Best christian meditation books according to redditors
We found 161 Reddit comments discussing the best christian meditation books. We ranked the 56 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
We found 161 Reddit comments discussing the best christian meditation books. We ranked the 56 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the top 20.
I highly recommend Adyashanti's True meditation book which can be found also in audio format in Vimeo:
Part 1, about meditation
Part 2, about meditative Self inquiry
Part 3, 3 guided meditations
First guided meditation is called: Allow everything to be as it is. Second: Let the Heart's will be done. Third: Meditative self-inquiry.
This was the first book I ever read about meditation and it was so good that it was also the last book I have ever read about meditation. It gave me everything I needed to know about meditation.
Adyashanti also has a collection of his teachings titled Death - The essential teachings that is worth checking out.
Also check out Eckhart Tolle's book The Power of Now He talks about finding peace in the midst of our turmoil.
Eckhart and Adya have lots of clips in Youtube. You might find something also from there!
May you find peace quickly!
https://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Core-Teachings-Buddha-Unusually/dp/1904658407
Or
https://www.amazon.com/Mind-Illuminated-Meditation-Integrating-Mindfulness/dp/1501156985
Daniel ingram, author of the book in the first link, is a PHD medical surgeon and a self declared arhat. He touches on the DNotS often and often speaks to how treatment of it is something that our medical community should pay attention to in the future.
That book has a ton of information on the subject and will deepen your practice in so many other ways. The book is mostly concerned with the jhanas and will take you through the 4 rupa jhana into the 4 arupa jhana. I believe it discusses the ninth jhana as well(it does i just googled it).
He also runs a website with a ton of information on the DNotS. https://www.dharmaoverground.org/
Overall its a great book and one can spend perhaps a lifetime on that work alone.
the 2nd one is just as good for different reasons. Check out the amazon reviews.
But bro i think you just gotta push through it. Keep meditating.
Good luck to you.
It helps me to accept the things I don't like about having Autism so I can focus on the positives. It has helped give me a sense of peace with life and all of the suffering in the world. Buddhism just seemed to make sense to me from the moment I first heard about it. It allows me to be comfortable with who I am as a human rather than an oddball with a label.
Check this book out! It will help
Also, try to visit a temple or monastery if you haven't yet. You can gain a lot of wisdom from a good teacher.
~Peace
One of my favorite books. :)
I think you might find better advice on /r/Meditation or /r/Buddhism. Actually, the best thing you can do if you plan to continue meditation is to find a real teacher. It's possible to get started with meditation on your own, but to make real progress, you're going to need to spend at least some time with a teacher.
Some schools of meditation would tell you that your experiences, while unusual, aren't any more important or any more or less real than your experiences working or studying or browsing reddit, and that it's important not to be seduced by the exotic. In other words, whether those experiences and those beings are "real" or not isn't really an important question; it's just something else to let go of.
Other schools would say that intense concentration allows you to both see things that you normally can't see and to mentally travel to realms you normally can't visit. Some schools even cultivate these experiences, which are variously called the siddhis, the Divine Eye/Divine Ear, and a bunch of other terms I'm too lazy to look up right now.
Another relevant angle would be found in The Progress of Insight by Mahasi Sayadaw (specifically section VI). This is an explicitly Buddhist approach that delineates the levels of insight that lead to the four stages of enlightenment. The Mahasi text is a hard slog if you're not familiar with Buddhist terminology already, but there's an easier-to-understand, though somewhat controversial, modern treatment written by Daniel Ingram called Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha.
A teacher in the Mahasi tradition, then, might tell you that this was an Arising-and-Passing-Away event, which signals the beginning of the spiritual path in earnest. Of course, the teacher might also tell you it was just a dream (and certainly wouldn't tell you anything at all based on just an internet post :) ).
Arising-and-Passing-Away is usually followed by all kinds of unpleasantness, all of which is considered necessary for mental purification. St. John of the Cross's Dark Night of the Soul is considered the best exposition of this process from a Western Christian perspective.
So, yeah. If you're determined to keep at this, it's probably best to find a teacher.
Oh, no need to apologize anyway. There's just a lot of... backstory.
You'll need to couple source material like the below with the above historical scholarship if you want to come to a full understanding.
As for some primary sources:
Tang dynasty teachers who were students of Mazu (one of the most influential Zen teachers ever)
Dazhu (although, relevant)
Huangbo
Baizhang (this text is prohibitively expensive on Amazon, so look in local libraries.)
Song dynasty teachers
Yuanwu (1, 2)
Hongzhi (1, 2) (note, take Taigen dan Leighton's introduction to Cultivating the Empty Field with a grain of salt, as he's a shitty scholar. He basically just misrepresents Hongzhi and Dahui's relationship. See Schlutter's How Zen Became Zen for more details.)
Song dynasty kanhua Chan teachers (kanhua is the main approach to Zen in both Rinzai and Seon)
Dahui (Yuanwu's student)
Wumen
A Japanese Zen teacher
Bankei (1, 2)
A Korean Zen teacher
Daehaeng (1, 2, 3)
___
Note that this leaves out huge swathes of the literature, including all of the literature associated with the East Mountain teaching, the Northern school, the Oxhead school, Soto, most of Rinzai, Obaku, most of Seon, etc. Of course, some people with more fixed and essentialist ideas of what "Zen" is object to the idea that some of these other schools/lineages are actually "Zen". Use your own head. (I'm not saying they're necessarily wrong; I'm just saying that once you feel comfortable with the basics, start to think critically about Zen and your own study of it, including e.g. how you would decide which teachings to follow, and why.)
There's no roster of "Zen masters^TM " anywhere, so the above is a bit of a random mix of my own choosing.
While reading, note what people say and ask yourself questions -- where do they agree? Where do they disagree? If they disagree, should that be reconciled or not, and why?
Some more pointed questions to ask for each book: What can one do to reach awakening? What ways to reach awakening are preferred over others? What practices and doctrines are criticized? Is there any cultivation necessary at any point along the path? If yes, what is to be cultivated? If the teacher is talking about the teachings of earlier masters, are those teachers being represented accurately, or are extrinsic frameworks being laid onto them to fit the later teacher's presentation of Zen? If you had to sum up the teacher's teaching in a slogan, what would it be?
Really, the main thing is that you can think critically about what you're reading, but the above reading list and approach would give you a really solid foundation for the things people tend to talk about on this forum.
Theravada Buddhist here. My primary methods are mindfulness of breathing and metta (sometimes called lovingkindnesss) meditation. I also practice walking meditation on retreats.
Meditation, from my perspective, is really the cultivation of particular states. Broadly, these states can be divided into two types: states of calm and states of insight into the nature of experience. Different meditation techniques develop one or both of these, and gaining skill at one tends to lead to getting skill in the other.
As far as an Aspie-friendly method, it would really depend on how Aspergers manifests for them. Fortunately, there are lots of methods.
There is one book on the topic I'm aware of, also from a Buddhist perspective. Asperger's Syndrome and Mindfulness
I do meditate and am even a Teacher in Training at the local Zen Center. I used to meditate once in the morning and once in the evening for 25 minutes each. However, since the birth of my son, I have not been able to get in my morning practice.
