108 Faces of Buddha

                      Namaste!  I am bowing to everyone!  

I have been talking about and practicing Tonglen meditation for a couple of years.  With all of the tension in the world, I am now making an effort to introduce Tonglen to my friends and family.  Developed by Tibetan Buddhists, this meditation with its unique breathing technique, offers us a chance to feel more helpful in situations.

It has helped me get through lots of physical pain as well as the anxiety caused by illness and now it is helping with the frustration of  dealing with environmental, political and social issues.  It is a different technique in that you take in negative energy and send out positive energy.

With all the information that is out there, you will be able to create a Tonglen practice that works for you.  My aim, here on this page, is to give you a glimpse into this meditation with the assistance of Pema Chodron, a Tibetan Buddhist nun, who has a very real and relaxed manner in teaching.  


Pema says: 

           "Tonglen practice, also known as “taking and 
           sending,” reverses our usual logic of avoiding     
           suffering and seeking pleasure. In tonglen 
           practice, we visualize taking in the pain of others 
          with every in-breath and sending out whatever 
          will benefit them on the out-breath. In the process, 
          we become liberated from age-old patterns of   
          selfishness. We begin to feel love for both ourselves 
          and others; we begin to take care of ourselves and  
          others."


The drawing below shows you the process -- breathing in the negative dark energy which could be an emotion or happening and then breathing out the energy of a desired positive outcome.

This is how I use it.  I will breathe in my unsettling and  anxious feeling.  I look internally to how this anxiousness feels.  And then I will breathe out peace, calmness, serenity.  Next I will do this same process for someone that I know is experiencing the similar feelings.  I will breathe in her anxious feelings with empathy and breathe out calmness. Lastly, I will move on to all those in the whole world who are feeling anxious.  I will breathe in that anxious feeling and then I will exhale with the thought of peace for all.  I spend some time with each area of this meditation.

Now a short video featuring Pema giving us more information and some more clarity.  Remember there are different styles of tonglen.  I suggest you do some research ...

I find this is a meditation that works for me.  You can use it with anger, pain, any negative emotion.  It is engaging my practice to help myself and to help others.  When you start with yourself, it enables you to feel what others are feeling.  A really easy one is to just breathe in fear and breathe out love starting with yourself, then someone else, and ending with the whole planet.  Another one is breathing in ignorance and breathing out wisdom.  It really does ease up the uncomfortable feelings of not being able to do something.
                             


                             Thank you for being here
                                    on the pathway!