Pointing out the great way : the stages of meditation in the mahāmudrā tradition

Description Many books have been published in recent years on the topic of mahamudra, or meditation on the fundamentally clear nature of the mind. This book is different in the systematic way it draws from a variety of source texts in order to construct a complete, graded path of practice informed by an understanding of the particular obstacles faced by meditators in the West. Dan Brown is a clinical psychotherapist who has also spent much time evaluating the experiences of meditators on longterm retreats. He knows the Tibetan literature on mahamudra meditation and has over thirty years of both personal meditation experience and observation of the experiences of others. He co-wrote, with Ken Wilber and Jack Engler, the book Transformations in Consciousness, and he teaches an annual seminar on mahamudra meditation at the Esalen Institute. Pointing Out the Great Way is a spiritual manual that describes the Tibetan Buddhist meditation known as mahamudra from the perspective of the 'gradual path.' The gradual path is a progressive process of training that is often contrasted to sudden realization. As such, this book contains a step-by-step description of the ways to practice, precise descriptions of the various stages and their intended realizations, and the typical problems that arise along with their remedies. Simply put, mahamudra meditation involves penetrative focus, free of conceptual elaboration, upon the very nature of conscious awareness. A unique feature of this book is its integrative approach to the stages of mahamudra meditation. A number of works on Buddhist meditation stages in general and mahamudra meditation in particular are already available in English, yet none, single text or commentary on the stages of mahamudra meditation, captures the inner experience of these stages in sufficient detail to convey its richness. This book represents the needed alternative by integrating material from a variety of root texts, practical manuals, and commentaries. Another unique feature of this book is its relational approach. It is intended as a return to the original teacher/student style of teaching meditation, which may be better suited to Western culture than the monastic or retreat style of practice. The book distills and codifies the experiences of many great masters who have traversed the path of meditation to the point of perfect mastery. Review " Pointing Out the Great Way weaves together insights from a variety of Buddhist root texts, practice manuals, and commentaries, into a step-by-step 'gradual path' description of the methods of Mahamudra practice, descriptions of the various stages of practice and associated experiences, as well as common obstacles and their antidotes. The text is dense but surprisingly readable and contains a helpful introduction, elaborate footnotes, and an extensive glossary and index." ― Mandala "I rejoice and congratulate [Dan Brown] for this grand achievement, and I rejoice and congratulate the readers, who will find by working through and living with this monumental book, a real pointing out of the gentle, 'great embrace' that this beautiful reality holds them in right now, whatever else they think might be going on." -- Robert A.F. Thurman "A clinical psychotherapist and meditation instructor, Daniel Brown has spent more than thirty years studying and translating the vast Tibetan literature on the Mahamudra system of meditation. In Pointing Out the Great Way, he expertly guides the reader through each stage of the path in plain English, referencing the classic sources on Mahamudra sparingly and in a manner that supports his presentation without confusing it. The resulting manual is a valuable synthesis of more than a thousand years of meditation instructions filtered through the author's understanding of Tibetan and Western ways of describing the mind." ― Buddhadharma: The Practitioner's Quarterly About the Author Daniel P. Brown is the director of the Center for Integrative Psychotherapy in Newton, Massachusetts, and an associate clinical professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School. Trained in Buddhist philosophy and languages at the University of Chicago and the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he did his dissertation on mahamudra meditation texts, he has maintained close relations with Tibetan teachers of the Gelug, Kagyu, and Nyingma lineages for more than thirty-five years as well as exploring the Theravada mindfulness traditions in Burma and Thailand. The author of fourteen books, including Transformations of Consciousness, he lives in Newton, Massachusetts. Robert Thurman holds the Jey Tsong Khapa Chair in Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at Columbia University. After education at Philips Exeter and Harvard, he studied Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism for almost thirty years as a personal student of His Holiness the Dalai Lama. He has written both scholarly and popular books, and has lectured widely all over the world. As President of the American Institute for Buddhist Studies, he convened the First Inner Science Conference with His Holiness the Dalai Lama at Amherst College in 1984. He is also a founding trustee of Tibet House New York. "Mahamudra is the basic meditation practice for many Tibetan