Embracing Change: 70 Pema Chodron Quotes for Finding Peace
Welcome to our curated collection of Pema Chodron Quotes!
Step into the wonderful world of Pema Chödrön, where her words shine like stars in the sky! Pema Chödrön is a kind teacher who gives us wise advice to help us feel better when we are sad or upset. Her quotes are like little keys that can unlock big secrets on how to be happy and love others.
Each of her quotes is like finding a shiny coin on the road—it makes you smile and think. Pema teaches us to be nice to ourselves and everyone else, to stay strong when tough times come, and to find calm in our busy days.
Let’s explore some of her special words together and see how they can light up our lives!
Best Pema Chodron Quotes
#1
“The only way to ease our fear and be truly happy is to acknowledge our fear and look deeply at its source.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#2
“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#3
“You are the sky. Everything else – it’s just the weather.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#4
“Compassion is not a relationship between the healer and the wounded. It’s a relationship between equals.” – From The Places that Scare You
#5
“The most fundamental aggression to ourselves, the most fundamental harm we can do to ourselves, is to remain ignorant by not having the courage and the respect to look at ourselves honestly and gently.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#6
“Fear is a natural reaction to moving closer to the truth.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#7
“Only to the extent that we expose ourselves over and over to annihilation can that which is indestructible be found in us.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#8
“We think that if we just meditated enough or jogged enough or ate perfect food, everything would be perfect. But from the point of view of someone who is awake, that’s death. Seeking security or perfection, rejoicing in feeling confirmed and whole, self-contained and comfortable, is some kind of death.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#9
“The most difficult times for many of us are the ones we give ourselves.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#10
“To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#11
“Rather than being disheartened by the uncertainty of life, what if we accepted it and relaxed into it?” – From Comfortable with Uncertainty
#12
“Letting there be room for not knowing is the most important thing of all.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#13
“When we resist change, it’s called suffering. But when we can completely let go and not struggle against it, when we can embrace the groundlessness of our situation and relax into its dynamic quality, that’s called enlightenment.” – From Living Beautifully
#14
“Welcoming the unwelcome refers to the capacity to learn how to stay.” – From The Places that Scare You
#15
“We think that the point is to pass the test or to overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#16
“A further sign of health is that we don’t become undone by fear and trembling, but we take it as a message that it’s time to stop struggling and look directly at what’s threatening us.” – From The Places that Scare You
#17
“What you do for yourself – any gesture of kindness, any gesture of gentleness, any gesture of honesty and clear seeing toward yourself – will affect how you experience your world.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#18
“We are here to learn something from our pain.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#19
“It’s also helpful to realize that this very body that we have, that’s sitting right here right now… with its aches and its pleasures… is exactly what we need to be fully human, fully awake, fully alive.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#20
“The idea of karma is that you continually get the teachings that you need to open your heart.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#21
“By becoming intimate with how we close down and how we open up, we awaken our unlimited potential.” – From The Places that Scare You
#22
“People get into a heavy-duty sin and guilt trip, feeling that if things are going wrong, that means that they did something bad and they are being punished. That’s not the idea at all.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#23
“Sticking with uncertainty is how we learn to relax in the midst of chaos, how we learn to be cool when the ground starts to rumble.” – From Comfortable with Uncertainty
#24
“Patience is not about waiting, but the ability to keep a good attitude while working hard on your dreams.” – From The Places that Scare You
#25
“The root of suffering is resisting the certainty that no matter what the situation is, whether it’s pleasing or displeasing, you’re going to die, so instead of avoiding this truth, it’s better to embrace it.” – From The Places that Scare
#26
“Sometimes the only way to ever find yourself is to get completely lost.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#27
“We can use our lives to become more awake, to live in a constant state of uncertainty, without needing to know the outcome or how things will turn out.” – From Comfortable with Uncertainty
#28
“The future is completely open, and we are writing it moment to moment.” – From The Places that Scare You
#29
“Each moment is an opportunity to make a fresh start.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#30
“The present moment is the perfect teacher, and, lucky for us, it’s with us wherever we are.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#31
“All the wars, all the hatred, all the ignorance in the world come out of being so invested in our opinions.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#32
“The truth you believe and cling to makes you unavailable to hear anything new.” – From The Places that Scare You
#33
“When we think that something is going to bring us pleasure, we don’t know what’s really going to happen. When we think something is going to give us misery, we don’t know.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#34
