What do you think?
Rate this book
The Quiet Mind
A fascinating, engaging, and unique memoir, this story covers John Coleman's life after his cover is blown as a CIA agent in Asia in the late 1950s, leading him to embark on a vigorous pursuit of spiritual truth. In his travels through India, Burma, Japan, and Thailand, he encounters luminous teachers such as Krishnamurti, Maharishi, and D.T. Suzuki. Ultimately, his search for peace of mind and liberating insights comes to fruition in Yangon--also known as Rangoon--under the tutelage of the great Vipassana meditation master Sayagyi U Ba Khin.
203 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2000
10 people are currently reading
105 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
October 31, 2021
Krishnamurti. Maharishi. Daisetsu Teitaro Suzuki. Does any of these name mean anything to you? They were philosophers, scholars, and writers who were encountered, amongst others, by John E. Coleman, the author of this book, during his fascinating journey seeking for a discipline to quiet the mind. It’s the late 50’s and the very same “gurus” he met became, one way or another, an inspiration for millions of disciples including celebrities like the Beatles and the Stones, but John E. Coleman did not stop there and continued his search travelling to India, Japan, Europe, the US, ultimately arriving in Yangon where he embraced Vipassana, becoming a Vipassana teacher playing an essential role in the spread of Vipassana meditation in the west.
I recommend this book to all people searching for ways to achieve a quiet mind.
I recommend this book to all people searching for ways to achieve a quiet mind.
December 10, 2020
A Memoir of a CIA spy seeking spiritual truth and a quiet mind.
June 8, 2015
Interesting account of the author's travels. Some narrations seemed brief, some very tangential; seemingly in line with the author's disclaimer that this is his personal experience and is not to be considered a study.
The reader is taken through the geographies and spaces that the author traveled to. He tried to capture to a decent extent moments of his experience. Travels spanning from Thailand, to Burma, to India and the magnificent Kanchenjunga, to Tibet, and the beautiful Japan. While some of the incidents quoted seemed irrelevant, like the bar-license incident in Mumbai, the book has to be read in light of a person's view.
It does give a good account of the true essence of Vipassana in the last chapters. The essence of this meditation as I know it: "There was an intense desire to be free from suffering and this very desire was perpetuating the suffering." This is the threshold that one has to reach to understand the state transcending suffering.
A good read for anyone who wants a brief, mind you: only a brief, of different kinds of meditation in practice up until the date this was published.
The reader is taken through the geographies and spaces that the author traveled to. He tried to capture to a decent extent moments of his experience. Travels spanning from Thailand, to Burma, to India and the magnificent Kanchenjunga, to Tibet, and the beautiful Japan. While some of the incidents quoted seemed irrelevant, like the bar-license incident in Mumbai, the book has to be read in light of a person's view.
It does give a good account of the true essence of Vipassana in the last chapters. The essence of this meditation as I know it: "There was an intense desire to be free from suffering and this very desire was perpetuating the suffering." This is the threshold that one has to reach to understand the state transcending suffering.
A good read for anyone who wants a brief, mind you: only a brief, of different kinds of meditation in practice up until the date this was published.
February 27, 2014
This book is basically an exploration of many different wisdom traditions-- one per chapter -- with a focus on specific teachers, especially in the Buddhist traditions. It is written as a memoir of the author's encounter with Eastern traditions that began when he was working in Asia. There is a fair amount of description of specific practices of meditation. It's not especially well written or engaging. It's a bit dated-- the time period covered is the 60s. If you are interested in U Ba Kin, Krishnamurti, the Maharishi or DT Suzuki, you might find something of interest. It's available here for free or by donation in PDF format: http://store.pariyatti.org/Quiet-Mind...
June 30, 2019
What a wonderful book! I love the author’s voice on his quest for the Quiet Mind and all the searching and experimenting. Very engaging. When I hurriedly got the book I though it was written by Coleman Barks and, shorty figuring out it was not that Coleman this one did not, anyway, lead to disappointment.
April 21, 2019
An introduction to Buddhist experience, and a comparative journey in search of the quiet mind
August 26, 2019
good interesting book
June 6, 2022
Very interesting book, I love a good personal memoir, and what a wild life, how many incredible people he met. And this book is free on Paravati.
April 6, 2014
This book beautifully narrates the story of Coleman in his spiritual quest for a quiet mind. Even better, it's told by Coleman himself. He intricately details every aspect of different philosophies and systems of spiritual beliefs that he encounters in the countries of the east, including Thailand, Japan, Mayanmar, Nepal, Britain and of course my homeland India.
As an Indian, I can honestly say that his analysis of the twin Indian spiritual systems of Hinduism and Buddhism (he focuses more on the latter) is beautiful and informative. He pursues a very clear, logical and straightforward way in examining, and later describing, each system of spirituality.
His encounters with notable people such as Jiddu Krishnamurti of India, U Ba Khan of Mayanmar, Suzuki of Japan and Buddhadasa Bhikshu of Thailand, are beautifully narrated. He painstakingly captures even his own mental perceptions of their teachings, and the effect they have on his mind and understanding, right at the moments of his encounters.
And finally, he receives the true enlightenment, guided by Krishnamurti, U Ba Khan and Suzuki's teachings. His conclusions are quite similar to those of Eckhart Tolle, whom I ardently follow.
A must-read, if you're into spirituality.
As an Indian, I can honestly say that his analysis of the twin Indian spiritual systems of Hinduism and Buddhism (he focuses more on the latter) is beautiful and informative. He pursues a very clear, logical and straightforward way in examining, and later describing, each system of spirituality.
His encounters with notable people such as Jiddu Krishnamurti of India, U Ba Khan of Mayanmar, Suzuki of Japan and Buddhadasa Bhikshu of Thailand, are beautifully narrated. He painstakingly captures even his own mental perceptions of their teachings, and the effect they have on his mind and understanding, right at the moments of his encounters.
And finally, he receives the true enlightenment, guided by Krishnamurti, U Ba Khan and Suzuki's teachings. His conclusions are quite similar to those of Eckhart Tolle, whom I ardently follow.
A must-read, if you're into spirituality.
May 31, 2021
"The Quiet Mind" is the story of the author's pursuit of "peace" and the spiritual life after his hectic life as a CIA Agent. As a CIA Agent, the author was afforded the opportunity to visit many Eastern Countries and meet several luminary teachers including Krishnamurti, D.T Suzuki, Buddhadasa Bhikkhu and others. After investigating numerous Eastern and Western spiritual disciplines, the author finally met his teacher, Sayagyi U Ba Khin and learned the technique of Vipassana Meditation. Although the author does not go into detail about his own personal experiences, he gives an excellent account of the theory and practice of Vipassana Meditation. I would highly recommend this book.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews