07.10.2026 3 Teachings from Pema Chödrön American Buddhist nun and teacher Pema Chödrön teaches that if we just open ourselves up to the world — leave a gap in our storyline, take a pause from our thoughts — we can see more, hear more, taste, and feel more. The reason why we stay cocooned in our head, the reason why we aren’t open, is because we’re trying to protect ourselves from pain. “Once you open, you’re open to the whole thing — both the sorrow and the beauty,” she said to me once at a retreat. “This does require courage — to allow yourself to feel what you feel and be with yourself. But it connects you with humanity; you realize your interconnectedness with other people. It’s a whole different experience of being alive.” In our special publication honoring Pema’s 90th birthday, Pema Chödrön: A Life of Wisdom & Compassion, readers will learn how to open themselves to the world, find fearlessness in such uncertain times, and live with courage. For four-plus decades, Lion’s Roar has been a trusted source for anyone who’s wanted to learn more about the important figures in the world of Buddhism.  Below, you’ll find three of Pema’s teachings featured in this special issue. We’re honored to share her teachings with you. —Andrea Miller, Editor, Lion’s Roar magazine What to Do When the Going Gets Rough Pema Chödrön on four ways to hold our minds steady and hearts open when facing difficult people or circumstances. When someone who is confused or distressed starts to harm us, we can easily understand that she doesn’t know what she is doing. There is the possibility of contacting our heart and feeling sadness that she is out of control and is harming herself by hurting others. There is the possibility that even though we feel fear, we do not feel hatred or anger. Instead we might feel inspired to help this person if we can. Actually, a person in distress are far more rational than a grounded person who harms us, for that so-called sane person has the potential to realize that in acting aggressively he is sowing seeds of his own confusion and dissatisfaction. His present aggression is strengthening future, more intense habits of aggression. He is creating his own soap opera. This kind of life is painful and lonely. The one who harms us is under the influence of patterns that could continue to produce suffering forever. ADVERTISEMENT Showing Up for Your Life If you’re jealous or angry or lonely, says Pema Chödrön, don’t run from the feeling.   Each time you stay present with fear and uncertainty, you’re letting go of a habitual way of finding security and comfort. All those brain studies about meditation—where they place people in MRI machines or put electrodes on their heads—show us that each time you dare to remain where you are and do something completely fresh, unconventional, and nonhabitual, you open up new pathways in the brain. You experience that as strength and it builds your capacity to be open the next time around. By contrast, each time you follow your habitual approach, you reinforce the old pathway and make it more likely that you’ll go that way once again next time around. Reversing Ego’s Logic Pema Chödron gives a teaching on Tonglen and Lojong.   The slogan “Begin the sequence of taking and sending with yourself” is getting at the point that compassion starts with making friends with ourselves, and particularly with our poisons—the messy areas. As we practice tonglen—taking and sending—and contemplate the lojong (mind training), gradually it begins to dawn on us how totally interconnected we all are. Now people know that what we do to the rivers in South America affects the whole world, and what we do to the air in Alaska affects the whole world. Everything is interrelated—including ourselves, so this is very important, this making friends with ourselves. It’s the key to a more sane compassionate planet.

Pema Chödrön on Transforming Your Emotions; Tara: The Unconquerable Heroine; How to Speak Up in Difficult Moments

 

