Blessed Be Pain

Blessed Be Pain

Blessed Relief

A thoughtful, down-to-earth look at helpful ways to lessen human suffering. This book takes you on a lively, sometimes light-hearted, journey through nine Buddhist practices that can bring "blessed relief" to a wide range of human suffering—and teaches you skills to reduce suffering in the long term for yourself and others. The practices help you: Loosen the grip of suffering Engage and question limiting views, thoughts and opinions Deconstruct ten common assumptions Be present in each moment Survive emotional storms Develop peaceful communication skills Deepen communication with your partner Appreciate mortality and the preciousness of life Cultivate compassion As you read the chapters and engage in each practice, you will work with your own stories of suffering—stories in which you have felt abandoned, deprived, subjugated, defective, excluded or vulnerable—and you will learn how to release yourself from suffering by investigating it with curiosity and kindness.

Ask Me for a Blessing (You Know You Need One)

What is a blessing? Do you have to believe to receive one? Can you doubt while you pray? And can you extend grace to others while still desperately in need of it yourself? Once a week Episcopal priest Adrian Dannhauser stands outside her Manhattan church beside a chalkboard sign that reads "Ask me for a blessing (because God knows you need one)." Passersby stop, chat, and ask for prayer: for a sick friend, an addicted son, an upcoming job interview, the state of our nation, or the grief of our world. Bus drivers sometimes open their doors for a quick prayer before the light turns green, and someone once took her to meet their doorman so she could bless him too. Half of those who stop are in crisis. Someone always cries. A few are simply curious. Through the heartfelt, frank, and sincere stories of her unique ministry, Dannhauser offers glimpses into the tender, holy, and sometimes hilarious moments of sidewalk prayers. With a potent blend of reverence and irreverence, as well as insights from Christian scriptures, she delves into the power that ancient ideas--blessing, forgiveness, miracles, and prayer--hold in a disenchanted world. For people of Christian faith, other faiths, or no faith at all, having spiritual conversations, even awkward ones with strangers on the street, can help us face our vulnerability, where we may discover a grace sufficient for all.