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Opening to Meditation: A Gentle, Guided Approach (Book & CD) Hardcover – October 25, 2004
| Diana Lang (Author) Find all the books, read about the author, and more. See search results for this author |
| Price | New from | Used from |
- Print length64 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherNew World Library
- Publication dateOctober 25, 2004
- Dimensions0.5 x 6.25 x 6.25 inches
- ISBN-101577314549
- ISBN-13978-1577314547
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Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
Opening to Meditation
A Gentle, Guided Approach
By Diana Lang, Marc AllenNew World Library
Copyright © 2004 Diana LangAll rights reserved.
ISBN: 978-1-57731-454-7
Contents
PART I: the art of meditation,1 MEDITATION IS EASY,
2 YOU ALREADY HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED,
3 YOU ARE GOOD,
4 RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE,
5 BY HEART,
6 COMING HOME,
PART II: the practice of meditation,
7 HOW TO PRACTICE,
8 CREATING SACRED SPACE,
9 SITTING,
10 BREATHING,
11 INTENTION,
12 ATTENTION,
13 BEING BY YOURSELF,
14 COMMON QUESTIONS,
15 A SIMPLE MEDITATION EXERCISE,
16 HOW TO USE THE MEDITATION CD,
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS,
ABOUT THE AUTHOR,
CHAPTER 1
MEDITATION IS EASY
Meditation is easy. You can do it right now, right where you are. It is not mysterious or esoteric. It is your natural birthright as a human being.
Meditation is an age-old practice that quiets the mind and allows our inner spirit to shine through our life more and more. The effects of meditation unfold over time. It is a practice of awareness that increases our focus, our consciousness, and our soul-knowing.
Meditation creates a foundation that lets you know yourself deeply — your true self — the part of you that is eternal. It allows for the full potential of your soul to be expressed in your daily life.
Meditation helps you to become self-realized — to realize who you really are in your deepest essence. In meditation, you arrive at a state of awareness where you consciously recognize the link between your personality and your soul. Meditation aligns these two seemingly separate parts so they are known to be one and act as one. This is called congruency — a conscious bridge between the self and the soul.
The path to self-realization is a choice. It is the ongoing decision to live your life as truthfully and lovingly as possible. Every time you sit to meditate you are choosing to live an awakened life.
Meditation reveals a beauty beyond words. By turning within, we discover a world of knowledge, the bounty of our rich inner knowing. We discover that we are more than what we seem; we are better — far greater — than what we have believed about ourselves.
At our core, we discover we are simply and absolutely the radiance of pure love. Allowing this love to shine more brightly through our life is an inevitable and direct consequence of our meditation practice. We are the directors of our growth; it is always our choice to what degree we want to be receptive to our inner knowing. This inner knowing is always available to us. It does not waver or vary. The flow of our soul is constant. All we have to do is open to it.
CHAPTER 2YOU ALREADY HAVE EVERYTHING YOU NEED
One of the purposes of this book is to show you that you need nothing outside yourself to take your next spiritual step. You already have everything you need.
Your next step is the one that's right in front of you, the one you can take right now. If you let your inner knowing guide you, you can't go wrong. Your next step almost always feels simple, natural, even ordinary. We sometimes expect great changes to happen in our lives instantly, in some dramatic fashion, with a bang, but that rarely happens. More often it is simply putting one foot in front of the other until inevitably some momentous event occurs; it looks like a miracle from the outside, but your personal experience of it most likely feels quite normal and natural. We're always looking for some breathtaking, heart-stopping spiritual event to know we've arrived, when in fact it is most often as ordinary as exhaling.
All it takes is an understanding of a few basic truths: we are far greater beings than we think we are. We have a vast and eternal spirit as well as these physical bodies. Where we are at this moment, how we are, who we are, is perfect as it is. There is no secret recipe; there is no magic formula. It is all as it should be, a perfect and gentle unfolding of your soul. If it feels difficult, it is only because you are out of touch with your true self; you are out of the flow.