I have noticed a profound effect with my training which I attribute to meditation. It has helped keep my fuckarounditus at bay. Just as with meditation, it is rare that each practice session will yield many noticeable results. But trusting in the process and sticking to it, the results present themselves. For some, those results are fast and dramatic. For others, they are slower to come. But this is irrelevant because the path is the goal: sitting meditation is the goal of meditation; lifting is the goal of lifting.
Another way that meditation has helped me in training is that when I am lifting, I simply lift. I am there 100%. I don't have to scream, grunt, or pound my chest. I step up to the bar and pull/push. Either the bar moves or it doesn't (it moves 99% of the time). Then I move on.
And finally, in a surprising twist, seated meditation has helped me with my form. At the base, the legs are in as close to the lotus position as you can get. My legs are too short and think for full lotus, so I sit half. This has opened up my hips making ass-to-grass possible. Moving up, the proper spinal alignment for meditation is the same as for lifting. Sitting meditation makes this the default setting. The same holds true with the neck and head, where the gaze is neutral and the chin slightly down.
TL;DR: 2xday for 25 mins., helps mental preparation and body alignment, always enough time, tons of value. SIT DOWN AND SHUT UP!
Also, interested.
I picked up a couple of books at the library that I have been meaning to get through. Only partially started one...
Genuine Happiness: Meditation as the Path to Fulfillment, I just started this one...
And this is the other I am going to be getting to: Wherever You Go, There You Are
I really appreciate lojong training and think it's pretty underrated. The Great Path of Awakening, Training the Mind, and The Practice of Lojong are great texts to work with.
Like contemplating insight, studying lojong is a pithy way of integrating / absorbing dharma. I've found that studying them intensively allows them to arise in the conditions they best benefit in. For example, yesterday I was feeling contracted and the slogan regard all dharma [experience] as dreams spontaneously arose in mind*,* which effected an instant release and shifted perception into a dreamlike state.
>Slogan 19. All dharma agrees at one point -- All Buddhist teachings are about lessening the ego, lessening one's self-absorption.
This reminds us to not get caught in sectarian squabbling, or perhaps help us appreciate whatever tradition is most available and keep us from continuously shopping for something "better."
>Slogan 22. If you can practice even when distracted, you are well trained.
This can help prevent us from overly-criticizing our practice when our minds are frantic rather than still, recognizing that we are being mindful all the same.
Hopefully you'll find something worth exploring in the slogans listed on the wiki!
Read Ayya Khema's biography and Dipa Ma's biography. Both were mothers and both attained levels of Buddhist awakening. Ayya Khema hints at "getting the practice over with" in a video for what it's worth.. Dipa Ma was known for having great metta toawards people. Check it out, I think it will assuage some of your fears.
In order:
The first one is very neutral, and very good. In the other ones I assume that you have an inclination for Zen (which might or might not be the case).
You may. I’ll even go one further.
https://www.amazon.com/365-Tao-Meditations-Ming-Dao-Deng/dp/0062502239
365 Tao Daily Meditations by Deng Ming-Dao
Those aren't books of instruction, ewk. They are popular collections of certain people's enlightenment encounters.
Is Red Pine's translation of Bodhidharma not a direct teaching? Are letters of practice instructions from Foyan, Yuanwu, and Hongzhi not direct teachings? I suppose that Takuan Soho's instructions to Munenori on maintaining no-mind in daily life doesn't count either?
Why is it better for novices to dive deep into stories about Gutei's finger or think about whether the flag moves or not than it is to read directly from Huangpo? Isn't that like asking a baby to chew a piece of meat?
Actually, I just spoke with my friend who also does meditation books. She uses this one. Says it isn't religious or anything but more based on the philosophy of Taoism.
This is the blurb on it
>365 Tao is a contemporary book of meditations on what it means to be wholly a part of the Taoist way, and thus to be completely in harmony with oneself and the surrounding world.
One approach would be to check out a book called "365 Tao." It's a wonderful book that gives you a Tao passage every day and then expands upon the meaning of it. 365 Tao on Amazon
Also you could check out Alan Watts' "Tao: The Watercourse Way." I personally really enjoy Watts, and this book is a nice exposition of some Tao ideals. Tao: The Watercourse Way
I have seen incredible change. I started using Ryan Holiday's The Daily Stoic: 366 Meditations on Wisdom, Perseverance and the Art of Living as a journal prompt. Not everyday is relevant, but it has become an important part of my nightly ritual. I have recently added Deng Ming-Dao's 365 Tao: Daily Meditations to my routine.
Soon after getting involved with stoic thought, I made a New Year's resolution to stop swearing. I did it because I realized a lot of my negative traits were tied up with how I spoke to the world. My swearing worsened my agitation and led to poor interactions. Swearing cheapened me, and I can see now my anger was often directed at things I cannot change. I was angry at things I could not change, and that only made me more angry.
I have a simple example from this month. My town sewer line backed up and flooded my basement with sewage. It sucked. But I didn't get angry. I dealt with it. I called the town and they fixed the issue. The insurance company paid me. It has been a lot of work, but some good has come of it, too. I have discarded many things I do not need. My life is simpler now. And I have seen what good friends I have who came to help.
The Art of Living by William Hart. It focuses on Vipassana Meditation as taught by S.N. Goenka who has very universal non-sectarian approach to Buddha's teaching.
I'd recommend checking out Zen Mind Beginners Mind.
http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Mind-Beginners-Shambhala-Library/dp/1590302672/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1264994140&sr=8-1
You can go to a buddhist community that has meditation as a practice and learn there. Also, there are a bunch of books that teach different kinds of meditations, and some of them go into detail on how to meditate. For instance, these ones:
[zen training] (https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Training-Philosophy-Shambhala-Classics/dp/1590302834/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535777895&sr=8-1&keywords=zen+training) , [the path to bodhidharma] (https://www.amazon.com/Path-Bodhidharma-Teachings-Library-Enlightenment/dp/0804832161/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535777933&sr=8-1&keywords=the+path+to+bodhidharma) , [everyday zen] (https://www.amazon.com/Everyday-Zen-Love-Work-Plus/dp/0061285897/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535828798&sr=8-1&keywords=everyday+zen) , [nothing special] (https://www.amazon.com/Nothing-Special-Charlotte-J-Beck/dp/0062511173/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1535778035&sr=8-1&keywords=nothing+special) , [the three pillars of zen] (https://www.amazon.com/Three-Pillars-Zen-Teaching-Enlightenment/dp/0385260938/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1536631531&sr=8-1&keywords=the+three+pillars+of+zen) and these ones which are free : [the 7th world of chan buddhism] (http://zbohy.zatma.org/common/downloads/SeventhWorldOfChanBuddhism.pdf) and [Mindfulness in Plain English] (http://www.vipassana.com/meditation/mindfulness_in_plain_english.php) all have instructions on how to do one or more types of meditations.
You can also find information on the web, like here: https://zmm.org/teachings-and-training/meditation-instructions/ and http://antaiji.org/archives/eng/okumura-zazen.shtml
Or on youtube, like here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLwVt6Wlqeg , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bk7JRHNX19A , and https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGzE6BQb1xY .
