Book cover of the study guide for Don't Believe Everything You Think

Don’t Believe Everything You Think: Study Guide

This study guide serves as a resource for the book Don’t Believe Everything You Think: Living with Wisdom and Compassion, a commentary on The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas. 

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About the study guide

A companion resource to the book Don’t Believe Everything You Think: Living with Wisdom and Compassion, a commentary on The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas.

In the framework of Buddhist education, we deepen our understanding of teachings through a process of hearing, thinking, and meditating on what we’ve learned. In the context of this book, hearing involves reading the text. You can also watch or listen to the talks given by Venerable Chodron and the Sravasti Abbey monastics on each verse.

To support the process of thinking, we’ve created this study guide with questions that you can contemplate on your own or discuss with a book group. We’ve also included writing prompts for those of you who like to journal to connect each verse with your own experience; akin to the personal stories you’ve read in the book.

Teachings

  • Associated talks and teachings are here.

Contents

  • Chapter 1: Helpful background
  • Chapter 2: Starting out on the path
  • Chapter 3: Transitioning
  • Chapter 4: The next step
  • Chapter 5: Cultivating love, compassion, and altruism
  • Chapter 6: Transforming distressing events
  • Chapter 7: Dealing with difficulties
  • Chapter 8: The hated and the desired
  • Chapter 9: The true nature
  • Chapter 10: Practices to last a lifetime
  • Chapter 11: Joyfully staying on the path