Customer Reviews

How to Meditate: A Practical Guide (Wisdom Basic Book)

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is a real find. Just scrumptous! The author is a Tibetan
nun in the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism (the same as the Dali Lama). So you will be taught to meditate in the same way that the Dali Lama meditates! She does try to cover all schools of meditation. But she still teaches primarily Tibetan. And
her meditations are mainly Gelugpa. What is so wonderful about this book is that it is for beginners. But intermediates like
me can learn so much from it as well. And for advanced practioners, I have no doubt that they can learn a thing or two as well. You will find out how to sit. When to sit. How long to sit. How to pick out a certain meditation. Dealing with problems frequently encountered in meditation. How to deal
with negative problems such as depression, anger, and anxiety.
Nevertheless, I would only recommend this book to people who think they might want to practice in the Tibetan tradition. Or
for people who want to practice Buddhist meditation but don't care what tradition they practice in. This is really a great and helpful book. Thank you.

This book has enormous value for anyone who wishes to begin a meditation practice. Kathleen McDonald is a nun in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, but I feel that this book offers useful advice to anyone of any spiritual persuasion. I have to disagree with some of the other reviews who feel that this book is for aspiring Buddhists only. Meditation can be correctly seen as a highly effective technology that can be employed to tame the mind. In fact, His Holiness the Dalai Lama has stated that Tibetan Buddhism exists somewhere in between science and religion.

I also want to comment on the warmth with which McDonald has crafted this text. She writes with great simplicity, yet she manages to impart a great deal of valuable and sophisticated information. If a book can be described as being " friendly ", that would certainly apply here. Clearly interested in creating a book that in no way intimidates or overwhelms, her approach is gentle and reassuring. This is a wonderful book!

After purchasing 5 books on meditation this is the first book that actually teaches you how to meditate step by step. Most books on meditation tell you "what" to meditate on and seem to forget to tell you how to do it, this book tells you how to do it. It's very easy to read and it gives even the first time meditators the instructions needed to start meditating.
It starts with the very basic (but very effective) way of meditation and then progresses through the book to more in depth meditations covering many different ideas to meditate on.
I highly recommend this book to the beginners in meditation and also to the more experienced.

I've read a number of books on meditation, some good and some not so good. It's a tough topic. But this book is a primer on a gift-basket of techniques in Tibetan Buddhist meditation. Clear, encouraging, simple instructions make it easy to read and easy to use. I'm a lousy meditator with a mind that loves to start jumping from topic to topic. This book is the first tool to help me start developing past all that. As another reviewer pointed out, this book is teaching in a specific tradition. If you have some knowledge about Tibetan Buddhism and know it's not for you, skip this book. If you're new to meditation, or open to techniques in this tradition, this book is a gem.

This heartfelt book is written with skill and compassion. It is an excellent guide to Buddhist (Tibetan) style meditation. It is of interest to anyone wanting to learn how to meditate, or to deepen their practice.

I would rate this book with 5 stars because they wrote and edited this book in very easy words, It tells you how to meditate, why to meditate, advice for begginers and much more.

You may think 'an excellent book for non-spiritual meditation' is a strange recommendation, but as a mostly non-spiritual (agnostic) person who nevertheless recognizes the benefits of meditation this is one of the few books out there that is suitable as a practical guide; the subtitle is spot on.

I apologize to those of you who are spiritual, but I just can't sit through a book that starts from the sutras and then uses meditation as a means to that end. It means nothing to me. 'How to Meditate,' while coming from the Mahayana and Theravada traditions, starts with solid practical advice on how to meditate - best positions, what a session should be like, how to breathe, common problems, and visualization.

The second part of the book consists of different subjects for meditation such as 'Meditation on Compassion and Tonglen (Giving and Taking),' 'Meditation on Love,' and 'Dealing with Negative Energy.' These also include subjects such as 'Prostrations to the Thirty-Five Buddhas' which are of little interest to me except culturally, but even an atheist should recognize the usefulness of considering and dealing with your negative energy: 'The methods explained in this chapter are practical ways of dealing with attachment, anger, depression, and fear.'

The is the only book on the shelf besides Meditation for Dummies which I would wholeheartedly recommend for aspiritual people like myself. It's considered a classic in the field for good reason.

I was suffering from an anxiety disorder and was looking for a way to help me that didn't involve medication. I knew almost nothing about meditation but have been extremely pleased with the teachings of the book. I feel calmer, more at peace, and have really taken a strong look at my personal beliefs.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to learn about meditation and all that is has to offer!!

I have been using this gem of a book for almost 25 years, every since its first edition in 1984. As a dharma teacher, meditation instructor, spiritual director and Buddhist chaplain, I have found Ven. Sangye Kkadro's (Kathleen McDonald) book to be an invaluable tool in guiding students of meditation, whether they be beginners or with many years on the cushion.
Ven. Claude d'Estree (Lopon Konchog Trinly Dorje / KhaYa, Sunim)
Professor and Buddhist Chaplain, University of Denver
How to Meditate: A Practical Guide
Mindfulness in Plain English, Updated and Expanded Edition

This simple explanation of not only meditation technique, but its purpose
and benefits is a wonderful reading experience and a perfect introduction to Buddhist philosophy which, when grasped, helps anyone open to it actually enjoy their life experience in a new and accepting manner.

Maya, the world of of illusion, in which we live is a wonder despite its calamities and meditation helps that perspective take wings.