DVDs and Videotapes of Pema Chödrön
VHS upon request.
All DVDs/Videos in sets may be purchased individually.
General Buddhist Path
V120: A Personal Journey. January 2005, Gampo Abbey. On the 30th anniversary of her ordination as a novice nun, Pema Chödrön shares her path as a practitioner, monastic, teacher, leader, and woman. A major theme is the power and blessing of observing monastic vows and discipline, and how this has served as a support for every aspect of her life. Highlights include receiving teachings from His Holiness the 16th Karmapa, and Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, and meeting her present teacher, Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche. Ani Pema also relates the challenge of being a Buddhist monastic in a secular world, the early years of Gampo Abbey, and her full ordination as a bhikshuni nun. 1 DVD $25. Also available on 2 audio CDs for $14.50.
V114: Wisdom & Compassion: Pema Chödrön and Jack Kornfield in Conversation. May 26, 2005. Join Pema Chödrön and Vipassana meditation teacher Jack Kornfield as they discuss central themes of Buddhism. With humorous stories and joyful interaction, these two teachers share their pespectives on meditation, generosity, karma, compassion, and transforming suffering. Their dialogue was moderated by Michael Krasny, and was recorded at the Masonic center in San Francisco, CA. 1 DVD $25. Also available on 2 audio CDs for $14.50.
V126: Practicing Peace in Times of War - CALIFORNIA. San Rafael, CA, July 2007. Pema Chödrön and Shambhala International President Richard Reoch co-taught this weekend seminar on exploring the importance of meditation in finding peace and nonaggression in one’s heart, as well as its relevance in the world. Talk 1: The Buck Stops Here. Talk 2: Cultivating Non-Violent Mind. Talk 3: Leaning In and Natural Openness. Talk 4: Richard Reoch: Effective Social Action. Talk 5: Natural Warmth and Compassionate Abiding. Talk 6: Groundlessness as the Source for Strength. DVDs: talks only $150.00. Full set: $175 (includes meditation instructions with Richard Reoch).
V125: The Myth of Freedom. Berkeley, CA, June-July 2007. Pema Chödrön teaches from Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s famous text, The Myth of Freedom. Ani Pema presents many core Buddhist teachings and leads us through the stages of the path of meditation. Talk 1: The Myth of Freedom and The Cosmic Joke; Talk 2: Styles of Imprisonment; Talk 3: Working with Emotions; Talk 4: Meditation in Action; Talk 5: The Open Way; Talk 6: Devotion; plus bonus discs of Meditation Sessions with Jesse Miller. DVD set $150.00.
V124: Practicing Peace in Times of War - OMEGA TEACHINGS. Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY, May 2007. Pema Chödrön and Shambhala International President Richard Reoch co-taught this weekend seminar on exploring the importance of meditation in finding peace and nonaggression in one’s heart, as well as its relevance in the world.
Talk 1: Creating Sacred Space and the View of Buddhanature. Talk 2: Transmuting Emotions into Wisdom. Talk 3: Reframing One's Attitude Towards Pain. Talk 4: Cultivating Natural Warmth. Talk 5: Effective Social Action Depends Upon Contemplative Practice (Richard Reoch). Talk 6: The Path of Positive Insecurity.
Full set DVDs: $175. (Full set also includes 3 additional meditation instruction sessions with Richard Reoch). Talks only version (6 talks): DVDs $125.00.
V127: Monastic Training: a Path of Joy and Liberation. Gampo Abbey, April 2007. This talk by Pema Chödrön to the Gampo Abbey community in April of 2007 is a significant contribution to the teachings on “creating enlightened society” in a monastic context. This teaching would also be appropriate for lay practitioners who are interested in exploring the relationship between personal practice, service, and community. On monastic training at Gampo Abbey: understanding karma, discovering discipline, and developing awareness as a path of joy and liberation. 1 DVD $25.