Buddhists, particularly of the Kagyu tradition. It is particularly adaptable for modern people, since it involves no rituals and can be incorporated into all daily activities. Saraha's "Song for the King" is a short verse text from classical India that is a basis for the tradition and is widely known in Tibetan Buddhist circles. It is often the basis for teachings given in the West, but there is only one outdated translation of it in print, first published in 1969. Michele Martin has produced a stellar new translation, which is accompanied by a commentary from the well-known teacher Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, who is uniquely skilled and concerned with making this method of meditation available to Westerners. While pithy and accessible, the book easily stands up to academic scrutiny, and includes the original Tibetan as well--making it ideal for the popular, scholarly, and Tibetan audiences all at once."--Publisher's website Mahamudra is the basic meditation practice for many Tibetan Buddhists, particularly of the Kagyu tradition. It is particularly adaptable for modern people, since it involves no rituals and can be incorporated into all daily activities. Saraha's "Song for the King" is a short verse text from classical India that is a basis for the tradition and is widely known in Tibetan Buddhist circles. It is often the basis for teachings given in the West, but there is only one outdated translation of it in print, first published in 1969. Michele Martin has produced a stellar new translation, which is accompanied by a commentary from the well-known teacher Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, who is uniquely skilled and concerned with making this method of meditation available to Westerners. While pithy and accessible, the book easily stands up to academic scrutiny, and includes the original Tibetan as well - making it ideal for the popular, scholarly, and Tibetan audiences all at once. What would you see if you looked directly at your mind? The Tibetan Buddhist teachings on mahamudra are known for their ability to lead to profound realization. Peaceful and infinitely adaptable, these teachings are as useful for today's busy world as they have been for centuries. Written by the tutor to the seventeenth Karmapa, Essentials of Mahamudra is a commentary on Tashi Namgyal's famous Moonlight of Mahamudra - a text that the sixteenth Karmapa had identified as the most valuable for Westerners. Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche recognized that Western meditators don't just need to know how to maintain our meditation practice - we need to know why we should do it. Unmatched in its directness, Essentials of Mahamudra addresses both these needs, rendering one of the most advanced forms of meditation more easily adaptable to our everyday lives. "The Tibetan Buddhist teachings on mahamudra are known for their ability to lead to profound realization. Peaceful and infinitely adaptable, these teachings, like the parallel practice of dzogchen, are as relevant for today's busy world as they have been for centuries." "This introduction to mahamudra meditation, a commentary on Tashi Namgyal's famous Moonlight of Mahamudra, is unmatched in its directness. Esteemed author and teacher Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche recognized that Western meditators don't just need to know how to maintain our meditation practice - we need to know why we should do it. Essentials of Mahamudra addresses both these needs, rendering one of the most advanced forms of meditation accessible, and more easily adaptable to our everyday lives."--BOOK JACKET The shared tradition of Shamata and Vipashyana The shared tradition of Shamata meditation The shared tradition of Vipashyana meditation Eliminating doubts concerning Vipashyana meditation The origins of Mahamudra The preparatory practices for Mahamudra Mahamudra Shamata meditation Mahamudra Vipashyana meditation Eliminating doubts about Vipashyana Mind as it is and coemergence Eliminating flaws that may arise in Mahamudra Maintaining Mahamudra in meditation and postmeditation Eliminating obstacles to Mahamudra The practice of utterly releasing Bringing obstacles to the path How realization dawns How we should practice. This spiritual manual describes mahamudra meditation from the perspective of the "gradual path," a progressive process of training that is often contrasted to sudden realization. The book contains a step-by-step description of the ways to practice, precise descriptions of the various stages and their intended realizations, and the typical problems that arise along with their remedies. Drawn from a variety of sources, Pointing Out the Great Way distills the experiences of many great masters who have traversed the path of meditation to the point of perfect mastery

Mahamudra meditation is growing in popularity in the West, since it involves no rituals and can be easily incorporated into daily activities. Saraha's A Song for the King is the basis for the tradition, and though widely known in Tibetan Buddhist circles, it has only been available to Western followers in a badly outdated translation. This welcome new edition features Michele Martin’s clear, accessible translation, the original Tibetan text, and extensive notes and commentary from contemporary master Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche.