The Experience of Insight


Book Description

Every so often, a book appears that has a special value for people who are students of the nature of reality. Joseph Goldstein teaches meditation as a method of experiencing things as they are, entering the remarkable flow of the mind/body process. This work, comprised of unusually clear instructions and discourses given during a 30-day Vipassana meditation retreat, is a day-to-day journey into Mind.




Seeking the Heart of Wisdom


Book Description

Two popular American Buddhist teachers provide an overview of insight meditation, offering a “skillful blend of pragmatic instruction, psychological insight, and perennial wisdom” (Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence) In Seeking the Heart of Wisdom, Joseph Goldstein and Jack Kornfield present the central teachings and practices of insight meditation in a clear and personal language. The path of insight meditation is a journey of understanding our bodies, our minds, and our lives, of seeing clearly the true nature of experience. The authors guide the reader in developing the openness and compassion that are at the heart of this spiritual practice. For those already treading the path, as well as those just starting out, this book will be a welcome companion along the way. Among the topics covered are: • The hindrances to meditation—ranging from doubt and fear to painful knees—and skillful means of overcoming them • How compassion can arise in response to the suffering we see in our own lives and in the world • How to integrate a life of responsible action and service with a meditative life based on non-attachment Useful exercises are presented alongside the teachings to help readers deepen their understanding of the subjects.




Insight Meditation


Book Description

The fruit of some thirty years’ experience leading Buddhist meditation retreats, this book touches on a wide range of topics in short sections that can be either read in sequence or browsed through at leisure. Leading meditation teacher Joseph Goldstein offers favorite Dharma stories, key teachings, and answers to most-asked questions, providing an overview of Buddhist practice and its context generally while focusing on vipassana meditation specifically. He covers what the path itself is composed of, how to practice, what freeing the mind is all about, how karma works, the connection between psychology and dharma practice, a look at what selflessness really is, and how to really be of benefit to others.




A Heart Full of Peace


Book Description

Love, compassion, and peace - these words are at the heart of all spiritual endeavors. Although we intuitively resonate with their meaning and value, for most of us, the challenge is how to embody what we know; how to transform these words into a vibrant, living practice. In these times of conflict and uncertainty, this transformation is far more than an abstract ideal; it is an urgent necessity. Peace in the world begins with us. This wonderfully appealing offering from one the most trusted elders of Buddhism in the West is a warm and engaging exploration of the ways we can cultivate and manifest peace as wise and skillful action in the world. This charming book is illuminated throughout with lively, joyous, and sometimes even funny citations from a host of contemporary and ancient sources - from the poetry of W.S. Merwin and Galway Kinnell to the haiku of Issa and the great poet-monk Ryokan, from the luminous aspirations of Saint Francis of Assisi to the sage advice of Thich Nhat Hanh and the Dalai Lama.




The Path of Insight Meditation


Book Description

An introductory guide to Insight meditation, offering exercises from two master teachers and a look into how this practice leads to compassion and a deeper understanding of self. Insight meditation is a Buddhist practice that opens the way to profound awakening in our daily lives. This introductory guide offers wisdom about how this path cultivates compassion, strengthens mindfulness, and leads to a deeper understanding of ourselves and others. It also includes exercises from these two master teachers, developed from their meditation retreats taught around the world. Joseph Goldstein and Jack Kornfield are the founders of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, and each has authored many books on meditation.




Buddhist Meditation


Book Description

This book is a comprehensive and practical guide to Buddhist meditation, providing a complete introduction for beginners, as well as detailed advice for experienced meditators seeking to deepen their practice. Kamalashila explores the primary aims of Buddhist meditation: enhanced awareness, true happiness, and liberating insight into the nature of reality. This third edition includes new sections on the importance of the imagination, on Just Sitting, and on reflection on the Buddha.




A Still Forest Pool


Book Description

Achaan Chah spent many years walking and meditating in the forest monastery of Wat Ba Pong, engaging in the uncomplicated and disciplined Buddhist practice called dhudanga. A Still Forest Pool reflects the quiet, intensive, and joyous practice of the forest monks of Thailand. Achaan Chah’s humble words, compiled by two Westerners who are former ordained monks, awaken the spirit of inquiry, wonderment, understanding, and deep inner peace. Attachment, according to Achaan Chah, causes all suffering. Understanding the impermanent, insecure, and selfless nature of life is the message he offers for human happiness and realization. To vividly grasp the meaning of attachment leads us to a new place of practice – the path of balance, the Middle Path.




The Path of Serenity and Insight


Book Description

In the oldest scriptures of Theravada Buddhism much attention is given to the jhanas, high levels of meditative attainment distinguished by powerful concentration and purity of mind. Ven. Dr Gunaratana examines these jhanas within the context of Buddhist teaching as a whole and particularly within the meditation disciplines taught by the Buddha. Beginning with the ethical foundation for meditation, the role of the teacher, the classical subjects of meditation, and the appropriateness of these subjects to individual practitioners, the author traces the practice of meditation to the higher reaches of realization. The eight stages of jhana are individually analyzed and explained in terms of their relation to one another and to the ultimate goal of the teaching. The author makes the critical distinction between the mundane jhanas and supermundane jhanas, pointing out that the lower four while leading to various mental powers and psychic attainments, are not necessary to full enlightenment and may be developed or bypassed as the meditator wishes. The author goes on to explain the place of the jhanas among the accomplishments of an arahat and elucidate their usefulness for a dedicated meditator. For more info, please log on to www.mlbd.co.in




Mindfulness


Book Description

The mind contains the seeds of its own awakening—seeds that we can cultivate to bring forth the fruits of a life lived consciously. With Mindfulness, Joseph Goldstein shares the wisdom of his four decades of teaching and practice in a book that will serve as a lifelong companion for anyone committed to mindful living and the realization of inner freedom. Goldstein’s source teaching is the Satipa??hana Sutta, the Buddha’s legendary discourse on the four foundations of mindfulness that became the basis for the many types of Vipassana (or insight meditation) found today. Exquisite in detail yet wholly accessible and relevant for the modern student, Mindfulness takes us through a profound study of: • Mindfulness of body, including the breath, postures, activities, and physical characteristics • Mindfulness of feelings—how the experience of our sense perceptions influences our inner and outer worlds • Mindfulness of mind—learning to recognize skillful and unskillful states of mind and thought • Mindfulness of dhammas (or categories of experience), including the Five Hindrances, the Six Sense Spheres, and the Seven Factors of Awakening "There is a wealth of meaning and nuance in the experience of mindfulness that can enrich our lives in unimagined ways," writes Goldstein. In Mindfulness you have the tools to mine these riches for yourself.




The Progress of Insight


Book Description

The practice of Vipassana or insight meditation was described by the Buddha as the “direct way” for the overcoming of all sorrow and grief and for realizing Nibbana, the state of perfect liberation from suffering. The essence of this practice consists in the four foundations of mindfulness: mindful contemplation of the body, feelings, states of mind, and mind objects.