There's also the topics of recommended links and books of this subreddit:
https://www.reddit.com/r/Meditation/comments/2ixjf6/meddits_online_recommendations/ ; https://www.reddit.com/r/Meditation/comments/2ixjq7/meddits_book_recommendations/
Non-directive meditation is found in different traditions. The main one's I've found are:
Taoism
Buddhism
Hinduism
You also find it in other traditions:
Perhaps /u/sovereign_self has something in mind as well
This site has a bunch of information on how to do zazen: http://antaiji.org/en/新温泉町移住定住プロモーション-l-a-zenmonki-2/
And if you're looking for books with instructions on how to do zazen, there is:
https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Training-Philosophy-Shambhala-Classics/dp/1590302834/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=zen+training&qid=1549654890&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.com/Everyday-Zen-Love-Work-Plus/dp/0061285897/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=charlotte+joko+beck&qid=1549654919&sr=8-1
https://www.amazon.com/Nothing-Special-Charlotte-J-Beck/dp/0062511173/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=charlotte+joko+beck&qid=1549654919&sr=8-2
https://www.amazon.com/Path-Bodhidharma-Teachings-Library-Enlightenment/dp/0804832161/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=shodo+harada+roshi&qid=1549654938&sr=8-2
If you're doing zazen on your own, you don't have to necessarily do any kind of ritual before it, only if you choose to do so.
And just ignore the crazy people that compulsively post lies and bullshit on this subreddit.
Perhaps a book like 365 Tao: Daily Meditations would be good to add in. It has a few sentences for each day and its nice to read in the morning before you meditate and think on it. I was given it years ago, and I enjoyed it so much I gave a friend a copy a couple years ago and they still read it daily.
I really liked The Three Pillars of Zen by Philip Kapleau. It was my first introduction to Zen, and remains my go-to book on all things Zen.
I also really like Sit Down and Shut Up: Punk Rock Commentaries on Buddha, God, Truth, Sex, Death, and Dogen's Treasury of the Right Dharma Eye by Brad Warner
YES! Sort of. I'm not sure. I don't smoke much proper weed because of my living situation. It's different on the west coast, things are much more available to you and with less risk. Indica strains are best, but there are actually non-psychoactive pure CBD products that will chill out your anxiety without making you all fucking weird, so you don't have to be paranoid about people 'knowing.'
Over the past year since I started with marijuana I've seen a serious reduction in my panic attacks and crying fits. Marijuana helps me to interrupt my harmful thought spirals and just enjoy my life. I've also lost about 40 pounds, but that's in no small part due to time at the gym as well as marijuana helping me to curb my nervous eating.
I remember I was incredibly nervous and felt super guilty when I first requested my prescription, but I was the only person in the situation shaken by it. It can't hurt to try to talk to a doctor about it, talking with a doctor isn't a crime or anything.
I definitely give less fucks about going out now than I did last year, but I don't feel like I can attribute that entirely to the drugs. CBT and working out have become a part of my life. Something that helped alter my perspective was a book called Sit Down and Shut Up, which is about buddhism overall but makes some very good points about perspective, the self, and letting things go.
So yes, marijuana has helped me, but I have also been trying very hard to help myself. Can you rely on it to fix all of your problems? No. Does it help? Yes.
Look for a lineage that speaks to your heart. Mastering the core teachings of the Buddha is the best direction for myself personally, which I found from this podcast which led me to this kind of wacky 3 part video, which inspired me to read the book. There is a free pdf of the book linked from the author's website. Time is probably better spent just going with something then flittering back and forth and always looking for a path but never walking one.
If you can manage to get yourself to a buddhist retreat do it. Practicing every moment every day for a week or so is incredible and I think inherently perspective/insight changing. I'd recommend studying what to do on retreats beforehand, so you are better able to practice effectively in every moment during the retreat, and better able to communicate questions to the teacher. Honestly, if you make a ten day retreat with some knowledge of what to do, and just keep on trucking through it to the end, you will probably reach insights & samadhi/jhana intensity which will make weed/alcohol appear essentially boring, and which will also really establish a pretty unshakeable Saddhā in the Dharma, with a strong sense that you know where you are going and how to get there (and a sense of how much it will actually take to get there.)
Put some dharma talks onto your phone/ipod. Listen when you drive/clean whenever seems appropriate. Joseph Goldstein is one of my favorite speakers to listen to. He's repetitive, but so are the original texts. Here is his kind of epic 46 part talk over 5 years on the Satipatthana Sutta.
I always use a timer for formal practice for myself, 20 minute sits etc., the fact that I may sincerely need to do something else timewise (eat, bathroom, pay bills) or be actually hurting myself from a certain posture for too long will require my attention otherwise.
Also, the world outside of practice is hard, especially when the heart is open. I've found The way of the Superior Man and especially some torrentable live discussions of the authors to be the most useful perspective I've come across for trying to deal with practical reality & relationships.
Metta my friend, may your path be easy and true.
You have overlooked the only person who can help you; it's you. You are intelligent and perceptive and most assuredly sentient. You are a piece of the universe that can see itself. Through you, the universe can become self aware. This incredible experience is your birthright. Self-loathing is a very narrow-minded stance to take for a being in such a position. You are able to escape from your box and claim all that is yours, and it is spectacular beyond reckoning. Nothing can stop you except yourself.
Your state of mind is not something you should entrust to other people because you have no power over them and how they behave. You do, however, have power over your own mind, so clearly, this is the place to start.
I suggest you save yourself by allowing your mind to travel in a direction that is so fantastic and overwhelming that your attention will automatically change its focus from your family and all of their demoralizing troubles to something much greater and interesting: the search for the Big Picture.
By the Big Picture, I mean having some understanding of the true nature of the self and of reality. What exactly is this thing you call "I" that is not an object? What is going on in this space/time? What is being experienced and what is experiencing and how does it take place? What is real and what is illusory? How does all this fit together?
There are many ways to study reality. The academic or intellectual path is useful up to a certain point, but is inadequate in this case, because it necessarily objectifies and conceptualizes experience and experience is, by definition, completely subjective. Thus, the Big Picture must be sought from within. The goal is to see things clearly, just as they are, prior to conceptualization.
There are ways to train the mind for this journey. One of the best road maps I've come across for exploring the Big Picture is Zen Buddhism. The practice is very simple. You are not asked to believe in anything that deviates from your own experience. You are discouraged from relying on dogma or on the words and teachings of others because they won't help much. Zen is the see-for-yourself guide to insight. Meditation is the most important part of Zen. I'll give you the briefest peek into how it works.
You sit in a position that allows you to be relaxed yet alert and to be still without muscular exertion. Most sit cross-legged but it's of no consequence. Sit with your back straight and your muscles all relaxed and, instead of thinking, simply watch your breath. Watch your body breathing as if it were the most important thing in the world. Without going into further detail, as you watch your breath you discover that something you are able to observe cannot contain you. You, the observer, is not the body. After a while, you learn to observe the thinking mind instead of your breathing. You will find that you are able to observe your thinking mind without becoming involved in its context. Eventually, you will see that the thinking mind also doesn't contain the observer.
