--- title: "8 Down and Quotes By Pema Chödrön" description: "8 Down and quotes by Pema Chödrön. Plus more from Pema Chödrön and more Down and sayings from other authors." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/488/pema-ch-dr-n-327_awake_not-causing-harm-requires-staying-awake_311217.jpg" --- > [Not causing harm requires staying awake. Part of being awake is slowing down enough to notice what we say and do. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/not-causing-harm-requires-staying-awake-part-of-being-awake-is/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/488/pema-ch-dr-n-327_awake_not-causing-harm-requires-staying-awake_311217.jpg) > [We feel that we have to be right so that we can feel good. We don’t want to be wrong because then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/we-feel-that-we-have-to-be-right-so-that-we-can-feel-good-we-don-t/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7aa/pema-ch-dr-n-327_business_we-feel-that-we-have-to-be-right-so-that_788535.png) > [On the journey of the warrior-bodhisattva, the path goes down, not up, as if the mountain pointed toward the earth instead of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/on-the-journey-of-the-warrior-bodhisattva-the-path-goes-down-not-up/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00c/pema-ch-dr-n-327_aggression_on-the-journey-of-the-warrior-bodhisattv_915930.jpg) > [We feel that we have to be right so that we can feel good... The whole right and wrong business closes us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/we-feel-that-we-have-to-be-right-so-that-we-can-feel-good-the-whole/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/220/pema-ch-dr-n-327_business_we-feel-that-we-have-to-be-right-so-that_2075946.png) > [By becoming intimate with how we close down and how we open up, we awaken our unlimited potential.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/by-becoming-intimate-with-how-we-close-down-and-how-we-open-up-we/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/539/pema-ch-dr-n-327_awaken_by-becoming-intimate-with-how-we-close-d_2291576.png) > [Rejoicing in the good fortune of others is a practice that can help us when we feel emotionally shut down and unable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/rejoicing-in-the-good-fortune-of-others-is-a-practice-that-can-help/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/278/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_rejoicing-in-the-good-fortune-of-others_2474953.jpg) > [We could learn to stop when the sun goes down and when the sun comes up. We could learn to listen to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/we-could-learn-to-stop-when-the-sun-goes-down-and-when-the-sun-comes/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9c8/pema-ch-dr-n-327_calm_we-could-learn-to-stop-when-the-sun-goes_2609073.jpg) > [When things are shaky and nothing is working, we might realize that we are on the verge of something. We might realize…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/when-things-are-shaky-and-nothing-is-working-we-might-realize-that-we-2/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_when-things-are-shaky-and-nothing-is-wor_2829094.jpg) ## Other authors on Down and ## More by Pema Chödrön > [“LIFE’S work is to wake up, to let the things that enter into your life wake you up rather than put you to sleep.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/life-s-work-is-to-wake-up-to-let-the-things-that-enter-into-your-life/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [Since death is certain and the time of death is uncertain, what is the most important thing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/since-death-is-certain-and-the-time-of-death-is-uncertain-what-is-the/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [Buddhist words such as compassion and emptiness don't mean much until we start cultivating our innate ability simply to be there with pain with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/buddhist-words-such-as-compassion-and-emptiness-don-t-mean-much-until/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [The essence of generosity is letting go. Pain is always a sign that we are holding on to something - usually ourselves.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/the-essence-of-generosity-is-letting-go-pain-is-always-a-sign-that-we/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“If the object of meditation were something concrete, something solid and graspable - an image or a statue or a dot on the floor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/if-the-object-of-meditation-were-something-concrete-something-solid/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [It's a transformative experience to simply pause instead of immediately fill up the space. By waiting, we begin to connect with fundamental restlessness as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/it-s-a-transformative-experience-to-simply-pause-instead-of/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“The essence of life is that it’s challenging. Sometimes it is sweet, and sometimes it is bitter. Sometimes your body tenses, and sometimes it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/the-essence-of-life-is-that-it-s-challenging-sometimes-it-is-sweet/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [If we run a hundred miles an hour to the other end of the continent in order to get away from the obstacle, we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/if-we-run-a-hundred-miles-an-hour-to-the-other-end-of-the-continent/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“But in this meditation technique, we are with the out-breath; there's no particular instruction about what to do until the next out-breath.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/but-in-this-meditation-technique-we-are-with-the-out-breath-there-s/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know. Nothing ever really attacks us except our own confusion. Perhaps…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/nothing-ever-goes-away-until-it-has-taught-us-what-we-need-to-know/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [So even if the hot loneliness is there, and for 1.6 seconds we sit with that restlessness when yesterday we couldn't sit for even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/so-even-if-the-hot-loneliness-is-there-and-for-1-6-seconds-we-sit/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [If you have rage and righteously act it out and blame it all on others, it's really you who suffers. The other people and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/if-you-have-rage-and-righteously-act-it-out-and-blame-it-all-on/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [“When we realize that the path is the goal, there’s a sense of workability. Trungpa Rinpoche said, “Whatever occurs in the confused mind is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/when-we-realize-that-the-path-is-the-goal-there-s-a-sense-of/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [Every day is a new opportunity to work with what you have inside toward enlightenment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/every-day-is-a-new-opportunity-to-work-with-what-you-have-inside/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [If someone comes along and shoots an arrow into your heart, it’s fruitless to stand there and yell at the person. It would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/if-someone-comes-along-and-shoots-an-arrow-into-your-heart-it-s/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "ItemList", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/down-and/pema-ch-dr-n/#itemlist", "name": "8 Down and Quotes By Pema Chödrön", "numberOfItems": 8, "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Not causing harm requires staying awake. Part of being awake is slowing down enough to notice what we say and do. The more we witness our emotional chain reactions and understand how they work, the easier it is to refrain. 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Rejoicing generates good will.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pema Chödrön" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/rejoicing-in-the-good-fortune-of-others-is-a-practice-that-can-help/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/278/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_rejoicing-in-the-good-fortune-of-others_2474953.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/278/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_rejoicing-in-the-good-fortune-of-others_2474953.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/278/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_rejoicing-in-the-good-fortune-of-others_2474953.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Rejoicing in the good fortune of others is a practice that can help us when we feel emotionally shut down…” — Pema Chodron", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } } }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 7, "item": { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We could learn to stop when the sun goes down and when the sun comes up. 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(9)", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Pema Chödrön" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/when-things-are-shaky-and-nothing-is-working-we-might-realize-that-we-2/", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_when-things-are-shaky-and-nothing-is-wor_2829094.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_when-things-are-shaky-and-nothing-is-wor_2829094.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/pema-ch-dr-n-327_down-and_when-things-are-shaky-and-nothing-is-wor_2829094.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“When things are shaky and nothing is working, we might realize that we are on the verge of something. 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