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The Meditative Mind: The Varieties of Meditative Experience
From the New York Times Bestselling author, a classic interpretation of all varieties of meditation.
"Goleman's wide-ranging meditative experience imbues the volume with an authority and authenticity . . . and continues to make his writings some of the liveliest available on meditation."--Publisher's Weekly
The Meditative Mind is an essential traveler's guide to the topography of the spirit for every spiritual seeker.
For the beginning meditator, the book provides a comprehensive, accessible overview of the different kinds of meditation, from Hindu, Buddhist, Sufi, Jewish, and Christian to Transcendental, Tantric, Kundalini, Tibeta Buddhist, Zen, and those developed by Gurdjeff and Krishnamurti, and introduces the reader to the basic elements of their practice.
For the experienced meditator, Goleman explores the distinct levels of consciousness developed as a result of long-term application.
"Goleman's wide-ranging meditative experience imbues the volume with an authority and authenticity . . . and continues to make his writings some of the liveliest available on meditation."--Publisher's Weekly
The Meditative Mind is an essential traveler's guide to the topography of the spirit for every spiritual seeker.
For the beginning meditator, the book provides a comprehensive, accessible overview of the different kinds of meditation, from Hindu, Buddhist, Sufi, Jewish, and Christian to Transcendental, Tantric, Kundalini, Tibeta Buddhist, Zen, and those developed by Gurdjeff and Krishnamurti, and introduces the reader to the basic elements of their practice.
For the experienced meditator, Goleman explores the distinct levels of consciousness developed as a result of long-term application.
214 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1977
80 people are currently reading
1001 people want to read
About the author
Daniel Goleman
384 books5,485 followersAuthor of Emotional Intelligence and psychologist Daniel Goleman has transformed the way the world educates children, relates to family and friends, and conducts business. The Wall Street Journal ranked him one of the 10 most influential business thinkers.
Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence was on The New York Times best sellers list for a year-and-a-half. Named one of the 25 "Most Influential Business Management Books" by TIME, it has been translated into 40 languages. The Harvard Business Review called emotional intelligence (EI) “a revolutionary, paradigm-shattering idea.”
Goleman’s new book, Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence, argues that attention — a fundamental mental ability for success — has come under siege. Leadership that gets results demands a triple focus: on our inner world so we can manage ourselves; on others, for our relationships; and on the outer forces that shape our organizations and society itself.
His more recent books include The Brain and Emotional Intelligence, and Leadership: The Power of Emotional Intelligence - Selected Writings.
Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence was on The New York Times best sellers list for a year-and-a-half. Named one of the 25 "Most Influential Business Management Books" by TIME, it has been translated into 40 languages. The Harvard Business Review called emotional intelligence (EI) “a revolutionary, paradigm-shattering idea.”
Goleman’s new book, Focus: The Hidden Driver of Excellence, argues that attention — a fundamental mental ability for success — has come under siege. Leadership that gets results demands a triple focus: on our inner world so we can manage ourselves; on others, for our relationships; and on the outer forces that shape our organizations and society itself.
His more recent books include The Brain and Emotional Intelligence, and Leadership: The Power of Emotional Intelligence - Selected Writings.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
May 1, 2014
I started reading this book thinking it was going to be a lightweight skim over various meditative traditions, and indeed, it does contain that in the central chapters, but found there was more to it as I got towards the end. Goleman laid out his main thesis (along the lines of 'there are more similarities among the religious meditative traditions than there are differences') at the beginning of the book, and then set out to demonstrate the point, with frequent references back to his guiding template, the Visuddhimagga. I got the feeling that there was quite a bit of trying to make alternative approaches fit the Visuddhimagga mould where it wasn't always that obvious, but it was, nevertheless useful to see how the traditions agree with each other on some important points (without necessarily knowing it, or liking the fact!).
The book is of its time, and there's certainly a thread of excitement about the exploration that was happening in the 70's and 80's into Eastern meditative methods, as well as an unconscious nod to the 'one big melting pot' zeitgeist that was current. One thing I found interesting was the descriptions of the trials and experiments involving meditators that were happening, as Western scientists and explorers of the mind were grappling with the integration of mainstream psychology and the recently discovered centuries-old wealth of Eastern study of the mind.