You go onwards from there; searching to discover where the observer is located and what is its nature. This path takes years but there are mind-blowing insights and experiences all along the way.
This, I think, is the most important pursuit a sentient being can undertake and the most fantastic. I won't go into further detail because I've already produced an embarrassing wall of text. Suffice it to say that Zen is a way to train the mind in such a way that it ceases to torment itself. This kind of practice is not only helpful for dealing with life's problems, but is also the source of a great deal of wonder and deep insight into how things are. Best of luck saving yourself from yourself. [Book suggestions: The Dhammapada, Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha: An Unusually Hardcore Dharma Book. I haven't read the 2nd book but I like its table of contents and, from a quick glance, it seems legit.]
The catch is you have to spend your whole life training and meditating to develop to a level anywhere close to chang's.
If your interested there are several resources I recommend. Spring forest qigong is a great place to start for basic concepts, robert bruce is a great author on energy work, there was a book called the tao of meditation written in the 80's which describes training similar to changs.
http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Meditation-Way-Enlightenment/dp/0804814651/
>how do you breathe sensitive to sensations
You do these simultaneously, and whatever accompanies your breathing 'unites' with the breathing, hence 'integrating' skillful factors into a single point ('right samadhi').
The anapanasati sutta says you breathe sensitive to the body, then you relax it, then once the 'heebie-jeebies' are cooled, you let the rapture or 'piti' factor of samadhi unite with the single point of the breath, then you let pleasure or 'sukha' unite with it and so on. You continue this all the way, gathering these skillful things up to abstract stuff like, 'I will breathe in focusing on inconstancy,' on dispassion, and cessation of suffering which you could never extend the breath 'into' literally.
This last part I just typed should give you a clue that the instructions are 'simultaneous' because you don't have to make 'insight into impermanence' arise from breathing always or to make your attention move from the breath 'to impermanence' since impermanence is not a thing but a process, and not always a result but could be a 'cause' (for something disapearing, say) instead of something that 'arises' (an effect of a cause). So the linear-chain form is not the way, it's simultaneous and then they unite with the breath.
>I'm seeing Thanissaro Bhikku
>[...]
>I want to ask him...During anapanasati, how do you breathe sensitive to sensations as the Buddha recommends in the Anapanasati Sutta?
Here is what Thanissaro has said about this.
From 'The Experience of Samadhi — An In-depth Exploration of Buddhist Meditation' page 123:
 
>[Interviewer]: In the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, the Ānāpānasati Sutta, and the Kāyagatāsati Sutta, one is instructed to breathe in and out, experiencing the whole body. Some interpret that it is talking about experiencing the whole physical body breathing, while others say it means staying with the whole duration of the breath but the focus can be at one point.
>Thanissaro: It's the whole body.
>[Interviewer]: Does it matter?
>Thanissaro: One of the drawbacks of concentration that’s too one-pointed is that you’re blocking out many areas of your experience, which means that a lot of things can hide away in the areas you’re blocking out. If, however, you develop more of a 360-degree awareness of the body, you’re more likely to be conscious of the more peripheral events in the mind. Also, if the awareness is a whole-body awareness, it’s a lot easier to maintain the state of concentration as you open your eyes and move around. Whether the concentration while moving around would be termed jhāna, I really don’t know, but there’s a continuity of mindfulness. If you have only one point that you’re totally focused on, then as soon as you move from that one point, your concentration is destroyed. But if you’ve got the whole body as your framework and you’re constantly mindful of this framework, events can come through and go out, leaving the framework undisturbed.
Here is Thanissaro giving a guided meditation where he shows you how he 'spreads' or unites the breath with the rapture / 'piti' factor. That might give you another idea of the details in practice as Thanissaro sees them.
Hope this helps.
Between Dipa Ma, Munindra and Mahasi Sayadaw, they probably had the biggest impact on Buddhism in the 20th century, certainly in the west. Mahasi taught Munindra and early western styles are very influenced by Mahasi's works. Munindra, himself helped revitalize Buddhism in India, drove non-Buddhists from Bodh-Gaya and helped revitalize the temple. Mahasi was the main questioner at the 6th Buddhist council.
Dipa Ma's story is fascinating, including her attainments, which included the Siddhis. A self professed non-returner, which would typically, canonically, entail the mastery of the Jhanas, she was actually able to predict the contents of UN speech given BEFORE it happened and was able to bio-locate herself, this was witnessed by a professor and his students hundreds of miles away.
Amy Schmidt wrote a great biography on her, pieced together by interviews with students and people who knew her. I would recommend the book to anyone who wants to know more, it's a fascinating read:
http://www.amazon.ca/Dipa-Ma-Legacy-Buddhist-Master/dp/0974240559
Anything by Thomas Merton is excellent. Contemplative Prayer and New Seeds of Contemplation can be good starts.
Richard Rohr, Henri Nouwen and Thomas Keating will also be good readings.
My favorite books about buddhism and meditation are:
[zen training] (https://www.amazon.com/Zen-Training-Philosophy-Shambhala-Classics/dp/1590302834/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=zen+training&qid=1565793019&s=gateway&sr=8-1) ,
nothing special
, everyday zen - love and work , [the path to bodhidharma] (https://www.amazon.com/Path-Bodhidharma-Teachings-Library-Enlightenment/dp/0804832161/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=the+path+to+bodhidharma&qid=1565793271&s=gateway&sr=8-1) , and this one is a free e-book : [the 7th world of chan buddhism] (https://zbohy.zatma.org/common/downloads/SeventhWorldOfChanBuddhism.pdf)
Also, if you're interested in buddhism, visiting a temple if there is one near you and learning there provided you find it worthwhile is another way to learn and practice buddhism.
True Meditation by Adyashanti. I've read a lot of books and this guy's the best.
A more philosophical discussion of the Chinese language can be found in Alan Watts "Tao: The Watercourse Way" link, particularly Chapter 1 on the Chinese Written Language. You should proceed with caution, though. Having read DeFrancis, you'll be in a good position to critique Watts' description of Chinese.
"365 Tao" link and "Everyday Tao" link, both by Deng Ming-dao are not scholarly works, but they include some interesting philosophical discussions about particular characters which include some etymology.
"The Composition of Common Chinese Characters(an Illustrated Account)" link by Guanghui Xie also includes the etymology of specific characters.
http://www.amazon.com/Threefold-Lotus-Sutra-Bunno-Kato/dp/4333002087/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1324081524&sr=8-3
http://www.amazon.com/Religion-Humanity-Cambridge-Cultural-Anthropology/dp/0521296900/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1324081574&sr=1-1
(Dense reading, but I think it is very good.)
Fundamental texts of Zen: The Diamond Sutra and the Sutra of Hui-Neng and The Heart Sutra.
Another famous sutra that I recommend: The Lotus Sutra
These are a good start. Also helpful is to get commentaries on sutras. You can search around and look for different translations that include commentaries. The translation of The Heart Sutra that I included has a commentary. Hope this is helpful. Happy readings!
Edit: BTW you can get PDFs of all of these (probably not the same translations). Just type in the name of the sutra and pdf and scan through for readability.
