Pema Chodron Quotes

Quiet time and solitude are vital to helping me keep perspective. I consider myself fortunate to have so much quiet built into my profession. I spend long hours by myself at my easel. And while I work, I think-of the future, of my loved ones, of God's goodness and the many exciting opportunities that surround me. I ponder the challenges I face, the needs of others, the direction my life is going.

It's a transformative experience to simply pause instead of immediately fill up the space. By waiting, we begin to connect with fundamental restlessness as well as fundamental spaciousness. -Pema Chodron, from "When Things Fall Apart

Its never too late to take a moment to look.

Silence is the space where man wakes up.

At a certain point, you say to the woods, to the sea, to the mountains, the world, Now I am ready. Now I will stop and be wholly attentive. You empty yourself and wait, listening.

For me, writing is a way of thinking. I write in a journal a lot. I'm a very impatient person, so writing and meditation allow me to slow down and watch my mind; they are containers that keep me in place, hold me still.

When I was in lower school, I graduated from fourth grade, and the principal gave us a summer assignment to take a 30-minute reflection period every day. And, of course, there were no cell phones at the time. She said to just think. And that's lost. It doesn't exist anymore. Just imagine being on a couch and just thinking.

Never be afraid to sit a while and think.

Some of the most powerful times are when we're quiet.

I don't really take a step back too often to see what's going on.

All of our great traditions, religious, contemplative and artistic, say that you must a learn how to be alone - and have a relationship with silence. It is difficult, but it can start with just the tiniest quiet moment.

I feel like I'd invested so much in the physical side of my life: running marathons - I brought a SEAL into my house - I have a trainer. But I've invested very little on the inner work, and in a world of distractions, I felt like to have the whole picture, I really had to spend a little time alone and work on being present.

I firmly believe that if we all just took a little time - like 10 or 15 minutes a day - to do nothing but sit calmly with our thoughts, this world would be a much better place.

There are times when we stop, we sit still. We listen and breezes from a whole other world begin to whisper.

Take time to be quiet.

The heart beats louder and the soul hears quicker in silence and solitude.

Contemplation must bring forth right action in order to permit further growth.

But for me I think it's just about taking that time of reflection and contemplation. That's probably my process in every decision that I make: to make sure that I spend time just with myself, and really times of silence and mediation to go through that process; and music is a big part of that as well.

Men do not mirror themselves in running water; they mirror themselves in still water.

The teaching arises out of the stillness. But when I'm alone, there's only the stillness, and that is my favorite place.

It isn't necessary that you leave home. Sit at your desk and listen. Don't even listen, just wait. Don't wait, be still and alone. The whole world will offer itself to you.

I think people can find a breath and listen sometimes.

Now it is time to sit quiet, face to face with thee, and to sing dedication of life in this silent and overflowing leisure.

All that you need is just to be silent and listen to existence.

Commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still.