How to Meditate: A Guide to Self-Discovery [Paperback]

Lawrence LeShan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 14, 1999

This bestselling guide offers a realistic and straightforward approach to achieving inner peace, stress relief and increased self-knowledge.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Meditation "is an ageless human experience that has been discovered and explored and used in every period and every culture that we know about," writes Lawrence LeShan, a psychotherapist and scholar. LeShan discusses the psychological and physiological effects of meditation, why meditation has these effects, and different types (or "paths") of meditation. To get the feel of it, he suggests starting with 15 minutes of breath counting--harder than it sounds. "The road of meditation is not an easy one," says LeShan. "The first shock of surprise comes when we realize how undisciplined our mind really is; how it refuses to do the bidding of our will." He gives detailed instructions for several meditations of different types and guidelines for choosing a program and a teacher. This is not a snappy "five minutes to perfect meditations" or a promise of "read this book, achieve instant peace." Rather, How to Meditate is a serious, thoughtful book. "In this most serious area--inner development--we are interested in evolution, which is stable, rather than revolution, which is not," says LeShan. You will see changes, he promises, but gradually. This is the new edition of the classic that has been teaching people to meditate since 1974. How wonderful that How to Meditate has been reissued, giving another generation the benefit of LeShan's work and guidance. --Joan Price

Review

"If you're just  considering it, How To Meditate is  recommended equipment for the first steps."  --Hank Basayne, Association of Humanistic  Psychology. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1 edition (September 14, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316880620
• ISBN-13: 978-0316880626
• Product Dimensions: 5 x 0.6 x 7.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #68,014 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

75 of 75 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A gem of a book, June 20, 2004

By 

abt1950 "abt1950" (usa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: How to Meditate: A Guide to Self-Discovery (Paperback)

I bought this book in order to have a basic yet comprehensive guide to mediation. I had dabbled a little in the practice over the years and knew the basic breath-counting/mantra technique. But I was looking for additional guidance, having already picked up (and discarded) the "Idiot's Guide to Meditation." For me, that book and others like it spend too much time on details of chakras, postures, and energies. I wanted something broader, something that concentrated on the internal, spiritual aspects of meditation rather than on the specifics of different traditions. All religions have their own schools of meditation, and I wanted commonalities, not New Age cliches. I found what I wanted it in this book.

Leshan, a trained psychotherapist, and researcher presents a concise, comforting, and comprehensive guide to the subject. He's very eclectic in his approach--his sources include Christian mystics, Zen Buddhists, and Hindu yogis. He points out what they all have in common, takes what's useful from each traditiona, and distills them into something that's workable for a beginner. He dispels many of the myths that surround meditation-as-fad in our society and stresses the role of individual discipline. He suggests the general outlines of programs, but leaves the actual choices up to you.

The only problem that I had with this book is probably related to its original date of publication--1973. Back then, meditation was still a "way-out" hippie practice that most people looked upon with suspicion. As a result, Leshan goes to considerable lengths to justify the practice for skeptical Westerners. He does a good job with this, but nowadays those parts of his book are less necessary. Nonetheless, this book retains its value as a classic guide to meditation. For me, at least, it's a keeper.

69 of 73 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best basic training manual on meditation written., February 5, 2000

By 

Adam Khan (Seattle, WA USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Meditate: A Guide to Self-Discovery (Paperback)

Although Lawrence LeShan has degrees from three universities, he writes with a simple, completely straightforward style. The first section is on the benefits of meditation. And the next section describes how to do four different kinds of meditations.

If you are interested in meditation and you want the author to get right down to business, this is your book. LeShan says what he has to say in 137 pages. I'm the author of the book, Self-Help Stuff That Works, and I'm an expert on what works and what doesn't. Meditation works, and LeShan's instructions are effective and practical. I highly recommend this book.

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars FINE EXPLORATION OF MEDITATION FORMS & STYLES, March 20, 2000

By 

G. LeFever (Oregon City OR) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: How to Meditate: A Guide to Self-Discovery (Paperback)

LeShan wrote How to Meditate years before the hundreds of popular books presenting easier, more simplistic approaches to meditation. And being a scientist himself, LeShan was compelled to stick to a more clinical, validated -- and thorough -- approach. How to Meditate is an excellent volume for those who've been meditating for a period of time and are interested in expanding into different forms of meditation. LeShan provides sufficient background and helpful lessons for each form. Take note that his approach is not touchy-feely and his writing is borderline austere. This is a slim, but informative book you can refer back to year after year.