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Shambhala Sun
 Thank You, Pema
Best-selling author MARGARET WHEATLEY on her friend and teacher.
If
I’ve learned anything from Pema Chödrön, it’s not to create a
storyline. Just let experiences and emotions come and go without
developing a drama about them. But here I am, eager to tell a story
about my beloved teacher and friend. Like many people, I came to
Buddhism because of my own suffering. In 1997—my “year of excruciation,”
as my astrologer described it—I discovered Pema and Buddhism through
her book When Things Fall Apart.
I stayed awake all night reading it on a flight to Europe and knew I
had encountered a path worth pursuing. Again, like many, my first
explorations were casual and episodic—reading books I was attracted to,
talking with seasoned practitioners. I was interested and curious, but
there were no structures or demands; I was free to pick and choose. But
even so, I discovered Buddhism with benefits.
The
benefit was where the path naturally leads: from alleviating my own
suffering to wanting to help others relieve theirs. My work takes me to
many different places where people are suffering—those in third world
countries, confronting a future of no future; those in large
organizations, confronting the loss of self and meaning. I used to
believe that those who suffer from poverty and disease deserve more
support than those who complain in comfortable offices. But Pema
dissolved my distinctions when she said, “suffering is suffering.” (I
know she’s right, but truthfully, I still find it difficult to believe
in the equality of suffering. Could we just stop all this whining and
notice how many people need our compassionate attention?)
In
those first years of meandering on the path, I was blessed with Pema’s
friendship. I had begun to take practice more seriously, I recognized
its life-saving qualities, yet even so I was continually distracted by
the multiple demands of life. This, too, is commonplace: we know what
helps us, yet we don’t do it. Then we beat up on ourselves for being
lazy, worthless people. This familiar cycle leads me to the next part of
this story, the discovery of discipline and devotion.
My
path of practice became straight and narrow in 2007, when I asked Pema
formally to become my teacher. This is always an act of surrender. As
Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche describes it, you place your head in the jaws
of a crocodile that you know will never let you go. And that’s where
I’ve been residing ever since, learning what it means to entrust another
with my life. I’ve learned the value of discipline—to put practice at
the center of my life and let all else emerge from that core. I’ve
learned the treasure of walking hand in hand with others who try hard to
keep egos out of the way and offer compassionate service. And I’ve
learned the abiding pleasure of falling in love, day after day, with the
teachings that save us from ourselves and the teacher who has dedicated
her life to making them clear and accessible to us all. Thank you,
Pema.
Margaret Wheatley says "We must draw from many different perspectives to reweave the world." Her own studies include science, systems thinking, organizational behavior, social policy and theology. Wheatley has written many bestselling books, including Perseverance, Finding Our Way, and the groundbreaking Leadership and the New Science. Her new book is So Far from Home: Lost and Found in Our Brave New World.
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