Love Your Enemies (Book Outlet)

Coping with anger and pain is more challenging than ever in these times—and more necessary. Two acclaimed Buddhist teachers offer strategies and wisdom in a book that’s been called “possibly the most inspiring and liberating meditation on love ever written.”When people and circumstances upset us, how do we deal with them? Often, we feel victimized. We become hurt, angry, and defensive. We end up seeing others as enemies, and when things don’t go our way, we become enemies to ourselves.

But what if we could move past this pain, anger, and defensiveness?

Inspired by Buddhist philosophy, this book introduces us to the four kinds of enemies we encounter in life: the outer enemy, people, institutions, and situations that mean to harm us; the inner enemy, anger, hatred, fear, and other destructive emotions; the secret enemy, self-obsession that isolates us from others; and the super-secret enemy, deep-seated self-loathing that prevents us from finding inner freedom and true happiness.

In this practical guide, we learn not only how to identify our enemies, but more important, how to transform our relationship to them.Love Your Enemiesteaches us how to . . .
·break free from the mode of “us” versus “them” thinking
·develop compassion, patience, and love
·accept what is beyond our control
·embrace lovingkindness, right speech, and other core concepts

First published in 2013,Love Your Enemiesis, more than ever, required reading for navigating our world. Throughout, authors Sharon Salzberg and Robert Thurman draw from ancient spiritual wisdom and modern psychology to help you find peace within yourself and with the world.

“If life is a struggle, this book is your friend. Its whispered truths, like the first inklings of the dawn, bring both relief and recognition. Return to it time and again; its good humor and wise counsel are a balm for the soul.”
—Mark Epstein, author of The Trauma of Everyday Life

“If there are two beings in the whole world whom I trust with my whole heart to give powerful, honest, kind, and deeply truthful teachings that can free us from burning in the mental anguish that is the ‘new normal’ in these anxious and fear-ridden times, it is Tenzin Bob Thurman and Sharon Salzberg. Having known both of them for many years, I can say that I am blessed that they are with me on this desert island called Earth.”
—Krishna Das, musician and author of Chants of a Lifetime

“Brilliant! Love Your Enemies is possibly the most inspiring and liberating meditation on love ever written.”
—Robert Holden, Ph.D., author of Shift Happens! and Loveability

Sharon Salzberg is a meditation pioneer, world-renowned teacher, and New York Times
bestselling author. She is among the first to bring mindfulness and lovingkindness meditation to
mainstream American culture over fifty years ago, inspiring generations of meditation teachers
and wellness influencers. A co-founder of The Insight Meditation Society in Barre, MA, Sharon
is the author of fourteen books, including the New York Times bestseller Real Happiness, now
in its second edition, and her seminal work, Lovingkindness. Her popular podcast, The Metta
Hour, has amassed over eight million downloads and features interviews with thought leaders
from the mindfulness movement and beyond.

Born in New York City in 1952, Sharon experienced considerable loss and turmoil as a child.
She graduated summa cum laude from the State University of New York, Buffalo, with a
Bachelor of Arts in 1972. Sharon first encountered Buddhism in 1969 in an Asian philosophy
course at SUNY Buffalo. In 1970, she traveled to India for an independent study program,
motivated by "an intuition that the methods of meditation would bring me some clarity and
peace." By January 1971, she attended her first intensive meditation course in Bodh Gaya,
India, an experience that determined her life's direction. She spent the next years intensively
studying meditation and Buddhist philosophy with highly respected teachers in India and Burma.

By 1974, Sharon returned to America to begin a lifelong passion for teaching meditation. In
1976, alongside Joseph Goldstein and Jack Kornfield, she co-founded the Insight Meditation
Society in Barre, Massachusetts, one of the West's most renowned meditation centers. This
vision expanded in 1989 with the co-founding of the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies, and in
1998 with the Forest Refuge, a long-term retreat center on IMS property.

Outside of her work at IMS, Sharon has emerged as a featured speaker and teacher worldwide
from working with 9/11 first responders and domestic violence shelter workers, to speaking
on panels alongside H.H. the Dalai Lama and addressing audiences at the State of the World
Forum. She aims to empower people with the tools to navigate life in an engaged and
connected way, offering non-sectarian retreats and study opportunities for all, especially those
who face oppression and injustice.

Sharon is the author of fourteen books. Her published works include: Lovingkindness
(Shambhala, 1995); A Heart As Wide As The World (Shambhala, 1997); Faith (Riverhead,
2002); The Force of Kindness (Sounds True, 2005); Real Happiness (Workman, 2010 & 2019);
Love Your Enemies with Robert Thurman (Hay House, 2013 & 2023); Real Happiness at Work
(Workman, 2013); Real Love (Flatiron, 2017); Real Change (Flatiron, 2021); Real Life (Flatiron,
2023); Finding Your Way (Workman, 2023); and Kind Karl: A Little Crocodile with Big Feelings
with Jason Gruhl (Shambhala, 2025).

Sharon's writing has appeared in Time Magazine, The New York Times, Yoga Journal, O
Magazine, Lion's Roar, Tricycle, GQ, Forbes, NPR, Psychology Today, and many others. She
was a weekly columnist for On Being from 2015 to 2018 and a contributing editor of Oprah's O
Magazine for several years.

The Metta Hour podcast features hundreds of conversations with thought leaders including H.H.
the Dalai Lama, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Ram Dass, Gabor Maté, Parker Palmer, bell hooks, Yung
Pueblo, Tara Brach, and Jack Kornfield. Sharon has also appeared as a guest on The Moth
Radio Hour, On Being, Tim Ferriss, Ten Percent Happier, and many others.
Today, Sharon resides in Barre, Massachusetts, and New York City. Her teachings are
available online through IMS Online, the Ten Percent Happier App, Insight Timer, Sounds True,
Maloka (VR), and Twill.

• Listen to Author Podcasts on Be Here Now Network
• Read About the Author on Lionsroar