--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Nothing ever goes away until it has…" description: "\"“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know. Nothing ever really attacks us except our own confusion. Perhaps there is no solid..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/976/pema-ch-dr-n-327_adversity_nothing-ever-goes-away-until-it-has-taug_94130.png" --- # Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need… ![“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know. Nothing ever really attacks us except our own confusion. Perhaps there is no solid obstacle except our own need to protect ourselves from being touched. If we run a hundred miles an hour to the other end of the continent in order…” quote by Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/976/pema-ch-dr-n-327_adversity_nothing-ever-goes-away-until-it-has-taug_94130.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/976/pema-ch-dr-n-327_adversity_nothing-ever-goes-away-until-it-has-taug_94130.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/976/pema-ch-dr-n-327_adversity_nothing-ever-goes-away-until-it-has-taug_94130.png) > ““Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know. Nothing ever really attacks us except our own confusion. Perhaps there is no solid obstacle except our own need to protect ourselves from being touched. If we run a hundred miles an hour to the other end of the continent in order to get away from the obstacle, we find the very same problem waiting for us when we arrive. It just keeps returning with new names, forms, manifestations until we learn whatever it has to teach us about where we are separating ourselves from reality, how we are pulling back instead of opening up, closing down instead of allowing ourselves to experience fully whatever we encounter, without hesitating or retreating into ourselves.”” [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Life presents recurring challenges until we extract their lessons; avoidance only reshapes the same obstacle in new forms. **In simple terms:** Obstacles are internal mirrors. Key Takeaway Face problems directly to grow. Themes self-awareness resilience mindfulness personal growth psychology Mood reflective hopeful serene Type philosophical spiritual advice When to use this quote - stressful work project - relationship conflict - health crisis - creative block - spiritual practice Key Concepts avoidance projection learning repetition Practical Applications - coaching - therapy - mindfulness training Questions to Reflect On - What does this obstacle teach you about yourself? - How can you stay open rather than retreat? ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Adversity](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) [Away Obstacle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/away-obstacle-1114018/) [Encounter Hesitating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/encounter-hesitating-1114014/) [Hesitating Retreating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hesitating-retreating-1114017/) [Retreating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/retreating/) [Separating Reality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/separating-reality-1114016/) ## Related quotes > [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/) > [“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-5/) [Pema Chödrön](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) > [Always embrace life lessons, because nothing ever goes until it has taught us what we need to know in life, if we run a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kemmy-nola/always-embrace-life-lessons-because-nothing-ever-goes-until-it-has/) [Kemmy Nola](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kemmy-nola/) > [“Everyone needs to escape sometimes, and retreating into somebody else's fantasy isn't nearly as satisfying as slipping into your own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nenia-campbell/everyone-needs-to-escape-sometimes-and-retreating-into-somebody-else/) [Nenia Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nenia-campbell/) > [“I found a note he'd left behind entitled 'Ciao': One just keeps saying, 'No...No...No...' Head bowed, hat in hand, A cringing, cunning little step…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-leyner/i-found-a-note-he-d-left-behind-entitled-ciao-one-just-keeps-saying/) [Mark Leyner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-leyner/) > [Snow pursued by the wind is not wholly unlike a retreating army. In the open field it ranges itself in ranks and battalions; where…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/snow-pursued-by-the-wind-is-not-wholly-unlike-a-retreating-army-in/) [Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/) > [“It was enough to make me feel like retreating into some wooded or snowy clime, where only the most determined photographers or Mary-hunters might…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tara-altebrando/it-was-enough-to-make-me-feel-like-retreating-into-some-wooded-or/) [Tara Altebrando](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tara-altebrando/) > [Retreat, hell! We're not retreating, we're just advancing in a different direction.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-p-smith/retreat-hell-we-re-not-retreating-we-re-just-advancing-in-a-different/) [Oliver P. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-p-smith/) > [I think my hair is French. It's been retreating for years. . .](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-sutter/i-think-my-hair-is-french-it-s-been-retreating-for-years/) [Rick Sutter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-sutter/) > [“American civilization isn’t advancing as fast as our military is. The only problem is we should be retreating.