There are several popular 'flavors' of Buddhism, but unfortunately I have not read any general overview books covering all of the sects. Most of my generalized knowledge has come from podcasts like Buddhist Geeks and Zencast. Gil Fronsdal and Jack Kornfield are both enjoyable to listen to.
But back to books!
The most accessible Zen book I've read was Nishijima's To Meet The Real Dragon. Other overviews like Alan Watt's What Is Zen and Shunryu Suzuki's Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind are good but a little obtuse.
And while I can't give it a general recommendation because the writing style isn't for everyone, I really enjoyed Brad Warner's Hardcore Zen and Sit Down and Shut Up.
Of those mentioned, I would go with To Meet the Real Dragon unless you prefer a much more informal style -- then I would pick Hardcore Zen.
Sit Down And Shut Up is the name of a book by Brad Warner, who happens to look remarkably similar to one of the dudes in this video.
The book that got me started was Finding the Still Point, which was a very good primer on zazen without a lot of Zen philosophy. After that, I agree that Hardcore Zen and Opening the Hand of Thought were good for introducing me to some deeper stuff.
You might be interested in Braverman's transl.
There are lots of different kinds of meditation. That said:
Turning the Mind Into an Ally
And if you're into Vipassana: [Goenke's The Art of Living] (http://www.amazon.com/The-Art-Living-Vipassana-Meditation/dp/0060637242)
I'd advise seeing if you can find a center to get some in person instruction if at all possible. Best of luck!
By "AoL," are you referring to the use of S. N. Goenka's method of teaching Vipassana (insight) meditation? If so, one can easily learn it from the book of the same title.
cc: u/rhyno44
Check out the book Cosmic Cradle for more "pre birth" stories like this.
Thanks. Yeah I think they both definitely complement each other, but the "what can I bring forth" mindset really resonates with me moreso.
It is pretty aligned with the Buddhist concept of "genuine happiness," that Alan Wallace really discusses in his work and teachings:
http://www.amazon.com/Genuine-Happiness-Meditation-Path-Fulfillment/dp/047146984X
I've been quoting from: https://www.amazon.com/Mud-Water-Teachings-Master-Bassui/dp/0861713206
Maybe https://www.amazon.com/365-Tao-Meditations-Ming-Dao-Deng/dp/0062502239
but im not sure
From what I understand (intellectually -- I have not mastered the jhanas experientially), the "hard" jhanas are the ones of the Visuddhimagga, with no background thoughts etc., whereas the "soft" jhanas are the ones of the Pali canon as taught by people like Leigh Brasington. But it might be even more complex than that. There is another book (haven't read it yet) called The Experience of Samadhi by Shankman about the many, many different things people mean when they talk about the jhanas.
Nice, man. I wish for you to persevere in your practice. Just like you I've studied and now practice Zen, Buddhism, and some of the Taoism.
I should look into the set of authors you've written. If you have time look into it, some of the books I found most inspiring in my practice are:
Zen mind, Beginner's Mind
Not always so
The two above are for inspiration and breathtaking take on the spirit of practice, the once below are for the practical and daily aspects of the practice:
Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha - Supremely useful!
Mindfulness in Plain English - Of course "Beyond Mindfulness" is equally as impressive, just goes into a greater detail on what to expect, and how to achieve higher jhanas.
Read and do the exercises from this short but epic book.
Then read this and diligently work the practices for years.
Magick and meditation can't give you easy answers to the hows and whys of existence, but they will give you the tools and discipline to make the best of the time that you do exist.
Genuine Happiness by B. Alan Wallace is the book that got me into meditation and stuff. Each chapter includes a meditation exercise, and then he talks about the meaning behind them and how they relate to Buddhist practice and such. I found it very straightforward and easy to read.
Thich Nhat Hanh is a rather famous current Buddhist writer and teacher, and while I haven't read him myself, I've heard very good things about a lot of his work, particularly The Miracle of Mindfulness.
I hope you find some of this helpful!
There's a book called "Finding the Still Point" by John Loori that I found to be very helpful in this regard. It's a quick, pragmatic lesson in seated meditation.
I wholeheartedly agree with the idea of meditation as a way to begin a programming session. It quiets the mind and allows me to skip the whole "hey I wonder what's on redditboingboingfacebookreddit real quick before I start" part of my programming session.
edit: formatting
Buddhist author Daniel Ingram calls himself "the arhat". http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Core-Teachings-Buddha-Unusually/dp/1904658407/
Geshe Michael Roach claims to have become an arya through direct perception of emptiness at age 22. His claim is questioned in several blog posts here https://michaelroachfiles.wordpress.com/tag/seeing-emptiness
You are free to think that I am shallow. I believe that myself. I found two books that were meaningful to me.They appealed to my American mind:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0804831866/ref=sr_1_2_twi_pap_1_olp?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1449117302&sr=1-2&keywords=101+zen+stories
There are enough stories that surely one or two will be meaningful to YOUR American. My own personal favorite was the one about "Attention"
http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/1590302834/ref=sr_1_1_twi_pap_1_olp?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1449117522&sr=1-1&keywords=zen+training+sekida
This book tells you how to sit. Be warned it is difficult (for me anyway) to read. But it DOES tell you how to sit. Suffice it to say that one can not write, talk or even think about Zen. It just does not work that way. I believe it is said in this book that there are 8000 books written about Zen but not one word has ever been uttered that is Zen. Sekida directs us to sit. Sekida knows what he is talking about. Sit. Now this is where the bad marketing slogan comes in: It is hard work and it hurts. The only way to train the mind is to train the mind. Training the mind is hard work and it hurts. Sit. I once read: The mind commands the body and it obeys; the mind commands itself and it meets resistance. One must sit and feel the resistance. It is real, it is difficult and it hurts. Read and talk and write all you want to but the mind is trained only once it has been quieted.
Try something other than a koan. Try counting to ten. Sekida explains that quite well. Since I am an American, I found that the alphabet helped my just about the most. But that is me. Just remember that only those things that you can touch and feel and smell and hear and taste really matter. That means that only YOU can do the hard work. You can't listen or read your way out of the hard work and pain of training your own mind. A master can only guide you. It is, in the end, you and you alone who can train your mind.
You should sit simply because those who came before you said that you should sit. I will not be easy and you will fail many times and there is not one person in this world who can help you. And in the event that you should see the smallest amount of something that glimmers you will feel a slip of the ropes that bind you. But, PLEASE!!keep your mouth shut about it!! People stink who would tell others about the WONDERS of Zen. They STINK! I know because I wallowed in it for a time. Just sit and sit some more and keep it to yourself because this most valuable thing in the world can never be given away. It doesn't work that way. Sit.
Read Vipassana Meditation and then go on a Goenka weeklong retreat and you'll know just about as much as any expert.
When you said Seikida, did you meant this translation of mumonkan that gets posted on the forum every day?
Yes I've read that, as well as the Cleary and Blyth translations.
I thought you were referring to Zen Training which I haven't read and didn't know about until today.
Hey there,
I haven't read your whole post yet. But where siddhis are concerned I, for one, have had many "supernormal experiences" in my life and they have only cotinued and increased in frequency and intensity since starting TMI. But I really don't want to discuss these things, particularly in this forum for reasons I went into here: https://old.reddit.com/r/TheMindIlluminated/comments/cjvtga/best_resources_for_understanding_practicing_the/evhk6t6/
That being said, I am part of a small group (who practice TMI) and are very open-minded and experienced in both meditation and magickal practices and I have found it extremely beneficial to discuss these things with them when it is really warranted.
If you're interested in this topic I suggest you read Dipa Ma's Biography ( https://www.amazon.ca/Dipa-Ma-Legacy-Buddhist-Master/dp/0974240559/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=dipa+ma&qid=1564831819&s=gateway&sr=8-1 ) she was an acknowledged master of the siddhis. I would also highly recommend the works of Paul Brunton, specifically, "a search in secret india" ( https://www.amazon.ca/Search-Secret-India-Paul-Brunton/dp/1844130436/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=a+search+in+secret+india&qid=1564831889&s=gateway&sr=8-1 ) which started my interest in Buddhism and the supernormal many years ago.
Metta
Read Bassui. He far exceeds Dogen who only manages to stumble around making Zen almost incoherent.
i use this in my midday meditation.
http://www.amazon.com/365-Tao-Meditations-Ming-Dao-Deng/dp/0062502239
and i like it.
The Human Condition by Thomas Keating. I've enjoyed other material from him. Thanks for sharing.
[Genuine Happiness: Meditation as the Path to Fulfillment] (http://www.amazon.com/Genuine-Happiness-Meditation-Path-Fulfillment/dp/047146984X) by B. Alan Wallace
Apparently I'm not the intellectual in this crowd ;)
As someone new to Buddhism, this is my current reading list:
I had started reading The Buddha in your Rearview Mirror because it said it was about living as a Buddhist in modern society. I found that I did not like its bias toward the Nichiren sect. I was looking for something a bit more general.
I anticipate reading more of the Dalai Lama's books in the future.
edit: added links
Sorry for the delayed response...
The philosophy books I would recommend reflect my personality and what I find interesting. However, the way my interest started was really just browsing a shit-ton of wiki pages of the many philosophies. As I did that I began to become familiar with the well-known philosophers and what they were about. Then the philosophies/philosophers that struck my eye I purchased books by them.
An example of philosphies/philosophers would be Buddhist philosophy and Nietzche (Nietzche just has a whole bunch of good shit to talk about). I've read the Diamond and Heart Sutra which was very interesting (and relevant to my experiences with psychs). And I've always been interested in meditation which led me to read a Vipassana Meditation book which focuses more on the practice -- however the book is loaded with wisdom.
I just read Notes From the Underground by Dostoevsky and it really resonated with me because of the way the Underground Man thinks. He ponders existential questions but he is tremendously neurotic. While I'm not as loony as the Underground Man I still related to his thought patterns and how he constantly over-analyzes everything. It's actually quite humorous at times too.
I think it is fun to supplement philosophy with some good old knowledge of the brain and psychology. Consciousness has always fascinated me but I didn't know much about the brain to begin with. So I initially read a book about the brain where it explains all the various functions that compose the entire brain (brain stem, hypothalamus, corpus callosum, cerebrum, cerebral cortex etc.) and what they do, why they're important and how they all interconnect. Wikipedia is also good for that. After that I wanted to know more about how that all creates consciousness. I've just started reading "Self Comes to Mind" and I'm about half-way through and it's pretty good. It's by a neuroscientist named Antonio Damasio and he hypothesizes how consciousness came to be and then argues his point with some great and profound ideas.
Last but not least, I would highly recommend Jordan Peterson's lectures. They are absolutely amazing. He's a psychologist and he has various playlists to choose from. I'm currently listening to his Personality and its Transformations playlist and it is absolutely life changing. His lectures go all over the place -- he talks about it all. The human experience and existence. He has actually influenced my philosophy/perspective a lot and because of him I've found many great thinkers that I agree with (Piaget is one example).
>I was worried I'd dislike programming and suck but fortunately I just suck.
I'm not sure how far you are into your programming classes but i definitely felt the same way about my self. I thought I was a garbage programmer and that I should just quit. But then there came a time where it all just clicked and it became a game or a puzzle.
Good luck friend!
> Everybody's going on about living in the moment. It seems to me we do nothing but live in the presence. Who has time for the future or the past? They seem a luxury for the men and women of leisure if we still have those kicking around. Of course it's a bit more complicated than just being forced to be in the moment. We can't stop our brains. How many times have I not asked it to please just shut down. I understand how people take to drink to dull the mind. Numb the constant pain etc. How do we know ourselves?
We were just talking about this at work just now. I recommended a book I picked up ten years ago that I really enjoyed, although I acknowledge that it's not to everyone's tastes: Sit Down and Shut Up: Punk Rock Commentaries on Buddha, God, Truth, Sex, Death, and Dogen's Treasury of the Right Dharma Eye. The author was a punk rock bassist before becoming a Zen Master, and so very well understands the chaos that the modern mind is confronted with. He does a good job of describing how to be mentally and psychologically still in the face of the vagaries of everyday life. I'll warn you he has a very no-nonsense way of expressing himself, though (in line with his roots in Punk) that might be off-putting to some.
> I think perhaps last week's quote may offer the beginnings of a resolution. If we act according to our purpose and values then maybe we can begin to find and eventually be and know ourselves.
Again, about ten years ago, I stumbled on a book written by some guy who decided he would say "yes" to any activity or opportunity offered him. He was advocating saying yes more often than we do, on the argument that we cut ourselves off from life-changing experiences if we don't. (I notice there's a brand new book on the bestseller list that is essentially a re-hash of the same concept). I've done that for the last ten years, and while I admit I had some amazing experiences as a result, I'm now tending towards saying that I need to say "no" more often lest I am literally drawn and quartered by all the things I have committed to do. Fundamentally, we need to know ourselves well enough to know what means the most to us, and be courageous enough to say "no" (in a nice way, of course) to things that don't match that, and most importantly, be OK with not doing everything. I don't know about you, but I've been hearing about women having to be "superwomen" for so long, admitting that I can't do it all is actually really hard.
> Your friends have a very good point. I used to mentor a lot of young a upcoming consultants. They're we all socially conscious, vegans, active members of you-name-it, hip PC etc. But the moment I gave them a test or a task they were at each others throat. Backstabbing that would make Brutus proud. They very often took personal affront at something and would go on and on about it. In short, special snowflakes indeed. Empathy was considered cool but I'm not sure they really knew what that concept entails.
Is "resilience" a concept you see a lot in your work environment? It's the new big thing here in my workplace - how to cope with an ever-changing work environment, and with the inevitable failures and flubs that come from working in such an environment. Many of our folks scoff at the concept, as though they are expected to be relentlessly positive. But that's not at all what it really means.
> I think humanism should focus more on that and also that with increased individual freedom also comes a certain responsibility. Sometimes I think we forget that in the crusade for more and more individual rights we run the risk of breaking the social contract. Also, a lot of people, these days could do with a little bit of humility in the face of the human condition.
Absolutely. Individuality at the expense of all others is a cancer on modern thought, and I really wish it would go away.
I'm very glad for this discussion, as it brings to mind the breadth of concentration practice. If I might offer up a book, The Experience of Samadhi by Richard Shankman. It is an illuminating look at the historical, canonical and commentarial descriptions of Samadhi practice, leading to Jhana.
