Meditation and Its Practices: A Definitive Guide to Techniques and Traditions of Meditation in Yoga and Vedanta
This comprehensive sourcebook examines the scientific, psychological and spiritual properties of Yoga and Vedanta, Hinduism's two mainstream meditation practices,\ and explains how we can put these teachings into practice to enrich our daily lives.\ Drawing on the sacred texts of Yoga and Vedanta-including the Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads and the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, among many others-this guidebook illuminates the principles of each of these traditions, the meaning of meditation and...
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This comprehensive sourcebook examines the scientific, psychological, and spiritual properties of Yoga and Vedanta, Hinduism's two mainstream meditation practices, and explains how we can put these teachings into practice to enrich our daily lives. Drawing on the sacred texts of Yoga and Vedanta - including the Bhagavad Gita, the Upanishads, and the Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, among many others - this guidebook illuminates the principles of each of these traditions, the meaning of mediation, and the methods by which we can develop our concentration and self-control. Publishers Weekly Asserting that meditation leads to direct perception of ultimate reality and samadhi, a "state of blissful superconsciousness," Adiswarananda (Senior Minister of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York City) surveys the vast topic of meditation in the Yoga and Vedanta traditions within Hinduism. He begins by discussing meditation's characteristics, goals and benefits, then explores various objects of meditation, including a particularly informative chapter on the "most sacred of all sacred words," Om. Next, he examines the mechanics of meditation, such as chakras, posture, eating habits and japa, the practice of repeating a sacred word or phrase. He then turns to the tricky subject of charting one's spiritual progress, discussing mystical benefits of meditation, such as visions and psychic powers. (He does caution readers about the subjective nature of such phenomena, insisting instead on the centrality of reason, orthodox Hindu scriptures and especially the real-world transformation of one's character as gauges of effective meditation practice.) Finally, he rounds out the tome with a discussion of obstacles in meditation and methods of overcoming them. The sheer scope of the book allows Adiswarananda to strike a graceful balance between liberal inclusiveness and conservative exclusiveness: one may choose the meditation method that seems most suitable, but straying from that chosen path undermines one's efforts and is "fraught with danger." Yet his microscopic attention to so many intricacies makes distinguishing between Yoga and Vedanta difficult and prevents the book from being a practical, how-to guide to meditation, limiting its appeal to very serious students. (Aug.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.
PrefaceIntroduction1The Meaning of Meditation32The Meditative State123The Goal of Meditation194The Benefits of Meditation275Meditation in the System of Yoga316Meditation in Vedanta417The Sacred Texts on Meditation618The Three Key Factors in All Meditation699Objects of Meditation in Yoga and Vedanta7510Meditation on a Divine Form7811Meditation on a Divine Incarnation8112Meditation on the Lord as Inmost Self and Supreme Teacher8713Meditation on Virata Purusha, the Cosmic Person9114Meditation on the Sacred Word Om9515Meditation on the Gayatri Mantra12716Meditation on the Great Vedic Sayings14917Meditation on a Sacred Text, Word, or Mystic Syllable17018The Centers for Meditation17319Dualism, Nondualism, and the Centers18720Withdrawal and Concentration of Mind19321Posture19622Time and Place, Spiritual Vibrations, and Geographical Directions20123Physical Condition, Eating Habits, and Exercise21324Self-Analysis22825Mystic Worship23726Japa, or Repetition of a Sacred Word24127Pranayama, or Control of Breath27028Milestones of Progress29329Mystical Experiences and Realizations32830The Transformation of Character34731The Sacred Texts on Progress in Meditation40132Obstacles in Meditation and Ways of Overcoming Them415Notes433Glossary453Bibliography461Index466About SkyLight Paths473
\ Publishers WeeklyAsserting that meditation leads to direct perception of ultimate reality and samadhi, a "state of blissful superconsciousness," Adiswarananda (Senior Minister of Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York City) surveys the vast topic of meditation in the Yoga and Vedanta traditions within Hinduism. He begins by discussing meditation's characteristics, goals and benefits, then explores various objects of meditation, including a particularly informative chapter on the "most sacred of all sacred words," Om. Next, he examines the mechanics of meditation, such as chakras, posture, eating habits and japa, the practice of repeating a sacred word or phrase. He then turns to the tricky subject of charting one's spiritual progress, discussing mystical benefits of meditation, such as visions and psychic powers. (He does caution readers about the subjective nature of such phenomena, insisting instead on the centrality of reason, orthodox Hindu scriptures and especially the real-world transformation of one's character as gauges of effective meditation practice.) Finally, he rounds out the tome with a discussion of obstacles in meditation and methods of overcoming them. The sheer scope of the book allows Adiswarananda to strike a graceful balance between liberal inclusiveness and conservative exclusiveness: one may choose the meditation method that seems most suitable, but straying from that chosen path undermines one's efforts and is "fraught with danger." Yet his microscopic attention to so many intricacies makes distinguishing between Yoga and Vedanta difficult and prevents the book from being a practical, how-to guide to meditation, limiting its appeal to very serious students. (Aug.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.\ \ \ \ \ Library JournalYoga and Vedanta, two of the six orthodox systems of Indian philosophy, offer seekers freedom from the vicissitudes of life if they correctly and persistently follow the path of meditation to achieve contact with the Ultimate Reality. Here, Adiswarananda, senior minister at the Ramakrishna-Vivekananda Center of New York City, sets forth the process and objects of meditation, the three centers of consciousness, the methods of concentration, and the marks of progress in and obstacles to meditation while comparing and contrasting each within the religious contexts of Yoga and Vedanta. His presentation, accessible to the general reader though somewhat redundant, brings together widely scattered teachings and draws heavily on quotes from Hinduism's standard works (e.g., The Upanishads, Pantanjali's Yoga-sutra). An optional purchase for most collections where works such as Georg Feuerstein's The Shambhala Guide to Yoga satisfy the needs of most.-James R. Kuhlman, Univ. of North Carolina Lib., Asheville Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.\ \