When we're out of flow, we're out of sync with our soul. This creates a feeling of separation that in the moment feels real and true. When we feel separate, we are suffering from the painful illusion that we are unworthy in some way. This is a fallacy, perpetuated by our smaller self, or by what is often called the ego. It can throw us off course and confuse our sense of direction.
Meditation is a direct route to inner harmony, balance, and peace. There are many methods that can take you where you want to go, but meditation is by far the quickest and most precise. Its effects are cumulative and lasting. You can stop meditating for years and pick up right where you left off.
When this life is over, you won't take your possessions, your degrees, or your deeds with you, but you will take the consciousness you have built up from your meditation practice. Through your meditation, your consciousness changes and evolves. You become aware of who you really are. The consciousness you build in this lifetime is your ever-increasing legacy.
This consciousness is who you are.
CHAPTER 3YOU ARE GOOD
Through the process of meditation you discover your true goodness. It may take a while, and you may have to wade through doubts and fears at first, but at some moment you'll discover — there at the core of you, perfectly in place — your authentic, worthy, beautiful self.
Anything that says otherwise is the ego's doubt, and if there's a devil, this is it. It causes us to confuse ourselves and forget who we really are. When we doubt, we empower fear. Doubt is at the heart of any fear-based decision — the decision to not trust, the decision to not be open, the decision to not love. Doubt is the stuff of our insecurity. It is at the core of any act that is less than our best.
Meditation helps you sift through all of this doubt and fear and feel your way home to your true self, to the knowing that you are naturally and inherently good. There are no exceptions. You are not the one exception.
What if you knew that?
What if it weren't even a question?
What if it were a given in your life?
Feel how much this would change how you express yourself in the world.
You are good — not in the sense of being righteous, of being superior to someone else, but in the deeper sense of it all, you are truly, heartfully good.
This is the truth. You are good beyond your wildest imagination. You are good in a way that is immeasurable. You are as worthy as your greatest hero or anyone that you have ever thought of as admirable, inspired, or blessed.
You are that.
Meditation is a journey that unifies the mind and the heart. Meditation uncovers the layers of belief, limitation, and doubt to quietly reveal the pure and simple heart that is always there.
I like to do things in the most direct way I can, as the crow flies, fast and true. Meditation is the most direct route home I know. It is a process, a discipline, an art, and a practice that will teach you to trust yourself, to come home within yourself, to know who you are, to be who you are, authentic and free and unlimited. Meditation will give you nothing new, but it will give you yourself.
CHAPTER 4RIGHT WHERE YOU ARE
The answers you are looking for can be found right where you are. Your point of power is in this present moment. It is so simple, yet it is true. All you need to do is know where you are in this moment to gain your orientation and sureness of footing. If you don't know where you actually are, all the good or even profound direction in the world could lead you far from your intended destination. If you don't know where you're standing, your aim will be far from the mark.
Meditation helps you know where you are in time and space. It grounds you in the world so that you can move forward with fluidity and grace. Like a big red arrow on a map at the mall, it lets you know that YOU ARE HERE. When you understand where you actually are, the universe opens up with a thousand choices, each one unique and perfect in its own right, making it easy to know what your next step is.
All you have to do is open your heart to the light and energy that flows through us in every moment. That flow is always present; it is constant and perfect, always available to you. Imagine a stream of pure love outpouring from the universe straight into you. Imagine that same pure love flowing and dancing around and through every single thing on this planet and beyond this planet — every rock, every blade of grass, every deer in the forest, every star in the sky. Everything is connected to this flow.
And you are too.
The only reason we don't feel it is because we think that somehow we are separate from it. But we are it, and it is us. Feel it right now, in this very moment — let yourself open to the flow of love that is coursing through every single thing on this planet, through every single atom of every single one of us.
Meditation gives us an experience of this, so we feel it and know it deeply, beyond words. Meditation opens your mind and heart.
The opening of your heart is the most precious gift you can give the world. It affects everyone, and in this way meditation is also service, supporting the whole of humanity and all of life. As you become more aware, more conscious, you blaze the trail for the rest of us to follow, and our paths become much easier because of the steps you have taken. Know this, in your unfolding, in your deepening: that your inner journey creates an easier way for all of us.
