Books on meditation

DEL 707

DEL 707

DEL 707

Soldato
Joined
20 Mar 2004
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I've been advised to look into meditation, but there are so many books out there, I have no idea where to start.

Can anyone recommend a good starter book?
 
Do you need a book on the history and philosophy or the actual techniques or a bit of both?

Look for books by Eric Harrison such as "Teach yourself to Meditate". He writes in a no-nonsense manner.

I have a book called "Meditation for Beginners" by jack Kornfield which came with a CD but it isn't very good.

Not quite meditation but on the same lines you should really check out a book called "The power of Now" by Eckhart Tolle

Can I ask why you are looking into it?
 
Thanks for the info

Im looking for books on technique, as for the reason why? I appreciate your interest but I think there are enough personal problem threads already out there to keep everyone satisfied ;)
 
DEL 707 said:
Thanks for the info

Im looking for books on technique, as for the reason why? I appreciate your interest but I think there are enough personal problem threads already out there to keep everyone satisfied ;)
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Thats speaks for it's self.

If you really do want to clear your head let me reccoment that you read The Power of Now first before actually trying any meditation.

I'll tell you now that meditation is extremely difficult. It is a discaplin that you have to learn and it takes some dedication. Reading The Power of Now will help you achieve it by understanding how to put your mind into the right place, this make meditation easier to do and you will also know that you are doing it correctly.

You will likely find out many things about yourself that you never realised. Let us know how you get on.
 
Thanks for the suggestions again.

I'm looking at through various websites for "The power of Now" but there seem to be several books.
  • The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment
  • Practising the Power of Now
  • Practicing the Power of Now: Meditations and Exercises and Core Teachings for Living the Liberated Life
 
MookJong said:
Thats speaks for it's self.

If you really do want to clear your head let me reccoment that you read The Power of Now first before actually trying any meditation.

I'll tell you now that meditation is extremely difficult. It is a discaplin that you have to learn and it takes some dedication. Reading The Power of Now will help you achieve it by understanding how to put your mind into the right place, this make meditation easier to do and you will also know that you are doing it correctly.

You will likely find out many things about yourself that you never realised. Let us know how you get on.
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It's not that difficult. If you can sit in a room in silence you are already half way there.

I'd recommend nipping down to a local Buddhist centre and signing up for a meditation course to start yourself off. It's by far the best way to start as you'll have someone there to guide you through an evening, help you find a beneficial posture, and practice various techniques. It also means you'll have others in a similar position to chat to and bounce any problems off that you're having with meditating.

As for what to read, "Introducing Buddhism" by Chris Pauling is an excellent place to start. It'll teach you some basic techniques and give you a brief history of Buddhism and its principles which I believe is helpful in understanding what (Buddhist) meditation is actually about. It won't try to convert you either ;)
 
The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment

That is the one you want, the other books are sequals. Don't let the "Spiritual Enlightenment" bit put you off this is not a religious book and the author is not aligned with any particular faith.

Here are the basics...Don't worry it is explained much more clearly in the book

1. You are not your thoughts. You are the awareness behind the thoughts. Thoughts are often negative and painful, yearning for or fearing something in the future, complaining about something in the present or fearing a matter from the past. However, the thoughts are not you; they are a construct of the ego. Awareness of your thoughts without being caught up in them is the first step to freedom.

2. Only the present moment exists. That is where life is (indeed it is the only place life can truly be found). Becoming aware of the 'now' has the added benefit that it will draw your attention away from your (negative) thoughts. Use mindfulness techniques to fully appreciate your surroundings and everything you are experiencing. Look and listen intently. Give full attention to the smallest details.

3. Accept the present moment. It is resistance to the present moment that creates most of the difficulties in your life. However, acceptance does not mean that you cannot take action to rectify the situation you are in. What is important is to drop resistance so that you let the moment be, and that any action arises from deeper awareness rather than from resistance. The vast majority of pain in a person's life comes from resistance to what is.

4. Years of conditioned thought patterns, individually and collectively, have resulted in habitual emotional reactions with an apparent personality of their own. During 'pain-body attacks' we become completely identified with this 'pain identity' and respond from its agenda--which is to create more pain for ourselves and others. Observing the pain-body is awareness itself arising--as it allows humans to separate from this unconscious identification with pain.
 
Hellsmk2 said:
It's not that difficult. If you can sit in a room in silence you are already half way there.
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Nonsense, your not half way there just by sitting quietly in a room. There are plenty people wracked in termoil who could still sit quietly for weeks and be no better off.

99% of meditation is about having a quiet mind.
 
MookJong said:
2. Only the present moment exists. That is where life is (indeed it is the only place life can truly be found). Becoming aware of the 'now' has the added benefit that it will draw your attention away from your (negative) thoughts. Use mindfulness techniques to fully appreciate your surroundings and everything you are experiencing. Look and listen intently. Give full attention to the smallest details.
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Funny enough I was also told to get a book on mindfullnes, got plenty of recommendations for that, mainly anything by Kabat-Zinn, but I didn't receive any recommendations for meditation.

Ordered some 3 books in the end, 1 on mindfullnes, the power of now and Teach Yourself to Meditate in 10 Simple Lessons: Discover Relaxation and Clarity of Mind in Just Minutes a Day by Eric Harrison.
The "teach yourself to meditate" could take a few weeks to reach me, so they gives me a bit of time to go over the other books 1st.

Thanks again for all the suggestions and help.
 
DEL 707 said:
Thanks again for all the suggestions and help.
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Good Luck, I hope you resolve whatever put you on this path. The one thing that always helps me is to remember the following:

The man who want for nothing is the man who is truely free.
 
Have you considered getting an audio book?

A friend of mine has one on CD which guides you into meditation, quite good actually.

For some reason, this makes me think of a 'Two Pints of Larger' episode :)
 
MookJong said:
Nonsense, your not half way there just by sitting quietly in a room. There are plenty people wracked in termoil who could still sit quietly for weeks and be no better off.

99% of meditation is about having a quiet mind.
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I disagree entirely. If you can sit in a room in silence with your thoughts you are halfway there. The techniques and stillness that come from meditation merely help you identify what is going on in your mind much more comprehensively and give those things the space needed to properly attempt to understand them.

People saying meditation is extrememly difficult just make it sound less accessible where in actual fact anyone who seriously tries it will see some benefit from it.

Arguing in a meditation thread though :D
 
MookJong said:
Nonsense, your not half way there just by sitting quietly in a room. There are plenty people wracked in termoil who could still sit quietly for weeks and be no better off.

99% of meditation is about having a quiet mind.
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I have to disagree also my friend, you seem to know your stuff but from my experiance this is wrong, I have worked with people in the mental health industry and getting these people to be still is a feat within it's self and a big challange, I have studied and spoken to many people about meditation, my dad for example lived in a Hindu Temple for a while serving a great Guru and learn't many things about the true yoga of the mind and how to meditate properly, anyone who understands this topic will tell you just being still is a first and very big stop towards venturing into your mind.
 
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Yes, there are somany old books and saints in Hindu still practicing meditation. You might have remember one of such saint "Swami Vivekananda" of India had got strong mental power through meditation. you can find so many examples from India the land of Hindu religion.
 
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