Happy Belated Birthday, Pema Chodron

Paper lotus flowers. Photo. Britannica ImageQuest, Encyclopædia Britannica, 25 May 2016.
quest.eb.com/search/300_260268/1/300_260268/cite. Accessed 29 Aug 2017.

Pema Chödrön, who was born on July 14, 1936, is an American Tibetan Buddhist. She was born Deirdre Blomfield-Brown and is a graduate of Miss Porter's School in Connecticut and the University of California at Berkeley. Pema worked as an elementary school teacher in California and New Mexico and is a mother and grandmother.

When Pema traveled to the French Alps, she met Lama Chime Rinpoche and began her Tibetan Buddhism studies. She began her novitiate as a nun in 1974 and when the Sixteenth Karmapa to England where she was studying, Pema was official ordained.

Pema's most profound and enlightening experiences as a student were with her teacher Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, until his death in 1987. In 1984, Pema moved to Cape Breton, Nova Scotia and became the director of Gampo Abbey and established a monastery for Western monks and nuns. Pema teaches in the United States and Canada and has recently completed an extended silent retreat.

Reading Pema Chödrön's books can help people from any faith perspective - or no faith at all, take responsibility for one's feelings, entrenched complexes, and cultivate a compassionate detachment from fear, self-absorption, and delusions. Her wisdom and clarity makes even the most challenging day possible to get through with some compassion and grace. I turn to Pema Chödrön for guidance and to see how a grown-up would handle any situation. Pema Chödrön isn't a perfect person, which she cheerfully owns up to by sharing her own experiences that anyone could relate to. What she holds out is the hope of trying again to get back onto the path when we are lead astray by our pride and expectations.

Always Maintain a Joyful Mind: And Other Lojong Teachings On Awakening Compassion and Fearlessness by Pema Chödrön 

Comfortable With Uncertainty: 108 Teachings on Cultivating Fearlessness and Compassion  by Pema Chödrön

Fail, Fail Again, Fail Better by Pema Chödrön

How to Meditate: A Practical Guide to Making Friends With Your Mind  by Pema Chödrön

Living Beautifully With Uncertainty and Change by Pema Chödrön

The Myth of Freedom and the Way of Meditation by Chögyam Trungpa

No Time to Lose: A Timely Guide to the Way of the Bodhisattva by Pema Chödrön

Practicing Peace In Times of War by Pema Chödrön

Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living by Pema Chödrön

Taking the Leap: Freeing Ourselves From Old Habits and Fear by Pema Chödrön

Training the Mind and Cultivating Loving Kindness by Chögyam Trungpa

When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice For Difficult Times by Pema Chödrön

The Wisdom of No Escape: and the Path of Loving-Kindness byPema Chödrön

Agnosticism: The Divine "Maybe"

Temple of Doubt and Hope, Gothenburg, Sweden, Kent Karlsson. Photograph. Encyclopædia Britannica ImageQuest. Accessed Jun 3, 2017.
http://quest.eb.com/search/104_316754/1/104_316754/cite.

You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars;
you have a right to be here.
And whether or not it is clear to you,
no doubt the universe is unfolding as it should.

Therefore be at peace with God,
whatever you conceive Him to be,
and whatever your labors and aspirations,
in the noisy confusion of life keep peace with your soul. 

-Max Ehrman "The Desiderata"

In the beginning, there was the smell of the polished wooden pew and the light streaming through the glorious stained glass windows of Holy Rosary Catholic Church, prayers at bedtime, and my illustrated children's Bible that omitted the more bloodthirsty details. I was five years old when I experienced my first questions about creation while coloring a Tyrannosaurus Rex in my coloring book: Which came first? The dinosaurs or God?

My scrupulosity was wired with an obsessive-compulsive anxiety. On a hike with my father as a preteen girl, I wanted to know if we would at least make it to the 5:00 p.m. Mass. He pointed out that we were in nature, which was more than sufficiently worshipful. I seethed all the way uphill, hoping that I was covered by last week's attendance if a mountain lion suddenly appeared to eat me and dispatch me to the hereafter.

In adulthood, I strayed from Catholicism and became a church-hopping Goldilocks sampling all the Protestant denominations. This church was too big, too small, too hot, too cold, too hard, and too soft. It was never just right, but if I could find a church to meet my precise needs, I would be comfortable and my doubts could be assuaged.

The Merriam Webster Dictionary defines an agnostic as :a person who holds the view that any ultimate reality (such as God) is unknown and probably unknowable; broadly: one who is not committed to believing in either the existence or the nonexistence of God or a god.