By meditating we are opening into love. We enter a place that is sacred. By knowing where we are, we create an opening, a window to expanded consciousness. In that opening, we can feel and merge with the creative force of the universe. This cosmic creativity is simply love. We may call it God, or nature, or luck, or spirit, or universal energy, or a higher power, or something else. Whatever you call it, it is still love. Pure love. Love that intends; love that makes; love that builds, not in an emotional way, but in a laser-like, conscious, and precise way.
When we meditate, we begin to recognize our connection with this creative force, and we begin to know that we are part of this love, that we are the same as this love. We are infinite and eternal.
When we meditate, we become one with our infinite self. In our growing awareness of this higher self, we become much more than our personal self. We begin to recognize the magnitude, the beauty, and the infinity of who we really are.
CHAPTER 5BY HEART
When we know something deeply, we feel it in every cell of our body. We know it literally by heart. We don't need to be reminded of it or shown it again — we simply know it. It's like riding a bike: once you've learned how, it becomes part of your reflex patterning. With a meditation practice, you begin to know yourself by heart. You learn about yourself inside and out — what you think, what you feel, who you are. A greater awareness of who you are reveals itself to you. The more of your eternal spirit, your real self, that you allow to shine through, the more authentic and original your life becomes. Meditation helps you know your truest self, the part of you that never dies.
It doesn't matter if everyone you know thinks something is right — it doesn't mean it's right or true for you. As you learn to trust more and more in your sense of knowing, you become more confident of it. We all have a unique contribution to make, and only you can express yours in your specific way. No one else can really tell you what your contribution is; it's up to you to discover it within yourself.
Meditation helps you remember what you know. It takes you home.
Home is truly where the heart is. It is where love is. Love is an art, a great and powerful practice. It is something to use, to work, to be. It is a verb, an action. Every time we choose love we are affirming life. We so often make distinctions, such as, "I can love this, but not that." We draw lines. But love is consistent. It is constant and all-embracing. It is a state of "being in love" with everything! Deepening and broadening our practice of love is one of the greatest gifts of meditation. When you begin to know yourself by heart, you learn to truly love.
It doesn't matter what you think about love. It only matters that you love.
CHAPTER 6COMING HOME
Everything is connected. Nature constantly reflects this truth to us. Physics and other sciences prove it over and over again. But you already know this for yourself when you remember your newborn child's eyes or watch the stars in the sky or feel your heart beat or hold your mother's hand or watch a hummingbird — love is all around us, and miracles abound in every moment.
Meditation acts like an accelerator in your life. Every area of your life will be touched by your meditation practice. Things will begin to change, to realign, to come into a new and better rhythm. You will notice this right away. It will make you aware of what your next step is in life, at just the right time, in just the right order.
Things that you've been holding on to or suppressing will become more and more apparent to you as your meditation practice evolves, and as though a fog is lifting, you will begin to see the truth of where you are standing at this moment.
As you walk along your path, many things will come your way, easily and effortlessly. Various teachings and teachers and religions and books and experiences and ideas will present themselves to you in perfect order, in perfect timing — and all the roads take you home.
Trust yourself. Trust your journey. Your unique path is your own. The way you get there has its own perfection. Whatever you need will arrive at just the right moment. All you have to do is recognize it as it comes along. Meditation keeps you connected to yourself. It helps you recognize the many signposts along the way. It gives you a quiet, calm, and clear inner knowing that never fails to guide you on your path.
Meditation takes you home. It takes you to your heart's knowing. It guides you unwaveringly, unerringly to your next step. Meditation is an unfolding process that takes you where you are, as you are, and shows you — one spiritual foot in front of the other — the way home.
CHAPTER 7HOW TO PRACTICE
There are really only two things you need to be able to do to meditate: become aware of yourself and stay there for a while.
