The Essentials of Buddhist Meditation (Kalavinka Buddhist Classics)

As noted by Shi Huifeng, this most useful guide to the most basic forms of Buddhist meditation, is broken down into 10 chapters that progress from one to the other. For this lay practitioner, who continues to strive in the these preliminary practices, this is the most useful guidance I have yet received.While much of the guidance within is written for the ordained entering a monastery, the vast majority of the guidance is applicable to lay people such as myself. For instance, Sramana Zhiyi urges giving up other pursuits such as work and reading other material. While I can't do that, I can be more mindful that what I eat, how I sleep, and where my mind wanders during day, affects my ability to further my meditative skills.The consequences of daily living on the meditation practice that are explored here are most useful to developing a more robust meditation practice and may be the biggest benefit. In great detail, this guide spells out what is meant when teachers say that the practice on the cushion is just the beginning of what we carry into the day.After rereading, I will go through the 10 chapters and outline the practices that can be adopted to a lay practitioner's practice and work with a monk to get a little more serious about my practice.I have read several books on meditation practices by prominent Buddhists, but this guide is the best for my money.

This is a great translation of an incredibly important text in Chinese Mahayana Buddhism. In it Zhiyi, the founder of the TianTai school and legendary spiritual master, clearly lays out the framework for Buddhist meditation, both concentration and insight meditation.This is clearly a book written for practitioners, not simply theoretical. He gives specific techniques for every step of the path to realizations. I have looked for this text translated into English for some time now, and it looks like this new translation is the only one on the market. Definitely a must read!

Regarding meditation: In the Lotus sutra it says those who only practice samatha (concentration) will become stupid and those who only practice vipassana (insight) will become deranged. Chih-I, a great master of the T'ien T'ai school, hopes to save you from both fstes with this clear and comprehensive meditation manual. D. T. Suzuki rated him as an equal to Hui-neng, the sixth Zen patriarch. To be clear, Chih-I was criticizing the Zen masters as being too focused on concentration techniques and the vipassana-only teachers has being too concerned with insights.The translator, a man with many years in the robes, has done a fine job with the translation- I am familar with other translations of this treatise. For anyone looking for an antidote to those modern teachers procaliming that they have the only way this volume may provide some welcome relief.

Can't find much better than this or 6 dharma gates for information on these topics for English readers. Charles Luk books are another absolute treasure.

Darma! By a great Rinpoche!!!!!!!

I’ve read several Buddhist/meditation books before. I was hopeful about this one due to the review. I couldn’t even get past the first few chapters. I doesn’t really say or teach anything, much less offer up any wisdom on insights. Because of the translation, it reads very poorly and chunkily. The author repeats himself for pages, offering no new perspective on the subjects he is discussing for so long... almost seemingly just rewording. This book is dry and uninspired and completely unhelpful. Keep looking.

gave as present, they loved it

Excellent translation by a long time dedicated practicing American monk in the Chinese tradition. This is also an invaluable resource for Westerners who have studied Chinese and wish to improve their reading of Classical Chinese Buddhist writings. The text is shown in traditional Chinese characters, simplified characters, and English.

Excellent companion to " Six Dharma Gates to the Sublime " - that book goes more into the Mind aspect of meditation while this one focuses on the more practical aspects. They make a great pair.