Sadness and Heartbreak

I posted an essay some weeks (months?) back called, “Once I Had a Broken Heart.” I’ve received a tremendous amount of feedback, mostly from people who are struggling with this extraordinarily painful situation. The pain of a relationship ending is so real and cuts so deep, but we think we should just snap out of it after awhile. It’s not so easy to do. There are many Buddhist teachings on how to work with a broken heart (one might say that is what the whole entire thing is about) like this, this, and this. But much of it was summed up by this statement I read from Gloria Steinem, who was discussing her grief after her husband died:

“In depression, nothing matters.” In sadness and grief, “everything matters.”

I found this to be such a moving expression of warriorship. It makes me remember that in sadness are the gifts of deepened insight and powerful compassion. When your heart is broken, it is also broken open and from it can flow enormous tenderness.

categorized in: dharma, relationships