This formula is not only a simple way to practice meditation — it's also a key to life: to be mindful where you are, wherever you are; to become more and more conscious from moment to moment; to be your true self, in every situation, in every circumstance.
Meditation is simple and practical. In a curious way, it is as ordinary as it gets. Many people who try it at first don't think they are doing it right; it's so simple and unextraordinary, they think meditation must be something more complex or esoteric than what they're doing. Because people often think they are doing their meditation wrong, many give up doing it at all.
It is a practice. Practice comes from the root word praxis, meaning "to do action." You have to do the action for meditation to work. Every time you sit to meditate you are building up a spiritual muscle. The more you use it, the stronger it gets. It gains strength, agility, and capability over time. This energetic apparatus you build by meditating will absolutely change the way your life works.
Every time you meditate, you lay down another layer of consciousness, like rings in a tree trunk. Remember: the consciousness you make — conscious moment by conscious moment — is what you take with you when you die. It's part of your soul's accumulated knowledge, your soul's wisdom. It is the basis of what you are, and it becomes part of the continuum of your infinite self.
Remember: all you need to do is become aware of yourself and stay there for a while.
CHAPTER 8CREATING SACRED SPACE
Everywhere we are is holy. Everything is holy. Yet, some places have more spiritual wattage than others. When many of us decide over many years that a place is sacred, it becomes imbued with more sacred energy. We see and feel that these places exude holiness. Imagine a cathedral, for instance, created for the specific purpose of worship. The architects and crafters who designed and built it knew what its purpose would be. Every nail was pounded and every tile was laid by a person who intended the church to be holy. Then add the intention and devotion of the priests at its head, and all the vestments, rituals, and symbols of the ceremonies. Finally, add the congregation with all of their sincere beliefs and prayers. Multiply that by all the years of worship in the cathedral, and you can see how intention creates sacred space.
When we meditate we consciously create a sacred space. We can make any space sacred simply by deciding that it is sacred. By bringing our full consciousness to that place, we are imbuing it with our soul, and it becomes energetically transformed.
If you already have a part of your home that feels especially peaceful to you, that's a natural place to meditate. Any place where it is calm and quiet is a good place to begin. I often meditate on my balcony that overlooks the city skyline, but I have also meditated in bed, on the couch, and even in the bathroom because that was the quietest room in the house at the time.
(Continues...)Excerpted from Opening to Meditation by Diana Lang, Marc Allen. Copyright © 2004 Diana Lang. Excerpted by permission of New World Library.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.
Product details
- Publisher : New World Library (October 25, 2004)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 64 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1577314549
- ISBN-13 : 978-1577314547
- Item Weight : 8.8 ounces
- Dimensions : 0.5 x 6.25 x 6.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #3,197,161 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #3,133 in Spiritual Meditations (Books)
- #23,130 in Meditation (Books)
- #77,118 in Psychology & Counseling
- Customer Reviews:
About the author

Diana Lang
BIOGRAPHY
www.DianaLang.com
818.888.7319
email: LifeWorks@aol.com
Diana Lang is a spiritual counselor and director/owner of LifeWorks, Center for Growth in Los Angeles, California. She has been teaching meditation and yoga since 1980 and conducts seminars in the United States and internationally on meditation, body awareness, stress reduction, relationship development, and other mind/body work of all kinds. Her book and CD set, OPENING TO MEDITATION, is published by New World Library. She was a radio personality in Los Angeles and presented a live, on-air radio show on KZLA 93.9 on dream analysis called IN YOUR DREAMS for two years.
Diana was on the board of directors of Meditation Mount in Ojai from 2007-2011, an international, non-profit organization that specializes in teaching meditation and presenting world service meditations. She is also an educator and a certified E-RYT 500 by the Yoga Alliance for Yoga Teacher’s Training for the 200 and 500 (advanced training) programs.
She has produced more than thirty weekend retreats and seminars combining many forms of mental and physical disciplines. Her background includes study in meditation, yoga, tai chi, chi gung and other forms of body awareness disciplines, including extensive training in advanced esoteric studies. Diana has studied spiritual teachings from around the world and is able to easily explain abstract ideas in a way that is easy to understand. In her book she has put together a high-level system of meditation that is very easy to do. Diana believes that spirituality can be easy. She demystifies the subjects and gives practical tools and simple applications so that the new student can have a powerful experience, right away.
