When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times

When Things Fall Apart by Pema Chödrön is a profound and deeply comforting book that offers timeless wisdom for navigating life’s most challenging moments. Whether you’re dealing with personal loss, emotional turmoil, or existential uncertainty, Chödrön’s gentle guidance helps you find peace and clarity amid the chaos. What I Loved: • Compassionate Wisdom: Chödrön writes with an incredible sense of compassion and understanding. Her insights are drawn from Buddhist teachings, but they’re presented in a way that’s accessible to anyone, regardless of their spiritual background. The book feels like a warm, comforting presence that reassures you it’s okay to feel vulnerable and lost. • Embracing Uncertainty: One of the central themes of the book is the idea of embracing uncertainty and impermanence. Chödrön teaches that it’s precisely in our moments of discomfort and fear that we can grow the most. This perspective shift is incredibly empowering and can help you face life’s difficulties with more resilience and grace. • Practical Advice: Beyond the philosophical and spiritual insights, the book offers practical advice for dealing with difficult emotions like fear, anger, and sadness. Chödrön encourages readers to stay present with their feelings, rather than running away from them, which can lead to deeper healing and understanding. • Meditative Quality: The writing itself has a meditative quality, with short chapters that you can read slowly and reflect on. It’s the kind of book you can pick up and put down as needed, making it a perfect companion for tough times. • Universal Relevance: Although rooted in Buddhist philosophy, the themes of the book are universal. Chödrön’s teachings about love, compassion, and acceptance are relevant to anyone going through a difficult time, regardless of their beliefs.

i have been reading and re-reading this book for years and years. it is my go-to book during any difficult time, and i always glean something knew regarding my current situation. pema chodron's writing takes away a lot of the loftiness i've encountered while trying to read bhuddist self help books, but since pema has already gone through so much of the craziness of life, her lessons areextremely comprehensive and compassionate. i love this book because you can open it to any page and start reading and you will find something you can use. love it. thank you pema! i recommend all her books. the places that scare you is awesome and a good one for impulsive activity, including jumping to conclusions, anger, etc, is called don't bite the hook. those are my 3 favorites. oh, i guess it would help to mention my reasons for seeking out this genre of information: i went through a terrible breakup, moved across the country with my dog, the dog bit someone ferociously on the neck, i lost my dog and the house i was living at the time (on the same day as losing the dog), was outcast from my group of friends because they saw my dog as an extension of me, went to live in a basement apartment, started drinking heavily, and fell into a depression that consisted of me waking up, taking an ambien, and going back to sleep. then when i woke up again, i would just take more ambien until i fell asleep again. i lost about 15 pounds on my already 120 pound frame, and contemplated "disappearing" whenever i was awake. it was a completely sucktastic time. i do indeed credit pema for helping me see that i had to kick my butt into gear and grab ahold of the reins.

Wonderful book to read , got it as a gift for my friend and she truly enjoyed it, very encouraging and positive vibes .

This book is filled with insights on how to get beyond that incessantly babbling parrot we call the conscious mind, to stop clinging to our life stories, what Eckhart Tolle might call the content of the mind, and to connect with our real self. In doing so we connect with, well, everything. The frustrating part of this read for me, though, is that Pema often uses a unique vocabulary to describe the ideas she wants to get across, and to me it's not always clear what she means. It's not that she's using esoteric Buddhist terminology--I'm thinking that it's either just the way she expresses herself, or maybe the followers of Trungpa Rinpoche share a common vocabulary through prolonged contact with him and each other. I'm reminded of Darwin's finches, evolving separately from their kin in isolation in the Galapagos. In any event, there were a number of times when I wasn't sure I got her meaning. I read each troublesome passage a few times and made my best interpretation, but I really can't be sure what I understood is what she meant. My personal feeling is that she'd reach more people if her language was a little more generic, for lack of a better word, or if she defined some terms. It's not that she should "dumb down" her explanations--not at all. I just think at times she could have done a little better job of writing to her audience. And to be fair, at times her writing is very clear and compelling--no easy task considering she's tackling a subject that, at its core, goes beyond words. All of that said, this is still definitely a worthwhile read. It's not just about any one concept or method, it's a comprehensive set of practices to free yourself from attachment to the false, surface layer, ego driven self in order to reach the real you--the you who can experience true joy that's not contingent upon your situation, not contingent upon money, status, getting what you want or finding that "special someone". I also liked how she makes it clear that none of these practices will make pain, fear or the ordinary troubles/emotions of life go away. What they will do is allow one to feel all of life fully without becoming attached. How often do we add to our misery by living in the past, replaying it over and over again, embellishing, adding commentary--letting the small snowball roll down the hill until it's big as a house? I've read a number of other books that cover roughly the same territory, each with its own slant and style. I'm glad to have found this book because, despite the occasional difficulties ciphering her meaning, I really feel it has a great deal to offer and has moved me forward in my personal journey.

A book that I shall always pick to read when things fall apart. This book has some much of insight. The reason for turning to this book again in future is, it can help you find answers/solution to your confusion/questions. Everytime you will read this book you'll find something that will open your eye to something different and help you deal with situations differently. Right from the 1st chapter Intimacy with Fear this book held my attention. Having spiritual bend I enjoyed this book every chapter, every paragraph, every line and every word. Surely to recommend this book to a lot of people to read it. Personally will also keep rereading coz it really helped me understand why I myself end up taking certain decisions which aren't in my best interest. Really am awesome book, can't put in words how amazing the experience was while reading this book. Opened my eye to a lot of deep down stuff specially related to fear based decisions. Looking forward to read more books written by @pemachödrön

Pema trasmette sempre grande profondità, saggezza e una visione ampia delle cose. A me è stato molto utile in un momento particolare della mia vita e ogni tanto ritorno a guardare alcuni punti salienti, riconoscendone la rilevanza e riportando la consapevolezza su quegli aspetti

Me gusta mucho esta temática ya que sigo el dharma desde hace tiempo. Pero aunque no se siga el dharma es un buen libro para cualquier persona espiritualmente hablando

This book is for everyone, at some time. Being human isn't as easy as it could be. She writes beautifully.

Very deep and profound, actionable and operational book which anyone who believes in making the world a better place should read.