V108: Losing Our Appetite For Aggression - Public Talk. Grace Cathedral, San Francisco, CA, June 2, 2004. The way we act and react, sows the seeds in this lifetime and for this nation. How to work with our own aggression at the personal level. (slight echo in background due to acoustics of the cathedral). 1 DVD $25.
V67-3: The Four Noble Truths and the Path of Meditation. Pema Chödrön teaches on the Three Prajnas (learning, contemplating, meditation), the Four Noble Truths, and how to bring the path of awakening into everyday life. From the City Reteat I (A67: Meditation in Action) series. 1 DVD $25.
V67-4: Emptiness is Good News: A Teaching on the Heart Sutra. This is an excellent summary commentary on this sutra, from the City Retreat I (A67) series. A few sound blips at the end during the Q&A only. 1 DVD $25.
V112: Losing Our Appetite For Aggression. September 4-6, 2004. A weekend retreat at Spirit Rock Mediation Center in Woodacre, CA. Pema Chödrön defines aggression as "pushing away our experience, or resisting our experience." When we become curious about the "pushing away" and acknowledge when we resist what's happening, that opens the doorway to enlightenment. Peace on earth will come from staying present with the dynamic energy of aggression. (See A112 for further description). 5 DVDs $125.
V109: Choosing a Fresh Alternative. May 2004, Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY. These talks are for those wishing to explore how we habitually get stuck and how we then unwillingly escalate the very dissatisfaction and pain we long to escape. We can choose to do the same old thing or we can choose the joy of a fresh alternative. 6 DVDs $150. (See A109 for further description).
V94: Learning To Stay. Berkeley, CA, 9/2002. 5 talks by Pema Chödrön on the view and practice of mindfulness meditation with an emphasis on working with shenpa. Note: these are the same talks that the Sounds True audio set “Getting Unstuck” is derived from. 5 DVDs $125.00 (or $25 ea). (See A94 for further description).
V100: The Doorway to Freedom. A meditation weekend workshop, July 25-27, 2003, Berkeley, CA. The main focus of this workshop is staying present with discomfort through meditation practice. Using meditation as a tool in training to be present to your life with compassion and patience. This is a doorway to freedom from a closed and fearful self. 5 DVDs $125.00. (bonus DVD of Jesse Miller’s instruction included). (See A100 for further description).
A single talk featured from the set:
V100-3: Working with the Different Levels of Getting Hooked. This talk addresses working with the three levels of shenpa (getting hooked). By giving your full attention to what it feels like to be hooked and to relax there - with kindness and gentleness and wisdom - you can train in interrupting the momentum of shenpa and the reactivty which follows. 1 DVD $25.
The Way of the Bodhisattva
V95: The Way of the Bodhisattva I. City Retreat IV, Berkeley, CA. Oct.-Nov. 2002. Pema Chödrön's commentary on chapters 1-3 of Shantideva's “The Way of the Bodhisattva”, Bodhicharyavatara. 7 videos or DVDs $175.
V99: The Way of the Bodhisattva II. City Retreat V, Berkeley, CA. June-July 2003. Commentary on chapters 4-6 of Shantideva's “The Way of the Bodhisattva”, Bodhicharyavatara. A continuation of City Retreat IV. 7 Videos or DVDs $175.
V110: The Way of the Bodhisattva III. City Retreat V, Berkeley, CA. June-July 2004. Pema Chödrön's commentary on chapters 6-8 Shantideva's “The Way of the Bodhisattva”, Bodhicharyavatara. 7 videos or DVDs $175.
V111: Dedicating the Merit - Special Lecture. Pema Chödrön's commentary on the Chapter 10 verses of Shantideva's Bodhicharyavatara, “The Way of the Bodhisattva”. Berkeley, CA. July 2004. 1 DVD $25.
V113: Heart Advice, the Path of Awakening. October 2005, Boulder, CO. (see A113 for further description). There will be a slight break in the middle of each DVD where the camera was changed during filming. 5 DVDs $125.
