Four reminders that restore sanity
September 15, 2025 | 19 CommentsAudio only version is here
Meditation begins at 16:13
I hope you are well during this difficult time. Before our meditation this week, I share with you a Buddhist teaching called the Four Reminders. They have a way of immediately restoring clarity, balance, and lovingkindness. Don’t take my word for it! Have a listen and see how they land for you.
In other news, I cry during this talk! Just saying!
Please have a listen and let me know what you think. I always love hearing from you.
Love,
Susan
categorized in: dharma, meditation
19 Comments
Hi Susan. This is such an important talk. How do these differ from the five remembrances?
And I am sorry about your kittens. Losing a beloved pet has its own kind of pain.
Thank you for all you do and for being vulnerable.
Hi Joanne. The reminders and the remembrances seem quite similar. Can’t hear them too many times. And many thanks for your kind sympathy. Yes, cat (or dog) loss is a terrible and unique pain. With love, Susan
Susan, thank you so much for this talk. Timing couldn’t be better. Will play this again and again. Sending many hugs and much love ❤️
Glad it resonated, Elizabeth. Love always, Susan
Thank you Susan. Sometimes these four reminders seem so obvious, and other times we need them to remind us!
A random thought: when you talked about the third Reminder, I suddenly remembered these lines from Jackson Browne’s “To a Dancer”:
—
Into a dancer you have grown
From a seed somebody else has thrown
Go on ahead and throw some seeds of your own
And somewhere between the time you arrive
And the time you go
May lie a reason you were alive
But you’ll never know
—
Thank you for reminding us!
Glenn
I love that song and Jackson Browne, thank you for including that. Very tender and touching.
I absolutely love, love, love this song. Glad to share appreciation for it with you. Also a great reminder! Love, S
<3
Thankyou Susan,
I had half woken to early in a panicked and negative space, and had scrolled through my emails for somehelpful to listen to. The four reminders were indeed something I needed to hear, and now I’m fully awake I will play them again.
I am so appreciating the presence of my cat who is snuggled under the duvet right now. I feel your grief at the loss of your two beloved furries, and my own grief at the loss of earlier beloved kitties, and people. And what feels like huge loss in this time of what seems insanity and the immense suffering caused by the 3 poisons unbridled.
I appreciate your teachings, and the sincerity you offer them in. Connection and authenticity is an antidote
Sending so much love, Kim. To you and to your sweet cats, seen and unseen. <3
Thank you Susan for all you bring to the world. The Four Reminders definitely bring clarity to the blessing and weight of our lives. One carries on 💔
Sending love, Claire!
Thank you, Susan. I found you from The Wisdom of a Broken Heart, which has been such a gift to me, and I’ve been learning so much from these talks and practicing meditation, as well. I just wanted to say that I feel your grief for your kitties, and I’m so sorry you had to lose them. I love my own two kitties so much that they break my heart every day. Thank you for helping me see more clearly just how precious this is. Sending all my love and gratitude to you ❤️
Thanks for this kind and caring comment, Kelsey. Sending love to you, too, as well as your sweet kitties. We are so lucky to be able to love them so much. <3 S
Thank you, Susan, for offering wisdom and holding space during this…fissure in the world. I am so sorry to hear about your kitty. As someone who recently lost a 15-year old cat, I send you so many hugs.
Thank you Susan.
This world…
yup <3
This feels like descending into the same quiet well of wisdom that birthed Soul Licensed: Tips and Tales. Your framing of Buddhist truths, especially impermanence, the preciousness of our human life, karma, and the universality of suffering, doesn’t just calm; it reorients, offering clarity and lovingkindness in moments of overwhelm. You remind us that sanity is not about control but connection to deeper truths, a reminder whispered by a compassionate, wise friend.
What a grounding and soul‑soothing piece, this blog on the Four Reminders really brings wisdom to the chaos of life. The way it points to impermanence, the preciousness of our human moments, the truth that our actions matter, and the reality of suffering feels like a map to spiritual sanity. It reminded me of how, in the Kingdom of God, we must diligently ask Him for revelation; it’s in Scripture that He reveals the road map of truth and purpose when we seek with a surrendered heart.