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Tenzin Palmo

Tenzin Palmo Quotes

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Tenzin Palmo, born in 1943, is a renowned Tibetan Buddhist nun and author. She is known for her cave retreat in the Himalayas of India, becoming the first female to receive formal recognition as a cave dweller. Palmo's works primarily focus on the role of women in Buddhism and her personal retreat experiences.

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All Ifs People Dharma Thinking Mind Practice Knows Way Helping Needs

Famous Tenzin Palmo Quotes

“Buddhism is the most active one! The whole time, we're dealing with the mind and how to tame it, and how to transcend our ordinary conventional mind. This takes an enormous amount of determination and perseverance. It also requires an attitude of being relaxed and spacious, rather than tense and stressed. It's certainly not a matter of lying back and expecting it all to happen. If we don't make it happen, it won't!”

“Traditionally, women didn't have much a role in Buddhism. The books were all written by monks, for other monks. So the general view of the feminine was rather misogynistic, with women playing the role of the forbidden other, waiting to pounce on innocent little monks! In that society, it was hard for women to become educated and get the deeper teachings and really become accomplished.”

Littles Book Hard Waiting Views Roles Written Teaching Buddhism Deeper Innocent Educated Accomplished Feminine Forbidden Monk

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“If you go to any nunnery and ask them what the main obstacle is, they'll always say low self-esteem and lack of confidence. It will take time. But the difference between the first girls from Ladakh who became nuns, to the girls we have now, is very encouraging.”

Ifs Firsts Self Girl Asks Differences Self Esteem Lows Obstacles Esteem Take Time Low Self Esteem Nun Lack Of Confidence Ladakh

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“The new nuns don't know that they're 'supposed' to be meek and submissive, and so in many ways they believe they can do anything, because they've seen the earlier ones do it. In this way, there's nothing for them to doubt.”

Knows Way Believe Can Do Doubt Supposed To Be Nun Meek Submissive

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Some males are intelligent, some are dumb. Some females are intelligent, some are dumb. We're all human beings, no one is superior.”

Humans Human Beings Female Intelligent Males Superiors Dumb

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Perhaps one of the main antidotes to depression, lack of self-esteem, loneliness and so forth is the recognition that we really do have Buddha nature. All the other problems like anger, jealousy, ambitions, are merely habitual patterns that we've learned, but aren't inherent to who we are.”

Self Problem Loneliness Self Esteem Ambition Patterns Esteem Recognition Who We Are Inherent Antidote Habitual Buddha Nature

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“We're not lowly sinners, we're not worthless beings. We are something jewel-like and beautiful.”

Beautiful Sinner Worthless Jewels

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“We're always given the message that our potential is so limited, which is so sad. Actually, our potential is infinite.”

Given Messages Infinite So Sad

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“The nature of the mind is completely incredible.”

Mind Incredibles

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Buddhism helps us to overcome our endless ego grasping mind to open up to something so much more spacious and genuinely meaningful.”

Mind Helping Buddhism Ego Overcoming Meaningful Endless Grasping

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Meditation is a way to take us to a deeper level of awareness.”

Way Levels Meditation Awareness Deeper

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“We're normally caught up in the current of our thinking, feelings and emotions. With awareness, we can observe it all without being swept away. This gives us access to something much vaster and deeper than our usual compressed minds. All of us can access this. It's not so difficult. With some instruction and practice, anybody can do it.”

Thinking Giving Mind Feelings Difficult Can Do Emotion Practice Awareness Caught Currents Deeper Access Usual Instruction Caught Up Feelings And Emotions Swept Away

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“The big lamas coming from Tibet, Ladakh, India - everywhere - have been very friendly. But I don't figure in their world. For one thing, being Western puts you outside the limits. A token female doesn't hurt - there's only one.”

World Has Beens Bigs Hurt One Thing Figures Limits Female India Western Friendly Tokens Lama Tibet Ladakh

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“For so many centuries women have been suppressed and regarded as inferior. And that of course is not right at all, that we all have buddha-nature - so what's the difference?”

Has Beens Courses Differences Century Inferiors Buddha Nature

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Women are fully capable of doing everything.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“We do look for inspiration amongst our own sex. Why not? You go into temples and they're full of all the lineage lamas who are male. What message does that give to a young girl, except that somehow she got trapped in the wrong body because of bad things she did in a past life?”

Giving Looks Doe Body Inspiration Past Young Girl Sex Messages Males Temples Why Not Bad Things Trapped Past Life Lama Lineage

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“The future of Dharma is in women's hands now because they have this energy which was never really tapped.”

Hands Energy Dharma

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“One thing in the Buddhadharma is that we are not our body, we are not our gender.”

Body One Thing Gender

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“We have the pure nature of the mind.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Our pure awareness is not male or female.”

Awareness Pure Female Males

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“As women become more educated and confident, they can start adding their voice.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“I think many monks hesitate to change things.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“If nuns begin getting more empowered, where does that leave us?”

Ifs Doe Empowered Nun

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“I think, for East and West, the first thing we need is a good grounding in basic Buddhadharma.”

Thinking Needs Firsts West East Grounding East And West

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“We have to know what is Buddhadharma and what is not Buddhadharma. It needn't go on forever. You don't have to spend 18 years at it. But still, a basic and uncompromised understanding of Buddhist principles is important. Very basic: the three signs of being, the four noble rruths, karma, and so on.”