V115: Wisdom and the Bodhisattva Path, The Way of the Bodhisattva IV. Pema Chödrön and Judith Simmer-Brown. Berkeley, CA. June 2005. Commentary on Chapter 9 of Shantideva's Bodhicharyavatara, “The Way of the Bodhisattva”. 7 talks on 11 DVDs $175.
Talk 1: Introduction to prajnaparamita and madhyamaka.
Talk 2: (on 2 DVDs): "Partless Particles".
Talk 3 (on 2 DVDs): DVD 3a includes shamatha yoga. Exposing subtle beliefs in solid existence.
Talk 4 (on 2 DVDs): DVD 4a is all meditation instruction. 4a starts with Judith Simmer-Brown giving
"look at mind" meditation instruction and then returning to shamatha meditation, and yoga. The talk starts on DVD 4b, understanding interdependence and overcoming nihilism.
Talk 5: Diamond slivers: exploring and refuting the 4 extremes.
Talk 6 (on 2 DVDs): DVD 6a begins with Judith Simmer-Brown leading a practice contemplating the 4 extremes, using a diamond shaped visual aide. There is further guided meditation and shamatha yoga. The talk begins on DVD 6b, Realizing two-fold egolessness.
Talk 7: Wisdom, groundlessness, interdependence,and compassion.
V117: Discipline. Gampo Abbey, Winter 2004-2005. These talks were given to the monastics at Gampo Abbey. Chapter 5 of "The Way of the Bodhisattva". (See A117 for further description). 6 DVDs $125. (The last 10 minutes of the 3rd talk is not available, but will be provided on audio CD for those who order the DVD).
V118: How To Live Compassionately in a Troubled World. April 2005, Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY. Heart Advice on working gently, yet precisely with our emotions and our state of mind. A commentary by Pema Chödrön on Chapter 5 of Shantideva's “The Way of the Bodhisattva”. (See A118 for further description). 4 DVDs $100.
V122: Developing Patience. Omega Institute, Rhinebeck, NY, May 2006. Pema Chodron's most recent and highly recommended commentary on Chapter 6 of Shantideva's The Way of the Bodhisattva. (includes bonus DVD of Tim Olmstead's meditation instruction, shamatha yoga by Richard Allen, and bonus CD with further meditation instruction). 5 DVDs + 1 CD $100.
($25 per talk. Tim Olmstead's Meditation/Yoga DVD and Meditation CD combo $25 if purchased separately).
Disc 1: Talk 1: Cultivating Non-Aggression.
Disc 2: Talk 2: Contemplating Aggression, Shenpa, and Patience.
Disc 3: Meditation Instruction by Tim Olmstead; Shamatha Yoga by Richard Allen.
Disc 4: Talk 3: Practicing Patience: Specific Situtations.
Disc 5: Audio CD: 2 Meditation Sessions with Tim Olmstead.
Disc 6: Talk 4: Troublemakers as Buddhas; Repaying Our Teachers' Kindness.
V116: No Time To Lose. Moraga, CA. July 2005. Pema Chodron’s commentary on chapter 6 of Shantideva’s The Way of the Bodhisattva. 5 DVDs $125 (+ bonus DVD of Jesse Miller’s instruction). Talk 1: The problem with anger, the virtue of patience. Talk 2: Seeing the absurdity of anger and reframing our attitude toward discomfort. Talk 3: Patience: Specific Practices; Rejoicing in the Virtues of Others. Talk 4: The rigmarole of praise and fame; appreciating those who mean to harm. Talk 5: The benefits of patience; The equality of sentient beings and buddhas.
Tonglen and Lojong
V78-4: View & Guided Tonglen Instruction. Single DVD from the set below. An introduction to the tonglen practice of sending and taking. Tonglen practice is a method for connecting with suffering – our own and that which is all around us, everywhere we go. It is a method for overcoming our fear of suffering and for dissolving the tightness of our hearts. 1 DVD $25.00.
