Beyond Mindfulness in Plain English : An Introductory Guide to Deeper States of Meditation

Introduction. The Buddha's discovery -- Supports for practice -- Beginning a practice of mindfulness.;Step 6 : skillful effort. The ten fetters -- The five hindrances -- Four steps to skillful effort -- Remember the big picture -- Mindfulness of skillful effort -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful effort.;The promise of the Buddha. Enlightenment -- "Come and see.";Step 4 : skillful action. The five precepts -- Ethics in action -- Higher precepts for laypeople -- Mindfulness of skillful action -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful action.;Step 7 : skillful mindfulness. The four foundations of mindfulness -- Mindfulness of the body -- Mindfulness of feelings -- Mindfulness of the mind -- Mindfulness of mental objects -- Key points for the practice of skillful mindfulness.;Step 2 : skillful thinking. Letting go -- Loving-friendliness -- Compassion -- Mindfulness of skillful thinking -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful thinking.;Step 5 : skillful livelihood. Questions for assessing skillful livelihood -- Finding skillful livelihood -- Mindfulness of skillful livelihood -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful livelihood.;Step 3 : skillful speech. Speak the truth -- Words are not weapons -- Speak softly -- Avoid useless chatter -- Mindfulness of skillful speech -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful speech.;Step 8 : skillful concentration. Wholesome concentration -- The stages of full concentration -- Mindfulness of skillful concentration -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful concentration.;Step 1 : skillful understanding. Understanding cause and effect -- Understanding the four noble truths -- Mindfulness of skillful understanding -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful understanding.

In the same engaging style that has endeared him to readers of his bestselling Mindfulness in Plain English, Bhante Gunaratana delves deeply into each step of the Buddha's most profound teaching on bringing an end to suffering: the noble eightfold path. With generous and specific advice, Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness — a Foreword magazine Book of the Year Awards finalist — offers skillful ways to handle anger, find right livelihood, and cultivate loving-friendliness in relationships with parents, children, and partners. It also offers tools to overcome all the mental hindrances that prevent happiness. Whether you are an experienced meditator or someone who's only just beginning to practice mindfulness, this gentle and down-to-earth guide will help you bring the heart of the Buddha's teachings into every aspect of your life.

Publishers Weekly

In the books for Buddhist beginners that now crowd the shelves it is common to find explications of the faith's various tenets serving to structure and sometimes to title the works. Typically then, in Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness, Gunaratana, who is the Buddhist chaplain at American University and the president of the Bhavana Society in the Shenandoah Valley of West Virginia, delves into the "Eightfold Path" of understanding, thinking, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness and concentration. Each chapter devoted to these efforts explains the wisdom of these skillful pursuits and then closes with a "key points" list to summarize highlights. This work is best suited to readers who are very new to Buddhism or who want a taste of the tradition served in a thoroughly American style. Gunaratana (Mindfulness in Plain English) writes in a very simple form and uses highly accessible illustrations to teach. For example, "Even though unskillful deeds may bring temporary happiness when, for example, a drug dealer is pleased with his shiny new car the Buddha pointed out that wrong actions always lead to harm." Though this book is too elemental for most devoted practitioners and does not particularly distinguish itself among the many of its ilk, it may find a useful berth where many voices and versions are generally desirable. (May) Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

From the bestselling author of Mindfulness in Plain English comes this critically-praised autobiography sure to inspire and entertain. Profoundly candid and surprisingly humorous, Bhante G's account of his life unfolds to show us a life devoted to the development of mindfulness and to the role of compassionate teacher and guide.

Publishers Weekly

This is a most refreshing book from a Buddhist meditation teacher who lays bare his human failings and admits they are as much a part of his life as his achievements. It is also a fascinating globe- and culture-crossing autobiography of a man born in a small village in Sri Lanka with enough persistence and good kamma (Pali for karma) to see him through many vicissitudes. Author of the bestseller Mindfulness in Plain English, Bhante G., as he is affectionately known, repeatedly ran away from monasteries where he lived as a boy monk, stole things as a child, smoked and had traumatic fear-inducing accidents with water. As his story makes clear, his is a very human journey of teaching himself as well as others what the Buddha taught about how to live. That organizations that promote ethical living and spiritual development should also have their share of bickering, envy and bad behavior is an unsurprising part of his story, candidly told without excess rancor or blame. The monk-author is fluent in different cultures as well as languages, and his autobiography contributes to an understanding of the relationship between the American Buddhism of converts and traditional Asian Buddhism, more specifically the Theravada branch of Buddhism as practiced in his native Sri Lanka. This plain-English look back at 75 years of an admixture of adversity, humility and hard-won wisdom tells an engaging story that non-Buddhists can appreciate as well as Buddhists. (Nov.) Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.

