As expressed in the lojong teachings, that funda-
mental change of attitude is to breathe the undesir-
able in and breathe the desirable out. In contrast, the
attitude that is epidemic on the planet is that if it’s
unpleasant we push it away and if it’s pleasant we
hold tight and grasp it.
This change in attitude doesn’t happen overnight;
it happens gradually, at our own speed. If we have
the aspiration to stop resisting those parts of our-
selves that we find unacceptable and instead begin
to breathe them in, this gives us much more space.
We come to know every part of ourselves, with no
more monsters in the closet, no more demons in the
cave. We have some sense of turning on the lights
and looking at ourselves honestly and with great
compassion.
We could begin to get the hang of changing our at-
titude on an everyday level: when things are delight-
ful and wonderful we give our pleasure away on the
outbreath, sharing it with others. That also allows for
enormous space—not just for us, but for everyone.
When we do this, all of our inner obstacles that keep
us from connecting with our inherent freshness and
openness begin to dissolve. This is the fundamental
change of attitude—this working with pain and
pleasure in a revolutionary and courageous way.
When we work with pain by leaning into it and
with pleasure by giving it away, it doesn’t mean that
148 Compassionate Action