Meditation for Dummies [Paperback]

Stephan Bodian (Author), Dean Ornish MD (Foreword)

Book Description

Series: For Dummies (Computer/Tech) | Publication Date: March 4, 1999

“A useful guidebook filled with clear instructions and helpful hints.”
—Deepak Chopra

“An easy-to-follow yet comprehensive introduction to the practice of meditation.”
—John Gray, author, Men Are From Mars, Women are From Venus

Meditation Pluses: it can improve your focus and concentration; reduce tension, anxiety and stress; promote creativity and enhanced performance in work and play; lower blood pressure; and improve immune response. Also, it requires no special clothing or equipment, it can be done anywhere, and you can learn the basics in just minutes. Meditation Minuses: it will never be an Olympic event and it won’t make it easier for you to get a date...on the other hand, the improved health, vigor and self-awareness that comes with the practice of meditation can do wonders for your love life. Interested?

Packed with state-of-the-art information and savvy advice, this friendly guide demystifies meditati on traditions and practices and shows you step-by-step how to relax, take a deep breath, and open yourself to inner peace and understanding. You’ll discover how to:

• Understand meditation traditions
• Develop a meditation practice that works for you
• Overcome roadblocks to happiness and success
• Cultivate your spiritual side
• Extend meditation into your daily life
• Meditate to heal or to achieve peak performance

Expert Stephen Bodian distills the best of the various meditation traditions and gently leads you step-by-step to discover a form and style of meditation that works best for you. Instruction manual, survey course, and a guide to deeper exploration, Meditation For Dummies covers all the bases. You’ll discover:

• Where meditation comes from and various traditions around the world
• How to prepare for meditation and how to sit, dress and other practical aspects
• How meditation can help you open your heart to love, compassion, and forgiveness
• How to troubleshoot emotional, behavioral, professional and physical problems using meditation
• How to use meditation for healing and performance enhancement

People throughout history have used some form of meditation for self-improvement and spiritual enlightenment. Now let Meditation For Dummies introduce you to the amazing benefits of sitting still and focusing.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"To tell you the truth, you can learn the basics of meditation in five minutes," asserts Stephan Bodian, meditation instructor, psychotherapist, and former editor-in-chief of Yoga Journal. You can also study meditation for years, exploring its subtleties. Meditation for Dummies is a simple, clear introduction to the basics of meditation, including an overview of dozens of techniques, practices, and specific meditations, plus direction for going deeper. You get step-by-step instructions for a variety of meditations, including body position, mental concentration, where to put your attention, what to contemplate or notice, physical movements, and breathing. A nice touch is the recurring "traditional wisdom": ancient stories or anecdotes that make a point. This book is useful whether you want the nuts and bolts for getting started in the next minute or you want to dip your mind into different practices and philosophies. Nothing is too elementary to explain: "how to sit up straight--and live to tell about it," what to wear, dealing with fear and self-judgment, and what to do when you get "stuck." You also get plenty of information about the benefits and varieties of meditation. You're bound find and develop a practice that feels right for you. --Joan Price

From Library Journal

Absurd as it may seem, the publishers of the immense "...for Dummies" series have now produced a beginner's guide to meditation written by the former editor-in-chief of Yoga Journal, and this entry is as clearly written, carefully organized, sensible, and un-self-serious as all the others. Bodian's years of experience as a writer and teacher have served him well here, as have the presentation skills of the publisher. This handy manual will be consulted and re-read in secret as much as its more technical predecessors. Highly recommended.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 348 pages
• Publisher: For Dummies; 1 edition (March 4, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764551167
• ISBN-13: 978-0764551161
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 7.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (49 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #304,072 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stephan Bodian is the former editor-in-chief of Yoga Journal and the author of the bestselling guidebook Meditation For Dummies. Founder and director of the eight-month School for Awakening, he has studied with some of the great spiritual masters of our age, and has been teaching the direct approach to spiritual awakening for more than 30 years. A licensed psychotherapist as well as a Zen master, Stephan has been a pioneer in the integration of Eastern spiritual wisdom and Western psychology. His work has been featured in Reader's Digest, Shape, Women's Health, and the San Francisco Chronicle and his articles appear regularly in Fitness, Cooking Light, Alternative Medicine, Tricycle, and Yoga Journal.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

