A
MANUAL OF SELF-AWARENESS
by Luangpor Teean Jittasubho
At
the relatively late age of 45, Luangpor Teean, a former
Buddhist monk from Thailand, made an intensive effort
to reach enlightenment by practicing a remarkably simple
form of dynamic meditation. Within a few days he succeeded.
The basic idea of the method is to facilitate mindfulness
by making continuous rhythmic body motions; thus mindfulness
has a restricted range of potential objects to focus
on. This book (a booklet, really) describes the technique
in a remarkably succinct, practical way. It used to
be on the web here,
but lately the site has been unreachable; you can order
a free snail mail copy here.
AWARENESS
ITSELF
by
Ajaan Fuang Jotiko
Compiled
and Translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu (Geoffrey DeGraff)
Ajaan
Fuang Jotiko, a Theravada Buddhist monk in the Thai
forest ascetic tradition, was a wonderful meditation
teacher. After he died in 1986, one of his students,
Thanissaro Bhikku (Geoffrey DeGraff), compiled this
anthology of snippets of his teachings. We enjoyed it
and found it useful. The second half (starting with
the section called "Meditation") focuses more
directly than the first half on technique. It's on the
web here
at AccessToInsight.org.
MIND
-- ITS MYSTERIES AND CONTROL
by
Sri
Swami Sivananda
Includes
advice on Hindu meditation techniques. Read it here
on the website of the Divine Life Society.
Meditation Made Easy
by Lorin Roche, Ph.D.
The
author believes that people have a natural tendency
to discover methods that work for them on their own.
This book helps you find the techniques that work best
for you. Available as book or cassette. We have a longer
review of this book here.
Order it from Amazon.
ASHTAVAKRA
GITA
also called ASHTAVAKRA SAMHITA
A
very ancient Sanskrit text that probably dates to the
classic Vedanta period. Nothing is known about the author.
Taking the form of a highly compressed dialog between
a teacher and student, it presents the ideas of Advaita
Vedanta and Jnana Yoga with a clarity and power that
have rarely been matched. For a translation and links,
see here.
VISSUDHIMAGGA
(THE PATH OF PURIFICATION)
by
Buddhaghosa
The classic,
definitive book on Theravada Buddhist meditation. Written
in the fifth century. So far as we know, the only portion
of it on the web is Chapter 10, here.
Read more about it here.
ASHTAVAKRA
GITA
also called ASHTAVAKRA SAMHITA
A very
ancient Sanskrit text that probably dates to the classic
Vedanta period. Nothing is known about the author. Taking
the form of a highly compressed dialog between a teacher
and student, it presents the ideas of Advaita Vedanta
and Jnana Yoga with a clarity and power that have rarely
been matched. For a translation and links, see here.
ANAPANASATI
SUTTA
(Mindfulness
of Breathing Sutta)
One of
the most important Theravada texts for beginning and
veteran meditators alike, this sutta is the Buddha's
"roadmap" to the entire course of meditation practice,
using the vehicle of breath meditation. The simple practice
of mindfulness of breathing leads the practitioner gradually
through 16 successive phases of development, culminating
in full Awakening. Translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu
(Geoffrey DeGraff). Both the translation and this note
are from the website of AccessToInsight.Org.
MAHA-SATIPATTHANA
SUTTA
(Great
Frames of Reference Sutta or Great Foundations
of Mindfulness Sutta)
This
sutta offers comprehensive practical instructions on
the practice of mindfulness meditation. The Buddha describes
how the development of continuous mindfulness of the
four satipatthana ("foundations of mindfulness," or
"frames of reference") -- mindfulness of the body, of
feelings, of the mind, and of mind-objects -- can lead
ultimately to full Awakening. Translated by Thanissaro
Bhikkhu (Geoffrey DeGraff). Both the translation and
this note are from the website of AccessToInsight.Org.