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/american-civilization-isn-t-advancing-as-fast-as-our-military-is-the/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [“The dark might be dark, but at least we don’t have to look at ourselves when we’re standing in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/the-dark-might-be-dark-but-at-least-we-don-t-have-to-look-at/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [If a band or artist isn't tweeting or writing posts on Facebook every day, there can be this kind of mystique built about them,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/washed-out/if-a-band-or-artist-isn-t-tweeting-or-writing-posts-on-facebook-every/) [Washed Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/washed-out/) > [“I wonder: instead of retreating and hiding, instead of pining for the way it was, what if I accept the way it is? This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ann-kidd-taylor/i-wonder-instead-of-retreating-and-hiding-instead-of-pining-for-the/) [Ann Kidd Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ann-kidd-taylor/) > [“We are marching in a compact group along a precipitous and difficult path, firmly holding each other by the hand. We are surrounded on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vladimir-ilyich-lenin/we-are-marching-in-a-compact-group-along-a-precipitous-and-difficult/) [Vladimir Ilyich Lenin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vladimir-ilyich-lenin/) > [Every moment of one's existence one is growing into more or retreating into less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/every-moment-of-one-s-existence-one-is-growing-into-more-or/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## 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/) > [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/) > [“#283 "Develop your curiosity, not caring whether the object of you inquisitiveness is bitter or sweet."~”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pema-ch-dr-n/283-develop-your-curiosity-not-caring-whether-the-object-of-you/) [Pema Chodron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) [Explore all 664 Pema Chödrön quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pema-ch-dr-n/) ## More Adversity quotes > [We love playing together and we love adversity. You know, back-to-back, the two best teams in the East.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-nash/we-love-playing-together-and-we-love-adversity-you-know-back-to-back/) [Steve Nash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-nash/) > [When we have public success we also have private struggles.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deion-sanders/when-we-have-public-success-we-also-have-private-struggles/) [Deion Sanders](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deion-sanders/) > [“The threats that resurfaced in the past 10 years were not an aberration. Al Qaeda and terrorism or one such threat, but it was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-friedman/the-threats-that-resurfaced-in-the-past-10-years-were-not-an/) [George Friedman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-friedman/) > [He who is content with what has been done is an obstacle in the path of progress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-keller/he-who-is-content-with-what-has-been-done-is-an-obstacle-in-the-path/) [Helen Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/helen-keller/) > [“Friction is necessary. Ease of life leads to complacency and the atrophy of the human will and spirit. Within our struggles lives our strength,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-versey/friction-is-necessary-ease-of-life-leads-to-complacency-and-the/) [Jason Versey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-versey/) > [“Every adversity is just another opportunity to excel a little more.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michel-templet/every-adversity-is-just-another-opportunity-to-excel-a-little-more/) [Michel Templet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michel-templet/) > [“Just because she doesn't talk about it, doesn't mean she isn't feeling it. She hurts, but she won't wear it on her sleeve. She…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfa-h/just-because-she-doesn-t-talk-about-it-doesn-t-mean-she-isn-t-feeling/) [Alfa H](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfa-h/) > [Every trial endured and weathered in the right spirit makes a soul nobler and stronger than it was before.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-buckham-kennedy/every-trial-endured-and-weathered-in-the-right-spirit-makes-a-soul/) [James Buckham Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-buckham-kennedy/) > [Honesty, by evil fortune tried, Finds in adversity the seed of praise.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ovid/honesty-by-evil-fortune-tried-finds-in-adversity-the-seed-of-praise/) [Ovid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ovid/) > [“Struggles are not associated to a particular people or creed, everyone struggles, not for the same reasons, but each has a personal struggle at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wayne-chirisa/struggles-are-not-associated-to-a-particular-people-or-creed-everyone/) [Wayne Chirisa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wayne-chirisa/) > [“Watch a man in times of adversity to discover what kind of man he is; for then at last words of truth are drawn…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucretius/watch-a-man-in-times-of-adversity-to-discover-what-kind-of-man-he-is/) [Lucretius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucretius/) > [God often hides His blessing in trouble or trial, which makes it all the sweeter when it comes our way.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/god-often-hides-his-blessing-in-trouble-or-trial-which-makes-it-all/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [“Life is not about less mistakes but about more trials”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/s-e-sever/life-is-not-about-less-mistakes-but-about-more-trials/) [S.E. SEVER](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/s-e-sever/) > [Show your contempt for the problem and your concern for the person.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jim-rohn/show-your-contempt-for-the-problem-and-your-concern-for-the-person/) [Jim Rohn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jim-rohn/) > [When everything feels like an uphill struggle, just think of the view from the top.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/when-everything-feels-like-an-uphill-struggle-just-think-of-the-view/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) [Browse all 5,001 Adversity quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/adversity/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Nothing ever goes away until it has taught us what we need to know. Nothing ever really attacks us except our own confusion. Perhaps there is no solid obstacle except our own need to protect ourselves from being touched. 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