07.07.2026 Pema Chödrön’s 3 Ways to Transform Your Emotions At the root of our suffering are the destructive emotions that Buddhism calls the kleshas, or poisons. Pema Chödrön teaches us a three-step practice to transform their energy from a cause of suffering into a path to awakening. Explore our special commemorative edition, Pema Chödrön: A Life of Wisdom & Compassion, published in celebration in Pema Chödrön’s 90th birthday this week, featuring a rich collection of teachings, conversations, and meditations. READ MORE Tara: The Unconquerable Heroine Tara is the fully awakened buddha who appears in twenty-one forms. In this teaching on the middle seven emanations, Lama Döndrup Drölma explores the invincible clarity that restores balance after fear, offering a way to recognize this clarity within ourselves. READ MORE How to Speak Up in Difficult Moments Mary Stancavage reflects on how the Eightfold Path can help us move through fear, find our voice, and respond to injustice with wisdom and compassion. READ MORE ADVERTISEMENT Buddhism A-Z: Equanimity Equanimity, a virtue developed by Buddhist meditation and mindfulness practice, refers to a profound quality of strength and evenness of mind undisturbed by emotional upheavals. READ MORE Share Your Wisdom: How has your practice changed the way you relate to anger? Send your answer (approximately two to six sentences), location (city/town, state/province/country), and a high-resolution photo of yourself to themoment@lionsroar.com. READ MORE Featured Workshop Why Nothing Is Ever Enough: Working with No-Self and the Sense of Lack Zen teacher and philosopher David Loy unpacks one of Buddhism’s most important and misunderstood teachings, no-self, through the lens of what he calls the “sense of lack”: the nagging feeling that something is missing, that we’re not quite real or adequate enough. Drawing on Freud, Ernest Becker, and Dogen, Loy shows how our endless “lack projects” like money, fame, romance, and power are symptoms of a deeper confusion, and how Zen practice offers genuine help. VIEW DETAILS

Celebrating the Dalai Lama

 

07.03.2026 The Dalai Lama’s Wisdom His Holiness the Dalai Lama, the spiritual leader of Tibet and one of the most beloved and recognized leaders of our time, will turn 91 on Monday. His Holiness is the fourteenth person to be recognized as a Dalai Lama, believed to be a manifestation of Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion. The self-proclaimed “simple monk” has dedicated his life to that spirit of compassion, and in turn has made a worldwide impact with his service as a statesman, spiritual teacher, and theologian. In a time when many of us are seeking clarity, resilience, and connection, the teachings of His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama offer a powerful truth: world peace begins with peace in oneself. Below, you’ll find three teachings from the Dalai Lama that exemplify his enduring vision for a kinder, more loving world. May his wisdom awaken the heart of compassion in you. —Lilly Greenblatt, Digital Editor, Lion’s Roar Living the Compassionate Life The Dalai Lama explains how the Buddhist teachings of mindfulness and compassion lead inevitably to feelings of self-confidence and kindness. Kindness and a good heart form the underlying foundation for our success in this life, our progress on the spiritual path, and our fulfillment of our ultimate aspiration: the attainment of full enlightenment. Hence, compassion and a good heart are not only important at the beginning but also in the middle and at the end. Their necessity and value are not limited to any specific time, place, society or culture. Thus, we need compassion and human affection not only to survive; they are the ultimate sources of success in life. Selfish ways of thinking not only harm others, they prevent the very happiness we ourselves desire. The time has come to think more wisely, hasn’t it? This is my belief. ADVERTISEMENT Only Genuine Compassion Will Do It’s not enough to simply to believe compassion is important. We must transform our thoughts and behaviour on a daily basis to cultivate compassion.   Self-centeredness inhibits our love for others, and we are all afflicted by it to one degree or another. For true happiness to come about, we need a calm mind, and such peace of mind is brought about only by a compassionate attitude. How can we develop this attitude? Obviously, it is not enough for us simply to believe that compassion is important and to think about how nice it is! We need to make a concerted effort to develop it; we must use all the events of our daily life to transform our thoughts and behavior. Don’t Let Hatred Destroy Your Practice His Holiness the Dalai Lama takes an in-depth look at how we can work with anger and hatred in our practice.   Genuine peace of mind is rooted in affection and compassion. There is a very high level of sensitivity and feeling involved. So long as we lack inner discipline, an inner calmness of mind, then no matter what external facilities or conditions we may have, they will never give us the feeling of joy and happiness that we seek. On the other hand, if we possess this inner quality — that is, calmness of mind, a degree of stability within — then even if we lack various external facilities that are normally considered necessary for a happy and joyful life, it is still possible to live a happy and joyful life.