YOGA
SUTRAS
by
Patanjali
The classic,
definitive book on the theory of Astanga Yoga (eight-limbed
classical Yoga, the kind that leads to control of the
mind and samadhi), written more than a thousand years
ago (nobody knows when exactly). The famous second sentence
says, Yoga is the stopping of movements of the
mind. Since this book consists of sutras -- terse
epigrams on which a teacher would expand improvisationally
during a lecture -- it lends itself to a considerable
range of interpretation and has become something of
a Rorschach blot for commentators to impose their opinions
on. There are many translations and commentaries in
print. One of the most readable, under the title How
to Know God: Yoga Aphorisms of Patanjali, is
by Swami Prahbavananda and Christopher Isherwood. A
translation by Swami Venkatesananda is online here.
THE
WAY OF MINDFULNESS: The Satipatthana Sutta and Its Commentary
by
Soma Thera
The Satipatthana
Sutta (Discourse on the Foundations of Mindfulness)
is generally regarded as the canonical Buddhist text
with the fullest instructions for mindfulness meditation.
This English edition from the Buddhist Publication Society
includes Satipatthana Sutta Vannana, Buddhagosa's
5th century commentary on the sutta, and a tika
(subcommentary) by Dhammapala. It's on the web here
at AccessToInsight.org.
YOGA
VASISHTHA
Attributed to Vasishtha
One of
the most important classical treatises on yoga. Excerpts
are on the web here;
buy it from Amazon.com here.
(If anybody knows of a complete translation on the web,
please tell us at editor@realization.org.)
CREST JEWEL
OF DISCRIMINATION
by
Sankara
Sankara
(also called Shankara, Sankaracharya, or Shankaracharya)
is one of the two most famous philosophers and teachers
of enlightenment in Indian history (the other is Buddha).
According to tradition, in the eighth century he wrote
the canonical books on Advaita Vedanta (nondualism)
and established the ten monastic orders of Indian swamis
which continue to this day -- and managed to do these
things before dying at age 32. Here, in one of his most
famous works, he explains a method for attaining self-realization.
A dreadful English translation (under the title Crest-Jewel
of Knowledge) is available for download here.
If you don't mind laying out a few bucks, you'll be
a lot happier with the translation by Swami Prabhavananda
and Christopher Isherwood available here
on Amazon.com. There are of course many other translations
of this major classic in print.
DHAMMAPADA
Author Unknown
This
is one of the most popular books of the Pali Canon,
the core scriptures of Theravada Buddhism. In 423 succinct
verses it condenses a tremendous amount of information
about basic Buddhist practice. There are translations
on the web here
and here.
TIBETAN YOGA AND SECRET DOCTRINES
by
W.
Y. Evans-Wentz
Excellent
English translations of Tibetan documents that give
instructions for performing eleven forms of Tantric
Yoga including the Great Symbol (Mahamudra), Psychic
Heat (Tummo), Consciousness Transference (Phowa), and
Voidness (Prajna Paramita). Evans-Wentz was a professor
at Oxford University in the first half of the twentieth
century. Read more about it here
on Amazon.com.
ASCENT
OF MOUNT CARMEL and DARK NIGHT OF THE SOUL
by
Saint
John of the Cross
Many
westerners are unaware that Christianity, like Hinduism
and Buddhism, produced enlightened meditators who wrote
books explaining how to follow their paths. One of the
best-known of these was Saint John of the Cross, a sixteenth-century
Spanish Carmelite priest. As the titles of these two
books suggest, he was also a great poet. We recommend
the two books together here because they are actually
parts of a single work. You'll find them on the web
here,
here,
and here.
AVADHUT
GITA
by
Mahatma Dattatreya
A classic
of Indian nondualism. There's a translation by Hari
Prasad Shastri on the web here
on SpiritWeb, or buy it here
on Amazon.com.
KUNDALINI
YOGA (Including YOGA-KUNDALINI UPANISHAD)
by
Sri Swami
Sivananda
Practical
instructions for waking the Kundalini. Read it here
on the website of the Divine Life Society.
VIJNANABHAIRAVA
TANTRA
Author Unknown
An
ancient
Sanskrit book that describes 112 dharanas or objects
of meditation. Read this
summary for free on the Hindu Tantrik Home Page,
or buy this
translation by Jaideva Singh from Barnes and Noble,
or buy this
interpretation by Osho (Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh)
from Amazon.com.
Vipassana
Support Institute
Numerous
suberb articles and audio tapes by Shinzen Young.
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