Poison - Another way of working with chaos (see “no more struggle” post for another one), according to Pema Chodren is “using poison as medicine.”* I know that may sound strange, but this practice is based on the principle that we grow by facing difficult situations instead of running from them.
Meditation Practice (Tonglen)
Instead of trying to get rid of any kind of difficulty, breathe in the “poison,” (the difficult situation), and breathe out healing, health, and happiness to all beings.
To give a little more clarity, Pema says there are three poisons which are “passion (this includes craving or addiction), aggression, and ignorance (which includes denial or the tendency to shut down and closeout)”
When you breathe out “you breathe out, sending out a sense of big space, a sense of ventilation or freshness. We do this with the wish that all of us could relax and experience the innermost essence of our mind.”
We do this practice for everybody. Poison is a part of the human condition.
*Pema Chodren, When Things Fall Apart pages 121 - 122
