Thubten Chodron - Awaken Every Day: 365 Buddhist Reflections to Invite Mindfulness and Joy

We live in an era when the world has become even more unpredictable; we dont know what information we can trust, and our communities feel divided. People want to know how to maintain a positive attitude and not succumb to despair or cynicism. All living beings want happiness and not suffering, and we human beings in particular seek meaning in our lives. We want to understand life and contribute to the well-being of others. Being confused about what causes true happiness and what causes suffering, we often sabotage our own and others well-being. But the inner wish to learn and do better remains.

In recent years, Sravasti Abbey has received a stream of requests to speak about how to cultivate a constructive, healthy, and realistic motivation given what is happening in the country and the world. Reading a short spiritual passage each day steers us in a positive direction. We learn how to bring mindfulness and joy into our lives and how to subdue anger and increase compassion. Such knowledge is invaluable.

The idea for this book arose fortuitously. A friend in Singapore asked me to write a passage for each day of the year that people could read to learn about the Dharmathe Buddhas precious teachingsand be inspired to become the kind of person they want to be. Awaken Every Day: 365 Buddhist Reflections to Invite Mindfulness and Joy was born.

This book was written for Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike, for all of us who want to learn how to subdue our anger and unruly desires and increase our compassion and wisdom. So many of the Buddhas teachings consist of practical methods that people of all faiths, as well as those who follow secular ethics, can embrace. For the most part, these daily reflections do not follow any particular sequence, so feel free to dip into them as you please. You may want to make the passage you read the theme of your day, using this brief teaching to guide you as you go about your daily activities. Or you may want to return to a specific entry repeatedly because it speaks to your heart. You will find that sentences in italics indicate thoughts, and sentences in quotation marks indicate spoken words. All the topics mentioned in Awaken Every Day are expanded in my other books as well as on my website (https://thubtenchodron.org) and in the daily talks I and other monastics give at Sravasti Abbey, many of which can be found at www.youtube.com/user/sravastiabbey.

The Buddha spoke of awakening from the sleep of ignorance regarding how phenomena actually exist as being the lasting state of freedom, joy, and fulfillment that is our spiritual aim. Just as you awaken each day from a good nights sleep, may you, by reading this book, progress on the path to awakening from the ignorance and disturbing emotions that cloud the brilliance of your buddha-nature.

My utmost respect and gratitude goes to the buddhas, bodhisattvas, and spiritual mentors who teach and guide us beings who mean well but who, due to our ignorance, create the causes of suffering for ourselves and others.

My teachersespecially His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tsenzhap Serkong Rinpoche, and Kyabje Zopa Rinpochehave been kind in sharing the Dharma with me over many decades. My motivation and inspiration comes from them, and my hope is to pass some of that on to you.

I thank my friends at Sravasti Abbey for their help and support while working on this volume, especially Venerables Thubten Tsultrim, Thubten Damcho, and Thubten Lamsel.

All errors are my own.

Bhiksuni Thubten Chodron

Sravasti Abbey, Newport, Washington

365 Buddhist Reflections
to Invite Mindfulness and Joy

1

Another Day to Practice

Today we woke up, so the day started off well. We can rejoice that we have another day to learn and practice the Buddhas teachings (the Dharma), to cultivate a kind heart, and to let go of the misconceptions and disturbing emotions that cloud our minds. We dont know how long well live or when death will come, so we need to be fully present in life and make wise decisions. Lets generate the intention to take care in our thoughts, words, and deeds, since what we do today will have consequences for ourselves and others far into the future.