AV88: Going To The Places That Scare You. Berkely, CA 9/2001. Addresses learning to practice with fear, aversion, and suffering in the context of the great motivation to benefit others. It is an excellent follow up to the A71, Knowing the Nature of Fear set. Excellent guided meditations, which are variations on tonglen. 5 DVDs $105.00. (See A88 for further description).
V78: Training the Mind. Another highly recommended City Retreat; includes guided tonglen and presentation of the 7 Points of Mind Training. (The end of talk 3 has some sound problems during the homework assignment, so an audio CD will be included). 7 videos or DVDs $175. (See A78 for further description).
V96: Introduction to Tonglen. 2 video or DVD set: Public talk, December, 2002, Boston, MA, and guided tonglen instruction, May 2002, Karme Choling, VT. “The 3 Kinds of Courage”: Pema Chödrön teaches us how to change our relationship with pain and fear, using tonglen practice and the 3 kinds of courage to relate directly to shenpa (getting hooked) and the momentum that follows. The second video is “Guided Tonglen Instruction” with Pema Chödrön. 2 2 DVDs: $42.00. These may also be purchased separately: V96-1: Three Kinds of Courage $23.50 ea.; V91-X: Tonglen Instruction $18.50 ea.
The Shambhala Teachings
V71: Knowing The Nature of Fear. Berkeley, 9/99. An excellent introductory program on the path of mindfulness meditation in the Shambhala tradition. 4 DVDs $94.00. (See A71 for further description).
RK1: Creating Enlightened Society with Robin Kornman. In this seminar, Dr. Robin Kornman weaves a delightful and compelling introduction to a whole way of life: an approach to society and politics; to individual training and development towards enlightenment. Included are metaphysical foundations and practical approaches towards creating “enlightened society,” based on the Shambhala teachings of his teacher, Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche. Dr. Kornman includes close translation of the Shambhala texts, oral instructions which Trungpa Rinpoche gave to his close students, stories and practices found in the Gesar epoch, and his extraordinary command of the history of Eastern and Western approaches to society and contemplative education.
Talk 1: From the Cosmic Mirror: The Metaphysics of an Enlightened Society; Talk 2: Vipashyana Meditation as the Basis for Enlightened Society: Art in Everyday Life; Talk 3: Oral Teachings of Chögyam Trungpa, Rinpoche: Training the Enlightened Courtier; Talk 4: The Kalachakra Tantra, the Ridgen Kings, and Enlightened Society: The True Nature of the Rigden Kings of Shambhala; Talk 5: King Gesar of Ling: The Shamanic Sources of Englightened Society.
DVD set $65. (also available on CD $50; or 1 MP3 CD $22.50).
Robin Kornman is a professor of comparative literature, a member of the Nalanda Translation Committee, and is translating the Gesar epic. A long-time student of Vidyadhara, the Venerable Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Robin was Co-Director of Trungpa Rinpoche’s first retreat center in North America, Karmê Chöling (then called Tail of the Tiger), in 1970, when it was first established. He is a gold mine of Shambhala and Buddhist teachings, as well
as the history and practice of world religions, world culture, and the arts. He is a beloved teacher, meditation instructor, and mentor for the Shambhala community.
V2: Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen Meditation from Sounds True.
2 videos or DVDs, 210 minutes, $27.96. This workshop presents the practices of loving-kindness and exchanging oneself for others -- the tonglen practice. Differences between mindfulness practice and tonglen are discussed. "How to melt aggression and anger on the spot." Many stories and examples.
BR11-DVD: Turning the Mind Into an Ally. Sakyong Mipham. The perfect companion to the book Turning the Mind into an Ally on DVD. With humor, clarity, and insight, Sakyong Mipham shows how to turn the mind towards the practice of meditation in everyday life. A talk on meditation, Dalhousie University, Halifax NS, March, 2003. Total running time: 97 minutes. Includes bonus 21-minute guided meditation and instruction. 1 DVD $28.00.