Bringing Home the Dharma: Awakening Right Where You Are

by Jack Kornfield

However, it is not necessarily an easy or gentle journey. Tibetan meditation master Chögyam Trungpa spoke about this. In a talk he gave in Berkeley, California, he sat up in front of a large hall filled with people who had paid to see him. He began his talk by asking, “How many of you are just beginning a spiritual practice?” A number of people raised their hands. He said, “Fine. My suggestion is that you go home.” He continued, “It is a lot more difficult than you know when you begin. Once you start, it is also difficult to stop. So my suggestion to you is not to begin. Best not to start at all. But if you do start, then it is best to finish.”