Shankman also has a number of talks online (look on Dharmaseed or AudioDharma, about his book and research, in case a 200-odd page book is too much (!?!)
I appreciate the Visuddhimaga descriptions and style of practice, as it is pretty rigidly laid out. If you ever wanted a way to absorption that seems absolute and cut-and-dried, this would be it. The suttas, however, did not specify this level of requirement, so it would seem that there are more ways to get to absorption than the commentaries would presume.
Until one has some experience being able to discern and map the way through for themselves, however, it can be difficult to make heads or tails of all this.
I was recommended this after getting into Vipassana. I could only read part way though because it honestly felt like a more muddled repackaging of something to-the-point, simple, and honest like The Art Of Living.
Dazhu Huihai, Hongzhi, Dahui all teach meditation.
http://terebess.hu/zen/huihai-eng2.html
http://www.amazon.com/Cultivating-Empty-Field-Illumination-Hongzhi/dp/0804832404
/r/chan/wiki/swamplandflowers
Depends on the day. Very often not much at all. But I'm not a shining exemplar of the contemplative life. I'm more like a lackey wishing I could be as contemplative as, say, Thomas Merton, but meanwhile never take the time to actually doing any prayer.
But if you want to know about the Christian tradition of contemplative prayer and what it's all about I highly recommend Thomas Merton's New Seeds of Contemplation or Contemplative Prayer
Have you read Richard Shankmans book 'The Experience of Samadhi'?
Sorry! Forgot to reply, was on the go when I read this.
I haven't read much, in truth. I'm a musician, so sound is my thing. I've listened to probably over 500 lectures/audio recordings by Alan Watts and Adyashanti over the past year. Those two changed my life and opened my mind, allowing me to begin the process of becoming the real me. I'll leave you a few that really, really helped me. In terms of books, though:
https://www.amazon.com/Wisdom-Insecurity-Message-Age-Anxiety/dp/0307741206/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_0?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=HD4HJV4XGZMFYQQ8YHYY
https://www.amazon.com/Become-What-You-Alan-Watts/dp/1570629404/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_t_1?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=HD4HJV4XGZMFYQQ8YHYY
https://www.amazon.com/True-Meditation-Discover-Freedom-Awareness/dp/1591794676/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1493318617&sr=1-1&keywords=adyashanti+true+meditation
https://www.amazon.com/End-Your-World-Uncensored-Enlightenment/dp/1591797799/ref=pd_sim_14_4?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=1591797799&pd_rd_r=NTAKM081ZBWQN84XRDF5&pd_rd_w=GbrQB&pd_rd_wg=4ikC1&psc=1&refRID=NTAKM081ZBWQN84XRDF5
https://www.amazon.com/Power-Now-Guide-Spiritual-Enlightenment/dp/1577314808/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1493318650&sr=1-1&keywords=eckhart+tolle+the+power+of+now
http://www.lawofone.info/
Now, below I will list a few audio recordings that I absolutely love:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PZ4_75nT6_M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=om1hJX4JN8U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESVoQzOhZNQ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YbbCkdrAdeI
You might want to take a look at Thomas Keating's The Human Condition he's a Christian first but recognizes many of the similarities in Buddhism.
It's shifting your attention in a very subtle way to resting as awareness itself.
The goal for this type of practice is always catered toward less and less technique. There's nothing wrong with focusing on the breath to help bring you into the present, but try allowing a few minutes at the end of each session to merely rest as awareness - the space in which everything else happens.
Adyashanti does a much better job explaining than me :) Check out some of his videos on youtube, or his book "True Meditation"
Meditation is just one facet of the gem though. For a concise version of the rest, check out ["The Way of Liberation"] (http://www.amazon.com/Way-Liberation-Practical-Spiritual-Enlightenment/dp/1937195171/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8) (Also downloadable for free on his website)
**If it's not obvious, I really like Adyashanti
The book I used to learn just the straight meditation technique (without the chanting, robes, weird parables and other bullshit found in a typical zen center) is Zen Training by Katsuki Sekida. There's still some Buddhist philosophy in there, but it's pretty hard to get completely away from that stuff.
Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha: An Unusually Hardcore Dharma Book
It used to be online for free until recently. It's an excellent read. More specifically it addresses meditation in a far more from a western "how-to" formula. "Do this, see what happens". I generally appreciated that approach.
You are experiencing modern angst. If you had lived only 100 years ago these feelings [for the most part] would not have had a chance to have arisen in the form you are expressing [stardust, universe experiencing itself] - be grateful you can do do it at all [I'm not saying people didn't have these feelings, like Camus, Neitzche, Descartes and others but that most average people didn't have the chance to worry like this, in the information laden way you are spitting it, since most people were busy feeding themselves and their families by farming etc]. So, yes, you are alive and it's all so crazy to think about.
Oh and yes, we do actually understand more than a "spec" of reality.
You say that if I am calm about what your saying then I am missing the point and haven't grasped the full implication of it's meaning. I say truth is relative and the truth of what you're saying is one of many perspectives I can tap into and get lost in. You seem to be hyperventilating only one stream of thought - your existential purpose, validity, meaning.
You seem to want someone to validate your feelings with an equal amount of shock and awe. Well you might get it, so what then? I'm not saying the knowledge you are talking about doesn't lead one to existential angst and confusion, but just remember what the Buddha said about the nature of reality. All is change. All is impermanent. This isn't some lofty metaphysical concept that is impossible to apply to everyday life. On the contrary, it is imminently important to understand so as to get a grip on your situation. If all is impermanent, then your feelings, opinions, knowledge etc.. is all impermanent. You are holding onto the feelings of utter confusion and awe. You have made a mistake unconsciously, that everyone does, when they mistake their immediate phenomenal experience as a permanent "thing" in reality. To be consistent with the Buddha's revelation one must relax, quiet the mind and understand the nature of reality - impermanence.
Read - Buddhism: Plain and Simple and also Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind
Questioning, the kind you seem to be doing, is just spinning your wheels if not tempered with a calm awareness and composure. Do you want to seek contentment and happiness? Do you want to feel resolve? Then shut your mind up for a moment. Listen to the birds chirp. Sit quietly in your room and watch your breathe. Work with your hands and feel reality in all it's textures. Just be aware. Hopefully you will have a long life to ponder these questions you have but for now don't make the mistake that so many neurotics do; mainly the mistake of attaching oneself to a overly anxious perspective while neglecting other modes of thought that are just as easily attachable. You have control over your mind, and your mind is doing all this anxious thinking.
If you want to have these questions turned upside down and be thrown into a different sort of thought then you must read Krishnamurti and his musings about life, love, truth, intelligence, nature.... "A consistent thinker is a thoughtless person, because he conforms to a pattern; he repeats phrases and thinks in a groove." Jiddu Krishnamurti - more quotes here.
“Judge a man by his questions rather than by his answers” - Voltaire
Apply this quote to yourself. Spend time with it. What are you really asking and what answers are you really searching for?
“We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.” - Buddha
Good luck.