The last part of the book is the 'meat', for me, in which Goleman goes into some depth about the psychology underlying Buddhism, in particular as described in the Visuddhimagga and Abhidhamma. I thought I was going to flick through this book and put in my shelf, never to open its pages again, instead of which I will be re-reading it again very soon, and would recommend, in particular, any student or teacher of meditation and mindfulness-based programmes to read it too.
The book is of its time, and there's certainly a thread of excitement about the exploration that was happening in the 70's and 80's into Eastern meditative methods, as well as an unconscious nod to the 'one big melting pot' zeitgeist that was current. One thing I found interesting was the descriptions of the trials and experiments involving meditators that were happening, as Western scientists and explorers of the mind were grappling with the integration of mainstream psychology and the recently discovered centuries-old wealth of Eastern study of the mind.
The last part of the book is the 'meat', for me, in which Goleman goes into some depth about the psychology underlying Buddhism, in particular as described in the Visuddhimagga and Abhidhamma. I thought I was going to flick through this book and put in my shelf, never to open its pages again, instead of which I will be re-reading it again very soon, and would recommend, in particular, any student or teacher of meditation and mindfulness-based programmes to read it too.
October 30, 2011
First published in 1977 under the title The Varieties of Meditative Experience, Goleman's book is a clear and straightforward presentation of various meditative disciplines organized around the map of consciousness explicated in Buddhaghosa's Visuddhimagga. Part I details this map, describing the paths of serenity (samadhi) and insight (vipassana). The various jhanas (meditative absorptions) are described, as are the insight knowledges. The tone throughout is professional, understanding and clear, though lacking the feel of a first-hand account. Two notable mistakes are made in this section, one being the consistent misspelling of pañña as puñña (I get a little worried when an author misspells key terms), the second being the placement of nirodha-samapatti ("cessation of feeling and perception") as above, or superior to, that of nibbana. There is no justification for this given the evidence of the Pali Suttas, where n-s is described rather as a kind of "super jhana" attainable only by anagamis and arhats. It is not, in itself, liberative.
Part II is a survey of meditation paths--Hindu, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and many things in between. Even Gurdjieff and Krishnamurti show up here. While at times illuminating--it's certainly a good, quick cross-section of the many traditions available--the underlying assumption of the discussion is in line with the old saying that "all paths lead to the mountain top," something this reader, at least, is not convinced of. (This position is explicitly affirmed in part III, entitled "Meditation Paths: Their Essential Unity.")
Why I am not convinced of this can perhaps be illustrated by a passage from the section on Jewish mysticism. "The end of the Kabbalist's path," Goleman writes, "is devekut, in which the seeker's soul cleaves to God" (p. 52). And in the paragraph below that, in a passage quoted from Gershom Scholem, devekut is defined as a state of mind wherein "You constantly remember God and his love, nor do you remove your thought from Him...to the point when such a person speaks with someone else, his heart is not with them at all but is still before God." Now this is fine as far as it goes, but it in no way approximates the view of things that result from the attainment of nibbana as described by the Buddha and his disciples in the Pali Suttas, and which the Visuddhimagga seeks to elaborate. Consider this from Samyutta Nikaya 22.58(6): "A bhikkhu liberated by wisdom, liberated by nonclinging through revulsion towards form [feeling, perception, volitional formations, consciousness], through its fading away and cessation, is called one liberated by wisdom" (from The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, pp. 900-1). In other words, enlightenment consists not of being attached to something (to a god or gods real or imagined), but rather through the cessation of all attachments.