Here are some books for seekers of all or no denominations:


Agnostic: A Spirited Manifesto by Lesley Hazleton

The Astronomy Bible: The Definitive Guide to the Night Sky and the Universe by Heather Couper and Nigel Henbest.

  
Buddhism Without Beliefs: A Contemporary Guide to Awakening by Stephen Batchelor 

Catching the Big Fish: Meditation, Consciousness, and Creativity by David Lynch

The Curious Nature Guide: Explore the Natural Wonders All Around You by Clare Walker Leslie.

Finding Your Moral Compass: Transformative Principles to Guide You in Recovery and Life by Craig Nakken.

Divinity of Doubt: The God Question by Vincent Bugliosi

The Good Book: A Humanist Bible by A.C. Grayling 

In Praise of Doubt: How to Have Convictions Without Becoming a Fanatic by Peter L. Berger and Anton C. Zijderveld

The Moral Arc: How Science and Reason Lead Humanity Toward Truth, Justice, and Freedom by Michael Shermer

The Nature Fix: Why Nature Makes Us Happier, Healthier, and More Creative by Florence Williams

 
Sacred Stacks: The Higher Purpose of Libraries and Librarianship (ebook) by Nancy Kalikow Maxwell

10 Things Your Minister Wants To Tell You: (But Can't, Because He Needs the Job) by Oliver "Buzz" Thomas. 

The Spiral Staircase: My Climb Out of Darkness by Karen Armstrong

Through the Narrow Gate by Karen Armstrong

To Believe or Not to Believe: The Social and Neurological Consequences of Belief Systems by Rahasya Poe

Compassion For Yourself, Compassion For the World

That's what I consider true generosity: You give your all, and yet you always feel as if it costs you nothing.
~Simone de Beauvoir

When we give cheerfully and accept gratefully, everyone is blessed.
~Maya Angelou

"Do unto others as you would have others do unto you." Isn't that the Golden Rule? That's the one we learned as kids. Lately, we sometimes feel that's become "every man for himself." Did you know  the word "compassion" means "to suffer together"?  (It's built from the Latin root "'passio', which means to suffer, paired with the Latin prefix 'com', meaning together.") It might sound daunting to share someone's suffering, but all that really entails is trying to find commonalities, acting on empathy, teaching others, being mindful, expressing gratitude, not emphasizing money, and being kind to yourself, according to Huffington Post.

Don't forget that crucial last bit - be kind to yourself, too! The Dalai Lama says "If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion.” We've collected a number of titles that will help remind you to flex your compassion muscle in your dealings with yourself and others, through all life's stages - some books have a more spiritual bent and some are more secular, so we hope you'll be able to find something that floats your boat.

the Latin root “passio”, which means to suffer, paired with the Latin prefix “com”, meaning together – to suffer together. - See more at: http://ccare.stanford.edu/research/wiki/compassion-definitions/compassion/#sthash.ij84ckmR.dpuf

the Latin root “passio”, which means to suffer, paired with the Latin prefix “com”, meaning together – to suffer together. - See more at: http://ccare.stanford.edu/research/wiki/compassion-definitions/compassion/#sthash.ij84ckmR.dpuf

Twelve Steps to a Compassionate Life by Karen Armstrong 

Self-Compassion: The Proven Power of Being Kind to Yourself by Kristin Neff, PH.D

Uncovering Happiness: Overcoming Depression With Mindfulness and Self-Compassion by Elisha Goldstein 

Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World by Matthieu Ricard 

Always Maintain a Joyful Mind and Other Lojong Teachings on Awakening Compassion and Fearlessness by Pema Chödrön

The Meaning of Nice: How Compassion and Civility Can Change Your Life (And the World) by Joan Duncan Oliver  

Changing the Way We Die: Compassionate End-of-Life Care and the Hospice Movement by Fran Smith and Sheila Himmel

How to Be Compassionate: A Handbook for Creating Inner Peace and a Happier World by His Holiness the Dalai Lama [Playaway]

The Name of God Is Mercy: A Conversation With Andrea Tornielli by Pope Francis

The Compassionate Mind: A New Approach to Life's Challenges by Paul Gilbert

The End-of-Life Handbook: A Compassionate Guide to Connecting With and Caring For a Dying Loved One by David B. Feldman, S. Andrew Lasher Jr. 

Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living by Pema Chödrön

 

The Art of Asking by Amanda Palmer

The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed To Be and Embrace Who You Are by Brené Brown  

My Mercy Encompasses All: The Koran's Teachings On Compassion, Peace & Love gathered & introduced by Reza Shah-Kazemi; with a foreword by Wendell Berry