Taoist Yoga: Alchemy and Immortality
https://www.amazon.com/Taoist-Yoga-Kuan-Charles-Luk/dp/0877280673
Internal Elixir Cultivation: The Nature of Daoist Meditation
https://www.amazon.com/Internal-Elixir-Cultivation-Nature-Meditation/dp/1943155135/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1478006245&sr=1-2&keywords=internal+elixir+cultivation
Healing Light of the Tao: Foundational Practices to Awaken Chi Energy
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1594771138/ref=pd_sim_14_3?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=2P7K1FW99QSDG12HVPZA
Foundations of Internal Alchemy: The Taoist Practice of Neidan
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0984308253/ref=pd_sim_14_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=5KF0N4TFRQQQ4PCVCH6F
The Tao of Meditation: Way to Enlightenment
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0804814651/ref=pd_sim_14_25?ie=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=5KF0N4TFRQQQ4PCVCH6F
Not sure if this will help, but a bit about my life:
I was a late bloomer, when I was in 8th grade I looked like I was in 5th and this trend continued until I was around age 21 when a job doing physical labor helped to spark some testosterone in me and build a few muscles (not many, but my bicep was no longer as thin as my wrist).
All through the last half of jr. High and high school I thought to myself, "I'm sort of a geek, I want the girls, cool guys get girls, what would a cool guy be doing?". Cool guys played guitar, so I started playing. Cool guys ride motorcycles, so I started riding. Cool guys throw knives, so I learned to throw knives. Cool guys can fight, I took up a variety of martial arts. By the time I was around 22-23 I had a bunch of skills that your generic action hero or movie protagonist might. I also took great pains to build skills in the social arts. Charm, like any other skill, can be learned (a great starter book on this is How to Win Friend's and Influence People). I feel like I achieved my cool guy status when I went to a party only knowing one person, and I left knowing every single person's name and at least a bit about them. The art of genuine conversation is probably the most important skill you can get. The trick is the 'genuine' part, people can spot fake interest a mile away.
Somewhere between my mid teens and my early 20's I became the cool guy I always wanted to be. The funny thing is I don't feel a whole lot different. Sure I have confidence, but confidence builds naturally through success, and the foundation of success is failure. If you can summon up the courage to put yourself out there I guarantee you will fail, but you will also succeed. Soon the failures will barely be a blip on the radar towards your successes. One of my favorite quotes is by Henry Emerson Fosdick who said,
"Happiness is not mostly pleasure; it is mostly victory."
I find that to be more true each day I live.
Now I'm in my mid 20's and being 'cool' or a 'man' means something else to me. To me a man is someone who sticks to his morals and ethics even when it is uncomfortable or even deadly. A man tries to improve himself as well as the souls around him, not only through example, but also through kindness and compassion. I can't say I'm the best at this, but I do make a conscience effort every day. Some books I would recommend on your journey (I used to be a self help nut!).
How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie
http://www.amazon.com/How-Win-Friends-Influence-People/dp/1439167346/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278824794&sr=1-1
The Hagakure - Yamamota Tsunetomo
http://www.amazon.com/Hagakure-Book-Samurai-Yamamoto-Tsunetomo/dp/4770029160/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278824735&sr=8-2
The Emperor's Handbook / Meditations - Marcus Aurelius
http://www.amazon.com/Emperors-Handbook-New-Translation-Meditations/dp/0743233832/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278824862&sr=1-1
Zen Mind, Beginners Mind - Shunryu Suzuki (this one doesn't really pertain to being a man, but I find meditation to be particularly helpful in being mindful and focused during daily life).
http://www.amazon.com/Zen-Mind-Beginners-Shambhala-Library/dp/1590302672/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1278824911&sr=1-1
I think the most important thing to remember is that becoming the person you want to be is a gradual process that takes time. Something almost as important to realize is that all those people you think have it all together (be they some popular jock or long dead philosophers), struggle with the same sort of things you do. We all want to live up to our potential, we all want to make as few mistakes as possible, we all worry about what others think of us to some degree. Keep living life and don't give up, you can be as awesome as you want to be, just takes a little thought and some active choices.
Cheers!
That sounds interesting! Do you happen to remember the author? On Amazon I see:
https://www.amazon.com/True-Meditation-Discover-Freedom-Awareness/dp/1591794676/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=true+meditation&qid=1555949568&s=gateway&sr=8-1
​
Dhamma.org
There are reasons for sitting in the half/full lotus position. It's important not to forget about the physiological aspect of meditation. Proper posture and breathing go a long way in altering how the mind works. Meditation isn't just a mental exercise.
As you bring your spine into alignment and breathe properly, your mind will begin to quiet itself. Tension in the body is mirrored in the mind. You can't really fix one without fixing the other. It's easy to underestimate the power that our bodies hold over our minds, and it's important not to fall into the trap of thinking that meditation is just an exercise in relaxation.
Katsuki Sekida's book, Zen Training, has some interesting discussion on the physiological aspects of Zen.
EDIT: What do we do whenever we need to focus intently on something? We tighten our abdomen and hold our breath. Stress and anxiety--constant mental chatter--lead to chronic tension in the abdomen. The intercostal muscles tighten, shrinking the chest cavity and increasing pressure on the internal organs. Breathing is more shallow, and the brain receives less oxygen. The shoulders slump forward and the spine is pulled out of alignment. Pain in the body makes it more difficult for the mind to focus, making it that much more difficult to reach a calm, centered state.
Using the lotus positions allows one to bring the spine into alignment, and provide a good, sturdy foundation for sitting properly. Correcting these physical manifestations of stress go a long way towards quieting the mind. It's important not to underestimate how much of a difference proper posture and breathing make in fixing the mind.
The one I know best is this one, but I know there are more recent ones which have gotten good reviews, such as the BDK and the Wisdom versions, which I've been meaning to pick up.
You probably already know what meditation is, so I'll skip the "meditation for dummies" references and jump you to the best literature I have come across.
Chögyam Trungpa
Training the Mind - Cultivating Loving-Kindness
He has a whole series of books on talking about his philosophies and training your mind to generate only good thoughts.
I came across him through a podcast on Shambhala teachings and it turns out that he is the Tibetan Buddhist who created it.
Mastering the Core Teachings is VERY dense, but I highly recommend it: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/1904658407/ref=mp_s_a_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1504129824&sr=8-1&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=mastering+the+core+teachings+of+the+buddha&dpPl=1&dpID=517lPE5zu9L&ref=plSrch
Anything by Stephen Batchelor
I think it's about finding a balance. I just read Zen Training by Katsuki Sekida, and he spends an extraordinary amount of time speaking of proper posture and breathing in meditation.
But as the story goes, when asked about meditation, the Buddha said that your mind should be neither too focused, nor too slack.
Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha, An Unusually Hardcore Dharma Book:
free online: http://integrateddaniel.info/book/
on amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Mastering-Core-Teachings-Buddha-Unusually/dp/1904658407
It's more Therevada and is heavily inspired by the Visuddhimagga but even if it's heavy and highly technical, it's progressive and complete in his presentation.
Cut to the chase.
Great, and pre-birth life exists And there is ample evidence that we choose our parents
I highly recommend you do some research before you pass judgement so quickly.