From this perspective we don't need to change you can feel as wretched as you like, and you're still a good candidate for enlightenment. Looking at ourselves this way is very different from our usual habit. We are one blink of an eye away from being fully awake. But all the time our warmth and brilliance are right here. They are like clouds that temporarily block the sun. All these trips that we lay on ourselves-the heavy-duty fearing that we're bad and hoping that we're good, the identities that we so dearly cling to, the rage, the jealousy, and the addictions of all kinds-never touch our basic wealth. It is here in all that lives, never marred and completely whole.

No matter how committed we are to unkindness, selfishness, or greed, the genuine heart of bodhichitta cannot be lost. The jewel can be brought out into the light at any time, and it will glow as brilliantly as if nothing had ever happened. Just as a jewel that has been buried in the earth for a million years is not discolored or harmed, in the same way this noble heart is not affected by all of our kicking and screaming. In the midst of loneliness, in the midst of fear, in the middle of feeling misunderstood and rejected is the heartbeat of all things, the genuine heart of sadness. This is the time to touch the genuine heart of bodhichitta. When inspiration has become hidden, when we feel ready to give up, this is the time when healing can be found in the tenderness of pain itself. It is said that in difficult times, it is only bodhichitta that heals. Just as butter is inherent in milk and oil is inherent in a sesame seed, this soft spot is inherent in you and me. We discussed the first two readings from The Pocket Pema Chödrön.īodhichitta is a Sanskrit word that means “noble or awakened heart.' It is said to be present in all beings.

The Pocket Pema Chödrön by Pema Chödrön