Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen Meditation [Audio Cassette]

Pema Chodron (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 1999

Within the wisdom teachings of Buddhism, there are many stories that refer to its founder as the "Supreme Physician" — a healer of all illness — mental, physical, and spiritual. On Good Medicine, the remarkable American-born Tibetan nun known as Pema Chodron shares the gift of tonglen, Buddhism’s original prescription for using the difficulties in life as a way to widen our circle of compassion. Over three hours of meditation instruction for cutting through the obstacles in life "on the spot." Includes 12-page study guide.

Editorial Reviews

Book Description

Shares the gift of tonglen, a simple & elegant meditation system "for ordinary people like ourselves."

About the Author

Pema Chodron is an American Buddhist nun and one of the foremost students of Chogyam Trungpa, the renowned Tibetan meditation master. She is the author of The Places That Scare You, Comfortable with Uncertainty, The Wisdom of No Escape, Start Where You Are, and the bestselling When Things Fall Apart. Ani Pema ("Ani" is a Tibetan honorific for a nun) is the resident teacher at Gampo Abbey, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, the first Tibetan monastery in North America established for Westerners.

Product Details

• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Sounds True, Incorporated (August 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1564557049
• ISBN-13: 978-1564557049
• Product Dimensions: 7 x 4.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,940,750 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

51 of 55 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen, July 10, 2000

By 

Kate - See all my reviews

This review is from: Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen Meditation (Audio Cassette)

This two cassette tape series of the Tibetan Buddhist teaching of Tonglen is a wonderful companion to the various other tapes and books by Ane Pema Chodron. Her delightful manner creates a welcomed ease for the student when listening to and working with the depth of her teachings and the honored Tibetan lineage she so effortlessly expesses. Having a "beginner's mind," I have enjoyed using these particular tapes to begin my own Tonglen practice as part of my daily commute into San Francisco by bus. All of Pema Chodron's tapes are great personal journeys,each the gift of an individual and self-paced retreat. This series is similar to her Noble Heart series in terms of pacing and format, but gently focusses on the singular practice of Tonglen. This practice has changed me in ways I am only beginning to understand. Until I can run away to Gampo Abbey to study, I will ride my bus in the early morning and breathe in and out.

33 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good Medicine - excellent., July 28, 2001

By 

Robert Deming (Villanova, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen Meditation (Audio CD)

I first was introduced to Pema Chodron through the audio program "Awakening Compassion" - another great work. I then picked up a few books and "Good Medicine". The audio adds a fuller dimension to the message. You get a sense for how sincere and down to earth she is and this lends validity to the practice that you don't /can't pick up on from the books alone. This audio program is highly recommended! In contrast to "Awakining Compassion", I think the quality of the recording is much better - although the message and entertainment are excellent in both.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wise Recollections from a Life Lived with Compassion, December 14, 2006

By 

Rebecca Johnson "The Rebecca Review" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
(COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen Meditation (Audio CD)

Pema Chödrön believes we learn true compassion when we open our hearts and minds to a relationship with our own pain. This opens a doorway for compassion to be shown to others and can foster conflict resolution in situations that seemed impossible before learning "Tonglen."

"Difficulty as a way to achieve enlightenment" sounds quite correct and pain in life is almost inescapable. There are ways to lessen the pain of life when learning lessons and the faster we learn, the less emotional pain we may experience.

What is it that people truly learn from meditation? In this CD set we learn to make friends with ourselves, in order to learn true happiness. As we realize transitory elements of life do not bring long-term satisfaction, we enter a place where we transmute pain into love. Many artists find this healing and you can also learn to take negative experiences and mold them into a spiritually healing experience. It depends on how you look at your life in general.

The CD Set includes discussions about breathing techniques, meditation, tonglen practice, compassion, open-heartedness and the practice of mindfulness. An interesting discussion on "maitri" as the root of happiness is enlightening. The second CD guides you through a tonglen session and explores true stories of how tonglen helped people in everyday life.

Pema Chödrön shows you how to use your experiences to learn compassion towards others. She has a delicate and humorous repoire with her audience, making this CD set very enjoyable to listen to as she teaches you principles for enhancing your life with Tonglen Meditation.

~The Rebecca Review