249 of 253 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eloquent , insightful and good-humored, June 24, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Petaluma, California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meditation for Dummies (Paperback)

This eloquent, insightful book thoroughly explores the simple yet subtle art of meditation. While user-friendly like all of the titles in the For Dummies series, it's also written with a wisdom born of the author's many years of direct experience as a meditator and teacher. Meditation For Dummies covers a range of subjects with humor and grace, from basic instructions to the discovery of our most profound spiritual depths.

In Part 1 Bodian clariifes what meditation is (and isn't) and offers a number of compelling reasons to adopt this "advanced technology for the mind and heart." He also traces the historical roots of meditation and describes the important foundations of motivation, attitude, and beginner's mind, which ensure a fruitful practice. "Ultimately, the great meditation teachers advise that the best attitude to take toward meditation is an open mind, completely free from all preconceptions and expectations," Bodian explains. "One of my first meditation teachers, Zen master Shunryu Suzuki, calls this beginner's mind -- and he counsels that the goal of meditation is not to accumulate knowledge, learn something new, or achieve some special state of mind, but simply to maintain this fresh, uncluttered perspective."

In Part 2, the author covers the basics of meditation practice, including pointers on posture and preparing for meditation, as well as a chapter on opening the heart and cultivating compassion. In Part 3, entitled "Trouble-shooting and Fine-tuning," he offer sage advice on developing the right relationship with troubling thoughts, feelings and sensations. The highlight of this section is a chapter on cultivating spirituality that explores the nature of self (or no-self), traditional paths of awakening, and the sensitive subject of finding a teacher (inner and outer), which the author recommends if one wishes to go more deeply into the practice. The book concludes with chapters on how to nurture self-awareness while engaged in daily life and on how to use meditation for healing and performance enhancement, followed by answers to ten commonly asked questions about meditation.

Despite its one-size-fits-all title, Meditation For Dummies is the best book on meditation I've read -- at once subtle and comprehensive, spiritually sensitive yet pragmatic. Be prepared for an easy-to-read, good-humored, and discerning guide on the journey of discovering your true nature through the ancient but timely art of meditation.

144 of 150 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you only get one book on meditation, this is the one., December 3, 2000

By 

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

This review is from: Meditation for Dummies (Paperback)

There are an incredible number of books on meditation, but this one is the largest collection of information on the subject I've ever seen, from the most broad perspective. Bodian is a Buddhist, but he covers many other kinds of meditation in an unbiased way. And he tells you step-by-step how to do them. I'm the author of the book, Self-Help Stuff That Works, and the only helpful thing I didn't cover in my book was how to meditate, even though meditation is valuable, scientifically-validated, and good for your health, both psychological and physical. It wasn't necessary to write about it because so many good books have been written, and Bodian's is the most complete. This is a practical handbook anyone can use to learn to meditate, delivered in an interesting, easily-accessible format. I recommend it highly.

79 of 80 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you can only buy 1 book on meditation, this is it!, July 11, 2000

By 

"outside_center_4" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Meditation for Dummies (Paperback)

I never thought I'd write that a book with "for dummies" in the title was one of the most interesting and thorough books I've ever read, but Mr. Bodian's work definitely deserves high praise. As he says in his own review above, this book's title is a misnomer, anyway. It should be something like "Meditation for Just About Anyone/Everyone".

This book is so thorough and well thought out that it is hard to imagine anyone who is interested in learning more about meditation not discovering something of value regardless of what sparked that interest in the first place. In fact, should someone with NO interest in meditation happen to pick it up, I think they would "discover" an interest in it. It's that well done.

The reader will find information on "how-to", applications in everyday life, the history of meditation, references to other resources and much more. All that is missing is someone to do the meditation for you!