Knows Years Stills Important Three Understanding Principles Forever Four Goes On Noble Karma Buddhist

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Once one has understand what is Buddhadharma, what is not Buddhadharma, and once one has had enough view to see the different approaches, then it's important to really look at what speaks to one's heart.”

Looks Heart Important Different Enough Speak Views Approach Had Enough Different Approach

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“One of the beauties of the Buddhadharma is there are so many approaches, and not everything is right for everybody.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Different people are different.”

People Different Different Peoples

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“People should find what approach really speaks to them, and then do it. Obviously, better with a good teacher, who can help you on the path. But in any case, basic principles.”

People Should Helping Speak Principles Cases Path Teacher Approach Good Teacher Basic Principles

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Learn not to be too ambitious; not to expect if you have a 9-to-5 job and three kids, that you're likely to get buddhahood in one lifetime.”

Ifs Kids Jobs Three Lifetime Ambitious

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“You can still practice to be a better and kinder and happier person. That's perfectly possible.”

Persons Stills Practice Kinder

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“You can certainly learn how to rest in the nature of the mind.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“When I was 18 I read a book about Buddhism and, before I was halfway through it I said to my mother, "I'm a Buddhist!" She said, "That's great. Finish reading the book and then you can tell me all about it." From that moment on I knew I was a Buddhist.”

Said Book Moments Mother Reading Buddhism Buddhist That Moment Halfway

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“All the other religions I had ever read about dealt with the idea of God, and your relationship with God. Buddhism is the only religion that deals with man himself and the nature of the mind - how to deal with yourself and your condition, here and now, as opposed to having to deal with something outside yourself.”

Men Mind Ideas Deals Conditions Buddhism Our Relationship Here And Now Relationship With God

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“In the early '60s there was very little reliable information on Tibetan Buddhism. I was living in London and I had joined the Buddhist Society. For the most part, people there were either interested in Theravada or Zen Buddhism. There was almost no one into Tibetan Buddhism at that time.”

People Littles Information Buddhism London Buddhist Tibetan Zen Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“My body is not good for prostrations.”

Body Prostration

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Caves are beautiful things you know. They're thermostatically controlled - warm when it's cold out and cool when it's warm. Very quiet. Nobody there. Especially in the winter - it was perfect. Also, because it's a cave, you can't do much with it.”

Knows Beautiful Perfect Cold Quiet Winter Warm Controlled Beautiful Things Caves

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“When I was in retreat I just did my meditation sessions and, in-between, reading and things I had to do.”

Reading Meditation Retreat Session

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“I think if you really start practicing, the energy comes. I was always very happy and grateful for the opportunity to have the time, solitude and good health to be able to do it.”

Ifs Thinking Able Opportunity Energy Solitude Grateful Very Happy Good Health Happy And Grateful

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“As my lama always told me, I learned that I practice better when I'm by myself.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“I find that being with other people dissipates my energy.”

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“To be a nun is a very great blessing. It's a great inspiration to think that the Sangha goes all the way back to the Buddha and that so many fantastic, really truly-realized beings have been ordained. Thinking of all those members, such a wonderful, exalted and holy order - I love the Sangha.”

Thinking Way Has Beens Inspiration Order Wonderful Holy Blessing Members Fantastic Exalted Nun Sangha

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“I've always loved the Sangha. I have the deepest, deepest respect for them. I'm very sorry that in the West people don't appreciate what the monastic order is about.”

People Order Appreciate West Sorry Sangha

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“There is a basic problem that a lot of Western monks and nuns become ordained without really understanding or appreciating what the monastic life is all about.”

Problem Life Is Understanding Appreciate Western Monk Nun Monastic Life

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Joining the Sangha and renouncing worldly life is necessary in order to devote your whole life and all your energies toward the Dharma.”

Whole Life Is Order Energy Whole Life Worldly Dharma Joining Worldly Life Sangha

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Monastic life cuts off the distractions and emotional entanglements one becomes involved in, in the lay life.”

Cutting Emotional Involved Lays Distraction Entanglement Monastic Life

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Everyone should not be ordained, but for those who really feel that the only thing that matters in this world is the Dharma, then it is a logical step to adopt a form of life that automatically precludes worldly distractions.”

World Feels Should Matter Form Steps This World Logical Distraction Worldly Dharma Things That Matter Only Thing That Matters

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“I think it would help if, when people are first ordained, they underwent a period of strict training, maybe for several years. During this time they would learn basic Buddhist philosophy in a monastic community where all the teaching and training was directed toward living a perfect monastic life and wasn't channeled out to fit into the lay life - which is what usually happens in Dharma centers where the teachings are directed toward how to live the Dharma in your everyday life.”

“In a monastic setting, if someone doesn't want to obey the rules and just wants to live the way they've always lived as a lay person, then why did they become ordained? They have no sense that they have to give something up to gain so much.”

Ifs Way Want Giving Persons Gains Lays Setting Settings

Author:Tenzin Palmo

“Perhaps Westerners are in a better position to practice true renunciation than uneducated Orientals because most Western people, by the time they come to the Dharma, have led a pretty full worldly life with lots of sensual pleasures, money and lots of toys to play with. They have seen that the path of accumulation of worldly treasure does not lead to happiness or contentment. That's why they come to the Dharma.”

People Doe Play Pleasure Practice Path Position Western Treasure Sensual Contentment Toys Worldly Accumulation Dharma Renunciation Uneducated Worldly Life Westerners Sensual Pleasure

Author:Tenzin Palmo

About the Author

Born: 1943
Known for: Author
Quotes: 240

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