation of Merit - Overcoming stinginess.
  2. Confession - Overcoming broken commitments.
  3. Feeding the Demons - Overcoming whoever is in the way.
  4. Calling the Protectors - Connecting with the source of wisdom.

Shamatha-Vipassanā meditation:

  • A sitting technique for knowing oneself.
    Translation of the seven points of mind training text by NA SYEDA, Naina resources