“Acknowledging the truth is not about doing something. It’s about being willing to face what we are already experiencing.” – From The Places that Scare You
#35
“Being satisfied with what we already have is a magical golden key to being alive in a full, unrestricted, and inspired way.” – From The Places that Scare You
50+ Adelaide Hall Quotes: Unlocking the Power of Creativity
More Quotes By Pema Chodron
#36
“Suffering begins to dissolve when we can question the belief or the hope that there’s anywhere to hide.” – From Comfortable with Uncertainty
#37
“Every moment is unique, unknown, completely fresh.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#38
“We think that the point is to pass the test or overcome the problem, but the truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again. It’s just like that.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#39
“You are the sky. Everything else is just the weather.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#40
“To be fully alive, fully human, and completely awake is to be continually thrown out of the nest.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#41
“The most difficult times for many of us are the ones we give ourselves.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#42
“Moving closer to the truth and into the vastness of our world is often an uncomfortable journey.” – From The Places that Scare You
#43
“The essence of bravery is being without self-deception.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#44
“Pain is not a punishment; pleasure is not a reward.” – From Comfortable with Uncertainty
#45
“We habitually erect a barrier called blame that keeps us from communicating genuinely with others, and we fortify it with our concepts of who’s right and who’s wrong.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#46
“If we learn to open our hearts, anyone, including the people who drive us crazy, can be our teacher.” – From The Places that Scare You
#47
“True compassion does not come from wanting to help out those less fortunate than ourselves but from realizing our kinship with all beings.” – From Start Where You Are
#48
“The greatest obstacle to connecting with our joy is resentment.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#49
“Sometimes joy is the source of our smile, but sometimes a smile can be the source of our joy.” – From The Places that Scare You
#50
“Meditation practice isn’t about trying to throw ourselves away and become something better. It’s about befriending who we are already.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#51
“We don’t set out to save the world; we set out to wonder how other people are doing and to reflect on how our actions affect other people’s hearts.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#52
“It’s not what happens to us, but our response to what happens to us that hurts us.” – From The Places that Scare You
#53
“When you begin to touch your heart or let your heart be touched, you begin to discover that it’s bottomless.” – From The Places that Scare You
#54
“Not causing harm requires staying awake. Part of being awake is slowing down enough to notice what we say and do.” – From The Places that Scare You
#55
“Instead of running from difficult emotions or indulging in them, we can breathe through them, acknowledge them, and learn from them.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#56
“We are always in transition. If we can relax and be with the uncertainty, the insecurity of it, we can see it as a journey, an adventure, and an exploration.” – From The Places that Scare You
#57
“The central question of a warrior’s training is not how we avoid uncertainty and fear but how we relate to discomfort.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#58
“Each time we drop our complaints and allow everyday good fortune to inspire us, we enter the warrior’s world.” – From The Places that Scare You
#59
“Chaos should be regarded as extremely good news.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#60
“We can make ourselves miserable or we can make ourselves strong. The amount of effort is the same.” – From The Places that Scare You
#61
“The most precious opportunity presents itself when we come to the place where we think we can’t handle whatever is happening.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#62
“Trying to run away is never the answer to being a fully human being. Running away from the immediacy of our experience is like preferring death to life.” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#63
“Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.” – From The Places that Scare You
#64
“What we reject out there is what we reject in ourselves.” – From The Places that Scare You
#65
“When things fall apart and we’re on the verge of what we know not what, the test for each of us is to stay on that brink and not concretize.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#66
“The truth is that things don’t really get solved. They come together and they fall apart. Then they come together again and fall apart again.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#67
“What is in front of us is the world of our perceptions, the world of our thoughts, the world of our emotions, and the world of our senses.” – From When Things Fall Apart
#68
“We can’t be in the present moment and run our storylines at the same time!” – From The Wisdom of No Escape
#69
“When you wake up in the morning, let your first thought be, ‘What is my intention for today?'” – From When Things Fall Apart
#70
“Becoming intimate with the queasy feeling of being in the middle of nowhere only makes our hearts more tender.” – From The Places that Scare You
As we wrap up our exploration of Pema Chödrön’s enlightening quotes, remember that her words are like gentle guides on the bumpy road of life. Each quote is a small light, helping us see through the dark moments and reminding us to embrace change with a brave heart.
Keep these gems close and pull them out whenever you need a spark of wisdom or a push to move forward. May Pema Chödrön’s insights inspire you to find peace and courage, no matter where your journey takes you.
Let her wisdom be a friendly whisper in your ear, encouraging you to grow and thrive each day.
