Mindfulness In Plain English

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“We could say that meditation doesn't have a reason or doesn't have a purpose. In this respect it's unlike almost all other things we do except perhaps making music and dancing. When we make music we don't do it in order to reach a certain point, such as the end of the composition… Also, when we are dancing we are not aiming to arrive at a particular place on the floor as in a journey. When we dance, the journey itself is the point, as when we play music the playing itself is the point. And exactly the same thing is true in meditation. Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is always arrived at in the immediate moment.” – Alan Watts

This month’s book review is on Bhante Gunaratana’s Mindfulness In Plain English. Since 1982, Gunaratana has been president of the Bhavana Society, a monastery and retreat center located in the woods of West Virginia, where he ordains and trains monks and nuns, and offers retreats to the general public. His book Mindfulness In Plain English teaches the basic approach toward, practice of, and benefits from meditating. The type of meditation described in the book is vipassana, or awareness, meditation. It is designed to allow you to become more aware of yourself, your thoughts and feelings, and the world around you.

I chose to read this book because I have always been interested in the benefits of meditation and visualization. I found out there are numerous benefits of vipassana meditation. Some of these include an improved sense of mental awareness, improved mental clarity, improved energy, and an increased ability to sense other people’s feelings and thoughts. Since I started about six weeks ago, I have noticed significant increases in energy, improved productivity, and feeling calmer throughout the day.

Try this exercise for a brief and simple experience meditating:

1)   Sit up straight and tall, eyes closed or unfocused, and completely relaxed.

2)   Breathe in slowly and deeply through your nose, focusing on the air moving past the nostrils thinking, “I 

breathe in.”

3)   Then allow yourself to exhale through your nose thinking, “I breathe out.”

4)   Take a brief pause and count “1”.

5)   Repeat the exercise until you count up to a number between 5 and 15.

Notice the feeling of ease and relaxation after you finish. Repeat this exercise in the morning, at night, and whenever else you feel is necessary. Just this short exercise will lead to numerous improvements in how you feel.

I recommend this book for anyone interested in learning more about meditation. If you tried the above exercise and enjoyed it, definitely consider reading this book for more information. It describes the basics of meditation including how to sit, when to do it, and what to focus your mind on, all in an easy to understand writing style.

Finally, in the infamous words of Todd Durkin, “Get your mind right.”

Enjoy this review? Get a copy of Mindfulness In Plain English in the Self Made® Book Store!

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