Introduction. The Buddha's discovery -- Supports for practice -- Beginning a practice of mindfulness. Step 1 : skillful understanding. Understanding cause and effect -- Understanding the four noble truths -- Mindfulness of skillful understanding -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful understanding. Step 2 : skillful thinking. Letting go -- Loving-friendliness -- Compassion -- Mindfulness of skillful thinking -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful thinking. Step 3 : skillful speech. Speak the truth -- Words are not weapons -- Speak softly -- Avoid useless chatter -- Mindfulness of skillful speech -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful speech. Step 4 : skillful action. The five precepts -- Ethics in action -- Higher precepts for laypeople -- Mindfulness of skillful action -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful action. Step 5 : skillful livelihood. Questions for assessing skillful livelihood -- Finding skillful livelihood -- Mindfulness of skillful livelihood -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful livelihood. Step 6 : skillful effort. The ten fetters -- The five hindrances -- Four steps to skillful effort -- Remember the big picture -- Mindfulness of skillful effort -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful effort. Step 7 : skillful mindfulness. The four foundations of mindfulness -- Mindfulness of the body -- Mindfulness of feelings -- Mindfulness of the mind -- Mindfulness of mental objects -- Key points for the practice of skillful mindfulness. Step 8 : skillful concentration. Wholesome concentration -- The stages of full concentration -- Mindfulness of skillful concentration -- Key points for mindfulness of skillful concentration. The promise of the Buddha. Enlightenment -- "Come and see." "A straightforward and pragmatic guide to deepening levels of concentration and insight. This book is a joy to read and a great gift to us all."—Joseph Goldstein, author of Mindfulness Countless people worldlwide have made Mindfulness in Plain English a beloved and bestselling classic in almost a dozen languages. Now after nearly two decades, Bhante helps meditators of every stripe take their mindfulness practice to the next level - helping them go, in a word, beyond mindfulness. In the same warm, clear, and friendly voice, Bhante introduces the reader to what have been known for centuries as the "jhanas" - deeply calm, joyous, and powerful states of meditation that, when explored with the clearly presented tools in this book, can lead to a life of insight and unshakeable peace. If you'd like to read about meditation and then go back to your regular life, don't get this book. Henepola Gunaratana, a monk from Sri Lanka and venerated teacher of Buddhism, warns us that vipassana meditation is "meant to revolutionize the whole of your life experience." In one of the best nuts-and-bolts meditation manuals, he lays out the fundamentals of basic Buddhist meditation, the how, what, where, when, and why, including common problems and how to deal with them. His 52 years as a Buddhist monk make Mindfulness in Plain English an authority on a living tradition, and his years of teaching in America and elsewhere give it the clarity and straightforwardness that has made it so popular. If you'd like to learn the practice of meditation, you can't do better From the best-selling author of Mindfulness in Plain English ! In his classic and engaging style, Bhante Gunaratana delves deeply into the noble eightfold path, the Buddhas most profound teaching on bringing an end to suffering. With easy-to-understand and specific advice, Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness offers skillful ways to handle anger, find right livelihood, cultivate loving-friendliness, and overcome the mental hindrances that prevent happiness. Whether you are an experienced meditator or someone whos only just beginning, this gentle and down-to-earth guide will help you bring the heart of the Buddhas teachings into every aspect of your life. Every meditation tradition explains that there are two aspects to any effective meditation practice: insight and concentration. In Mindfulness in Plain English, author Bhante Henepola Gunaratana, a monk from Sri Lanka and venerated teacher of Buddhism, offered basic instruction on the meaning of insight (or vipassana) meditation through concepts that could be applied to any tradition. In Beyond Mindfulness in Plain English, he presents the levels of concentration with the same simplicity and humor that made the previous book so successful. The focus here is on the Jhanas, those meditative stat "Bhante Gunaratana - Bhante G., as he is affectionately called - has long been among the most beloved Buddhist teachers in the West. Ordained at twelve, he would eventually become the first Buddhist chaplain at an American university, the founder of a retreat center and monastery, and a bestselling author." "Here, Bhante G. lays bare the often-surprising ups and downs of his seventy-five years, from his boyhood in Sri Lanka to his decades of sharing the insights of the Buddha, telling his story with the "plain-English" approach for which he is so renowned."--BOOK JACKET

with His Distinctive Clarity And Wit, Bhante G Takes Us Step By Step Through The Myths, Realities, And Benefits Of Meditation And The Practice Of Mindfulness. We Already Have The Foundation We Need To Live A More Productive And Peaceful Life — Bhante Simply Points To Each Tool Of Meditation, Tells Us What It Does, And How To Make It Work. This Expanded Edition Includes The Complete Text Of Its Bestselling Predecessor, As Well As A New Chapter On The Cultivation Of Loving Kindness, An Especially Important Subject In Today's World.

Author Bhante Gunaratana, a renowned meditation master, takes us step by step through the myths, realities, and benefits of meditation and the practice of mindfulness. This expanded edition includes the complete text of its predecessor along with a new chapter on cultivating loving kindness. For anyone who is new to meditation, this is a great resource for learning how to live a more productive and peaceful life. In the Eightfold Path, the buddha offered us a complete guide for living happily: Skillfulness in understanding, thinking, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness, and concentration. Eight Mindful Steps to Happiness explains in clear language how to use these steps to turn every situations that arises into an opportunity for peace and joy This step-by-step buide to Insight Meditation is truly practical and direct. This new edition includes the complete text of its bestselling predecessor and a new chapter on loving-kindness, an especially important subject in today's fractious world. - Publisher This step-by-step guide to Insight Meditation is truly practical and direct. This new edition includes the complete text of its bestselling predecessor and a new chapter on loving-kindness, an especially important subject in today's fractious world. - Publisher An anthology offers original contributions and newly edited dharma talks and commentaries previously published in the 1970s on such topics as sitting, beginning practice, chanting, and working with koans