Catblack
New member
There is more nonsense talked about meditation than nearly anything else. I've hung around with a few meditation groups, and sadly even people with some experience of meditation have the idea that it is something vaguely holy and mysterious. It is not. Meditation is something you can learn, practice and get good at. You can get good at it in six months to two years of daily practice. It's not very complicated; it just takes a little effort, and fortunately a lot of smart people have walked the path before us and laid out exactly how to do it, how not to do it, the difficulties you are likely to encounter, the antidotes to these difficulties and the circumstances.
Now, it is not my intention to summarize all these teachings in a forum post, but I can point you to a few good resources that talk about meditation in a way that normalizes it. I've read dozens of books and attended course on the subject, and these are the only ones worth a damn. If you prefer fluffy talk about flowers and sunshine, don't read these, but if you want to actually master concentration practise, read them and practice every day -
Now, it is not my intention to summarize all these teachings in a forum post, but I can point you to a few good resources that talk about meditation in a way that normalizes it. I've read dozens of books and attended course on the subject, and these are the only ones worth a damn. If you prefer fluffy talk about flowers and sunshine, don't read these, but if you want to actually master concentration practise, read them and practice every day -
*Zen: Training Methods and Philosophy by Katsuki Sekida: http://www.4shared.com/document/jbJVnrS ... Philo.html - Excellent advice on posture and breathing
*Mastering The Core Teachings of The Buddha by Daniel Ingram: http://www.interactivebuddha.com/mctb.shtml - Practical meditation instructions
*The Far-Reaching Attitude of Meditative Stabilization by Thubten Chodron: http://www.thubtenchodron.org/GradualPa ... ml#31Jan94 - Audio teachings available online that explain how the obstacles to meditation and how to overcome them