Diana's encouraging and lighthearted approach to body/mind awareness allows for an authentic experience of real connection. Based on her background of teaching thousands of students over the years and in conjunction with her own journey toward wholeness and health, she has developed remarkably simple and direct ways for people of all levels to achieve the well-being and heightened awareness that the experience of meditation offers. Her special gift in an ability to demystify the spiritual process, making it easy and accessible for anyone. In her inspirational manner she simply explains the purpose and benefits of meditation in our busy lives.
Diana is a gifted and inspired, true teacher of spirituality. Her aim is to teach these age-old techniques in a new way, that's simple and that works.
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I purchased this in hardcover form and liked it so much that I bought the Kindle version, too. This beginner's guide to meditation is very useful, and the three voice tracks provided (an explanation of meditation and how to meditate, plus two meditation tracks) are incredible. I listen to the tracks on a weekly basis -- and have been pleased to find out that Ms. Lang also posts new tracks to her Facebook page for fans to download.
I came to this guide with no prior experience with meditation and I've been very happy with the explanations provided here. The author doesn't have "one way" to meditate; you can do these exercises whenever, however, in whatever posture, etc. She stresses that the important thing is your convenience and comfort. There's also a really good explanation here for how to deal with interruptive thoughts, which is something that I knew in advance I would struggle with. As it turns out, that's normal and with the vocal guidance, I've been able to work past that more easily than I would have imagined.
I do recommend this guide for anyone interested in coming to meditation. It's quick and easy to leap into and I enjoy using these vocal tracks immensely.
~ Ana Mardoll
This book was the priceless tool that allowed me to take all of this personal chaos and confusion and somehow put me in a place where I could design a way out of my problems.
It is truly written with simple brilliance. Diana Lang's voice on the cd is incredibly soothing and confidence building. I downloaded it to my ipod, put my headphones and started listening in the middle of the night when I couldn't sleep from the stress. Her meditations cleared my mind, organized my thoughts and helped me reset my priorities. It also allowed me to relax enough to get much needed sleep.
That was a year ago. Life has improved 100%. I credit this book for being the tool that started the whole process of building a new healthy life.
Thank you Diana Lang for writing this book and recording the cd.
It could be that I am just not into guided meditation. I started my meditiation practices from reading 8 Minute Meditation: Quiet Your Mind. Change Your Life. . That book contained a lot more information and an 8-week program that worked for me, but it doesn't use a guided CD.
This book seems like a nice gift book for inspiring someone's interest in meditation and its many benefits. Certainly there are plenty of other reviewers who enjoyed this book and got a lot out of it, but it just wasn't quite what I needed to improve my method of meditation.
This little gem of a book is both a gentle and powerful tool. Simple. Potent. I love it!
But, I love the CD even more. The meditations are beautiful and soothing. Diana's voice is like a balm, gently reminding you that everything is alright, that you're alright. But there is also a refreshing authenticity in her words. I use the CD often , and it's always wonderful. No matter what's going on with me at the time, the meditations bring me to a place in myself that's more clear and relaxed. And more true.
Best meditation book ever!
May 2015:
So happy for this wonderful book's new release in paperback!
Thank you, Diana Lang! ❤️
By L. Cowen on October 14, 2008
This little gem of a book is both a gentle and powerful tool. Simple. Potent. I love it!
But, I love the CD even more. The meditations are beautiful and soothing. Diana's voice is like a balm, gently reminding you that everything is alright, that you're alright. But there is also a refreshing authenticity in her words. I use the CD often , and it's always wonderful. No matter what's going on with me at the time, the meditations bring me to a place in myself that's more clear and relaxed. And more true.
Best meditation book ever!
May 2015:
So happy for this wonderful book's new release in paperback!
Thank you, Diana Lang! ❤️
