A Lamp unto Yourself: A Beginner's Guide to Asian Spiritual Practices, from Advaita and Buddhism to Yoga and Zen

by C. Pierce Salguero

For “spiritual explorers” ready to travel beyond Western bounds, a beginner’s guide to Asian spiritual traditions spanning regions, cultures, and history

Asian spiritual practices, from yoga and tai chi to qigong and mindfulness meditations, permeate our culture. But these practices are often casually used in the West, and sometimes little understood. As informative as it is inviting, A Lamp unto Yourself introduces “spiritual explorers” of all experience levels to embodied Eastern spiritual practices.

Employing decades of personal and professional experience with Asian spiritualities, C. Pierce Salguero explains the origins of key Asian spiritual practices. He grounds them in their historical and philosophical contexts and provides information on how the reader can begin and deepen their personal practices. Salguero also discusses the focus of the path (heart, body, or perception) and describes what one might experience as they develop their practice. In A Lamp unto Yourself, readers will learn more about such traditions as

mindfulness meditation, insight meditation, and loving-kindness meditation
yogas, tai chi, and qigong
Taoism and Advaita
mantras, chakras, and tantra

Those looking to begin practicing for the first time or to simply expand their ever-growing spiritual tool kits will feel empowered to explore Eastern spirituality with knowledge and autonomy. With Salguero as their guide, readers can confidently embark on their journeys to becoming, as Buddha would encourage, a lamp unto themselves.

Genres: Nonfiction, Spirituality, Self Help, Philosophy

216 pages, Hardcover

Published April 22, 2025

About the author

I am a transdisciplinary scholar of health humanities who is fascinated by historical and contemporary intersections between Buddhism, medicine, and crosscultural exchange. I have a Ph.D. in History of Medicine from the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine (2010), and teach Asian history, medicine, and religion at Penn State University’s Abington College, located near Philadelphia. I also have been the editor in chief of the journal Asian Medicine: Journal of the International Association for the Study of Traditional Asian Medicine since 2016.
The major theme in my scholarship is discovering the role of Buddhism in the global transmission and local reception of knowledge about health, disease, and the body. I approach this topic using methodologies from history, religious studies, translation studies, literary studies, and ethnography.
I am continually seeking opportunities to cross disciplinary lines in publishing and presenting my work. I regularly publish writing for non-scholarly audiences, and am passionate about connecting my scholarship and teaching with contemporary issues and events both within and beyond the academy. More recently, I have gotten into documentary filmmaking and podcasting as well.

Reviews

[Nic Brisbourne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found Salguero’s clinical mapping of Asian traditions very helpful. Almost everything else I’ve encountered uses language confusingly and doesn’t differentiate between practices of the heart, mind and energy body like he does. It’s this last insight that was particularly helpful to me.

I also appreciate his focus on the phenomenology of practice and traditions rather than the ontological differences. I’m increasingly of the view that the ontology is only useful to the extent it helps us truly believe.

[B. · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 rounded up. I won a copy of this one in a goodreads giveaway and while it's got a lot of great ideas in it, many parts of it felt very....salesman-like, I suppose you could call it, as opposed to a book being focused on spiritual practices from Asia. It's those spiritual practices consumer-ified. Which, has it's place in a late stage capitalism world, I guess, but it wasn't quite what I was hoping for based on the marketing materials that enticed me to join the giveaway in the first place.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall an interesting read about different spiritual practices. The emphasized separation of yoga as a body health exercise versus a mental mindfulness and grounding technique was intriguing to read about. Instead of becoming a physically healthier version of oneself rather by becoming the mentally and spiritually better version of oneself. Also, there was a good reminder that your spiritual journey is long-term and there is no timeline.

I received a copy in the #GoodreadsGiveaway

[Bradley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was raised as a Christian but I have always had a healthy respect for other religions. This is a nice starter book for Eastern faith traditions but there are some parts where it gets a little bogged down with information.

[Tom Beck · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Great Book , didnt want to return to the library, i should