6 Ways This Badass Buddhist Monk Can Help Us Defuse Our Anger

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It turns out that Pema Chodron lives about three hours away from my house. She’s a Buddhist teacher and is principal teacher at Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia, Canada.

Actually, she was a student of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, who ran a monastery in my very city until his death! It’s astonishing to think about how much wisdom and light are so nearby.

Don’t Bite the Hook is an audiobook about our habitual responses to things like anger and impatience, and it’s delivered lecture-style in an intimate setting that perfectly captures her calmness, radiance, approachability, and humanity.

In fact, I think she sounds a lot like an enlightened Lisa Simpson (that’s a compliment, in case that’s not clear), and for such a minimal time investment (3 hours) you’re treated to such an incredible wealth of mindset shifts, practical techniques, and shots of wisdom.

When I think of the book, one of the things that immediately jumps to mind is her idea that instead of attacking someone who just attacked us, we can sort of “give them a break”…