Pema Chödrön

Pema Chödrön is an American-born Tibetan Buddhist nun and teacher whose book When Things Fall Apart has offered practical Buddhist wisdom for navigating hardship, loss, and uncertainty to millions of readers worldwide.

Pema Chödrön was born Deirdre Blomfield-Brown in New York, became a student of Tibetan Buddhism following a difficult period in her personal life, and was ordained as a nun in 1981. She is the resident teacher at Gampo Abbey in Nova Scotia and has been instrumental in bringing Tibetan Buddhist teachings to Western audiences. When Things Fall Apart, originally published in 1997, collects talks and writings on the Buddhist approach to suffering, groundlessness, and the instinct to escape difficulty through distraction or aggression.

The book’s central teaching is drawn from the Tibetan concept of shenpa — the tendency to tighten against unpleasantness and reach for comfort rather than staying present with difficulty. Chödrön argues that the very groundlessness we try to escape is where genuine compassion and wisdom can be found. The writing is conversational and accessible, grounded in personal anecdote and practical teaching rather than doctrinal exposition, and the book is well-organized for both cover-to-cover reading and dipping in.

When Things Fall Apart has proven lastingly popular because it addresses something real and common — the experience of crisis — with honesty and without false comfort. Chödrön does not promise that things will improve; she teaches how to be with difficulty without being destroyed by it. Readers without Buddhist backgrounds typically find the book accessible and useful; those familiar with Buddhist thought may find it an elegant introduction rather than a deep scholarly treatment. It remains one of the most useful books in the Western Buddhist literature.