Meditation Books
Whether it's the mounting scientific research that
demonstrates the constructive outcomes at a cell level, or you're simply
attempting to feel less focused on, the fundamental obstruction for some
individuals attempting to figure out how to ponder could be an instance of not
knowing where to start. A danger is that a practitioner may rely upon
instruction that isn’t tried and true, and engage in a method that produces the
precise opposite of ease and clarity. These five books will help you create the
foundation for a genuine, disciplined, and fruitful meditation practice.
This classic text is largely responsible for the explosion
of Zen practice in the Western world. Suzuki Roshi sharply communicates the
foundational philosophy of the Soto School, elucidating the meditation practice
of shikantaza, or “just sitting.” He transmits the teachings of his authentic
lineage through a rhetoric that is simultaneously sparse and elegant,
definitive and spacious. “To stop your mind does not mean to stop the
activities of mind. It means your mind pervades your whole body,” says Roshi.
If you’ve ever wanted to begin practicing Zen, this is the place to start.
Jack Kornfield has been teaching meditation internationally
since 1974 and trained as a monk in Thailand, India, and Myanmar. This book is
rife with the wisdom and meditation methods that he accrued throughout his
years as a monk and teacher. He systematically walks the reader through some of
the various challenges that arise in meditation. The teachings he presents have
the flavor of Buddhism, but are more or less non-denominational. At the end of
each chapter, Kornfield offers a technique that can be employed to
experientially recognize what he has conceptually outlined. He presents several
methods of attention training and offers exercises for cultivating sensitivity
and kindness.
This book is primarily a manual for the application of
mindfulness in daily life. It is realistic and frank about the various
frustrations and difficulties that each of us encounters; and nonetheless
courageously and secularly asserts the value of dropping into the present to
recognize the richness within each moment of living. Meditation techniques are presented
in a thorough, and accessible way. While working with this book, you will not
have the thought, “Am I doing this correctly?”
Open Heart, Open Mind by Tsoknyi Rinpoche
Tsoknyi Rinpoche comes from an unbroken lineage of
meditation masters revered throughout Tibet. An authentic teacher in his own
right, Rinpoche manages to communicate the meditation methods of his tradition
in a pithy and relatable form. These methods comprise breathing practices and
awareness training techniques that lead to the dawn of natural ease and
clarity. Rinpoche supplements his teachings with warm stories from his life as
a young monk and his transition out of monasticism into the life of a
householder. He also tells stories from the lives of his students in order
clarify the misunderstandings that can arise when one begins meditating. The
book is appropriate for advanced practitioners and newcomers alike.
Loving-Kindness by Sharon Salzberg
Sharon Salzberg is the co-founder of the renowned Insight
Meditation Society of Massachusetts, and has been teaching meditation for over
thirty years. This book focuses primarily on the cultivation of what are
traditionally known as the Brahma Viharas, or “Abodes of the Gods” —
loving-kindness, compassion, sympathetic joy, and equanimity. Training in these
states of mind swiftly give rise to the recognition of our connectedness with
all things, as well as a deeper more authentic love for self and other. Though
some previous attention training might enhance the practice of metta, or
loving-kindness, this book is absolutely accessible to beginners.
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