Meditation-The Complete Guide [Paperback]

Patricia Monaghan (Author), Eleanor G. Viereck (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1999

Specially geared to the needs of the beginning meditator, this book explains more than 50 meditation practices. Readers can take a self-test to acquire information about which types of meditations are most appropriate for them. Traditions involving Shamanism, Yoga, Taoism, Buddhism, Islam, Western Traditions, Biofeedback, Meditation in Life (such as nature, gardening, and sports), Creative Meditations, and Active Imagination (including Kinesthetic meditations and visualizations) are each described in separate chapters. Each chapter also covers historical background, contemporary use, a description of the practice, and resource list. Even an advanced meditator will find new information in this book to enhance the inner life.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

There is no doubt that meditation is good for us. In fact, for Westerners who live in the midst of stress and information and sensory overload, meditation is probably crucial to mental and physical health. Yet for many people it is still a mysterious, esoteric practice. Confusion abounds. Do I need to follow a certain religion in order to meditate? Must I believe in God? Do I have to close my eyes and meditate every day for half an hour in order for it to be effective?

Authors Patricia Monaghan and Eleanor Viereck have done a great service in helping readers understand the many forms and effects of meditation. By dividing the book into nine sections--Shamanism, Yoga, Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Western Traditions, Creative Meditations, Meditations in Life, and Active Imagination--readers can see the ideology behind the many forms of meditation. Each brief chapter then describes a specific meditation, such as sketching from nature, walking a labyrinth, needlecraft, trance dancing, taking a pilgrimage, and practicing breath awareness. Within every chapter the authors offer specific instructions and suggestions as well as a comprehensive list of resources. Meditation: The Complete Guide is a well-written book that blends comfortable narration with extensive research--a valuable resource for beginners and even old pros. --Gail Hudson

From Booklist

(It is Booklist policy that a book coauthored by a regular contributor receive a brief descriptive announcement rather than a recommending review.)

Monaghan and Viereck explain more than 50 forms of meditation to those beginning a meditation practice and to nonbeginners seeking to expand their meditational repertoire. Besides the familiar Buddhist styles, the book covers Taoist, Islamic, Christian, and pagan meditation as well as such active practices as Sufi dancing, drumming, and journal writing. Ray Olson

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: New World Library (October 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1577310888
• ISBN-13: 978-1577310884
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.7 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 22 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #381,980 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

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent, November 29, 1999

By 

Sandi - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meditation-The Complete Guide (Paperback)

This is a great book. Brand new on the market, and just what's needed. It gives a great overview of meditation, and doesn't force you to think there's only ONE way of meditating (which there isn't). I saw an advance copy of this book, and just loved it. Will DEFINITELY recommend it to my customers, and I'm proud to have it on my shelves.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Introduction to diff types, January 3, 2009

By 

Devann Cristi Porschien - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Meditation-The Complete Guide (Paperback)

This book would be good for someone who is curious about meditation and confused about all the different things they hear. there is a quiz to determine what KIND of meditator you are that I think would be relieving for people who have scary thoughts about meditation.
It covers trance dancing, drumming, shamanic journeying, yoga asanas and yoga breathing, mantras to show you meditation need not be boring ! But it also covers gardening, crafts,nature , walking meditations, creative visualizations.
Also covers Prayer, Taoism, Buddhism, Zen, tantrism and Islam meditations.

So things that a beginner would not think of as a type of meditation can see that there are lots of ways to meditate !!!

MUST for someone who says "But I can't meditate ! "

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Misinformation, July 17, 2010

By 

Karen - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meditation: The Complete Guide (Kindle Edition)

I was quite pleased with this book until I got to the section on Islam. I happen to a have PhD on the subject but the mistakes in that section should be obvious to most anyone.

The book says Islam spread by the sword thanks to great Arab commanders... Hah! Can you imagine a bunch of Bedouins on camels conquering the whole of Asia from Turkey to Indonesia and so much of Africa within a generation or two? Any historian would tell you this is pure hogwash. "Islam spread by the sword" is a myth left over from the European Middle Ages and it refuses to die.

In contrast, there is no mention of the Spanish Inquisition, the Crusades, or the Conquistadors on the section on Christianity.

The book says women are not allowed into "Islam's holiest place"? I imagine the authors mean Kaaba in Mecca, where men and women pray side by side. So... um, again, not true. I checked the bibliography at the end. Where is this "information" coming from?

My point is not to write an apologia for the bloody history of any organized religion -- all thought systems are guilty of not standing by their best tenets again and again. (The world's longest civil war took place in Buddhist Sri Lanka, remember?) But such blatant misinformation really made me wonder... what else is hogwash in this book?

I do hope the authors re-write the Islam section and consult a scholar as they do. This section really damages a book I greatly enjoyed otherwise. The chapter on yoga, for example, is stellar.