Caring About Individuals Over Legacy
Chodron explains that she does not dwell on personal legacy, finding true satisfaction when her teachings alleviate suffering for individual people.
Pema Chodron
Born 1936
This is a list of works published by Pema Chödrön, buddhist nun and student of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche. An author and acharya, Chödrön was a senior teacher of the Shambhala Buddhist lineage Trungpa founded. She has been the resident teacher and founding director of Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia since 1984.
On LuvemBooks, we've reviewed When Things Fall Apart.
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Books ReviewedIn Pema Chodron's own words
Pema Chödrön sits down with Oprah Winfrey on Super Soul Sunday to discuss mindfulness, embracing suffering, and cultivating resilience.
Uploaded by OWN, 2020 · Watch on YouTube ·
Embracing Contraction in the Body
When dealing with fear, distress, or difficult emotions, Chodron advises locating the physical contraction within the body and cultivating a kind relationship with that tightness.
Practicing 'Just Like Me'
In irritating moments like traffic jams or airport delays, Chodron recommends recognizing that others are also human beings who want to be loved and wish to avoid suffering.
Entering Another Person's Life Directly
Chodron shares advice she applied when visiting her mother in Mexico, suggesting one fully join in another person's daily routine and listen to their stories rather than resist it.
Solitary Retreats and Interconnected Ripples
During her annual retreats of around 100 days in solitary meditation, Chodron realized that one's internal thoughts and reactivity ripple outward to affect the entire world.
Addressing Past Sexual Abuse Reports
Reflecting on allegations within Shambhala Buddhism, Chodron expresses regret over failing to adequately support a victim years ago and emphasizes the need to allow people to be heard and to change.
Ask LuvemBooks about Pema Chodron
Pema Chodron is an American Buddhist nun and student of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche whose teaching centers on a counterintuitive idea: relief comes from moving toward pain, fear, and groundlessness rather than away from them. We've reviewed 1 of her books, When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times, which translates traditional Tibetan Buddhist teachings into accessible advice for crisis — and holds a 4.6/5 reader rating from over 11,650 Amazon ratings. Her work sits in the mindfulness space but reads more like direct spiritual counsel than self-help technique.
- Where should I start?
- Start with When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times — it's the Pema Chodron book we've reviewed, and it's also their signature work. The book's central argument, that moving toward pain and groundlessness is the path to lasting relief, is the foundation of everything they teach. With a 4.6/5 reader rating from over 11,650 Amazon ratings, it's clearly the entry point most readers have chosen too.
- What's their writing style?
- Pema Chodron writes with the directness of a teacher giving counsel — their work draws on traditional Tibetan Buddhist teachings but presents them as practical advice for people in difficulty. Based on When Things Fall Apart, their approach is to challenge the reader's instincts: instead of offering escape from discomfort, they argue for leaning into it. The result is spiritual writing that reads as accessible rather than academic, which is why critics reached for the Harold Kushner comparison.
- Books we've reviewed
- We've reviewed 1 book by Pema Chodron. When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times applies Tibetan Buddhist teachings to periods of crisis, arguing that turning toward pain and uncertainty — not away from them — brings lasting relief. It holds a 4.6/5 reader rating from over 11,650 Amazon ratings.
- What genre do they write?
- Pema Chodron writes in the mindfulness and spirituality space, grounded in Tibetan Buddhism. When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times, the book we've reviewed, is classified as Mindfulness — it uses Buddhist teachings to address fear, pain, and uncertainty in everyday life. Readers looking for spiritual guidance rather than fiction or narrative memoir will feel at home.
- What should I read after When Things Fall Apart?
- When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times is the only Pema Chodron book we've reviewed so far, so we can't point you to a follow-up within our own reviews yet. If the book's central idea — moving toward pain and groundlessness rather than away from it — resonated with you, revisit it slowly: it's built on traditional Tibetan Buddhist teachings that reward repeat reading. We'll add more coverage of their work to this hub as we review it.
Who is Pema Chodron?
Where should I start?
What's their writing style?
Books we've reviewed
What genre do they write?
What should I read after When Things Fall Apart?
Who is Pema Chodron?
Pema Chodron is a Buddhist nun and a student of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, known for bringing Tibetan Buddhist teachings to a general Western readership. They are best known for When Things Fall Apart: Heart Advice for Difficult Times, which applies Buddhist ideas about groundlessness and impermanence to personal crisis. Critics have compared the book to Harold Kushner's When Bad Things Happen to Good People, a sign of how accessible their writing is to readers outside Buddhism.
Follow up
What is Pema Chodron best known for?
What tradition does Pema Chodron come from?
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