In other words, there is no reason to believe the Jewish holy man--the zaddik--or the Christian saint or the Muslim sufi attains what the Buddha attained. In fact, the experiences of the Kabbalistic meditators are examples not of nibbana (nirvana) but of the higher jhanas--equivalent, according to Golem, to the Sufi fana--and Goleman seems to admit this much when on page 62 he says that Sufi practice "culminates in baqa, abiding in some degree of fana [jhana] consciousness while in the middle of ordinary activity." This is precisely what the Hindus call sahaj samadhi, "open eyed samadhi," and though a high attainment, it is not the equivalent of the Buddhist nibbana. In fact, as the suttas make clear time and again, contemplatives before the Buddha were prone to believing in their own enlightenment specifically as a result of their attainment of those sorts of states. Goleman's book, however, does nothing to illuminate this problem; it merely perpetuates the popular and fatuous notion that all religions are, at their heart, one and the same.
If I seem overly critical in the above passages, I don't want to give the impression that the book is in any way a failure. Its positives far outweigh its negatives, and even considering my critique of Part III, Goleman is right in asserting correspondences between meditative traditions. They are certainly there, and they need to be understood and appreciated; there is much that contemplatives from different cultures can share with and learn from one another.
For many people, Part IV will prove the most interesting, where Goleman looks at the psychology of meditation. Here he is in his element (he is, after all, a psychologist), and he offers a good introductory survey of the Western attempt to come to grips with issues of mind and consciousness. A number of scientific studies of meditation are discussed, though one is left with the overwhelming feeling that so much more can--and should--be done. However, if one remembers that the book is almost a quarter century old, one can rest assured that since its publication much has indeed been done.
Part II is a survey of meditation paths--Hindu, Jewish, Christian, Muslim, and many things in between. Even Gurdjieff and Krishnamurti show up here. While at times illuminating--it's certainly a good, quick cross-section of the many traditions available--the underlying assumption of the discussion is in line with the old saying that "all paths lead to the mountain top," something this reader, at least, is not convinced of. (This position is explicitly affirmed in part III, entitled "Meditation Paths: Their Essential Unity.")
Why I am not convinced of this can perhaps be illustrated by a passage from the section on Jewish mysticism. "The end of the Kabbalist's path," Goleman writes, "is devekut, in which the seeker's soul cleaves to God" (p. 52). And in the paragraph below that, in a passage quoted from Gershom Scholem, devekut is defined as a state of mind wherein "You constantly remember God and his love, nor do you remove your thought from Him...to the point when such a person speaks with someone else, his heart is not with them at all but is still before God." Now this is fine as far as it goes, but it in no way approximates the view of things that result from the attainment of nibbana as described by the Buddha and his disciples in the Pali Suttas, and which the Visuddhimagga seeks to elaborate. Consider this from Samyutta Nikaya 22.58(6): "A bhikkhu liberated by wisdom, liberated by nonclinging through revulsion towards form [feeling, perception, volitional formations, consciousness], through its fading away and cessation, is called one liberated by wisdom" (from The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, translated by Bhikkhu Bodhi, pp. 900-1). In other words, enlightenment consists not of being attached to something (to a god or gods real or imagined), but rather through the cessation of all attachments.
In other words, there is no reason to believe the Jewish holy man--the zaddik--or the Christian saint or the Muslim sufi attains what the Buddha attained. In fact, the experiences of the Kabbalistic meditators are examples not of nibbana (nirvana) but of the higher jhanas--equivalent, according to Golem, to the Sufi fana--and Goleman seems to admit this much when on page 62 he says that Sufi practice "culminates in baqa, abiding in some degree of fana [jhana] consciousness while in the middle of ordinary activity." This is precisely what the Hindus call sahaj samadhi, "open eyed samadhi," and though a high attainment, it is not the equivalent of the Buddhist nibbana. In fact, as the suttas make clear time and again, contemplatives before the Buddha were prone to believing in their own enlightenment specifically as a result of their attainment of those sorts of states. Goleman's book, however, does nothing to illuminate this problem; it merely perpetuates the popular and fatuous notion that all religions are, at their heart, one and the same.
If I seem overly critical in the above passages, I don't want to give the impression that the book is in any way a failure. Its positives far outweigh its negatives, and even considering my critique of Part III, Goleman is right in asserting correspondences between meditative traditions. They are certainly there, and they need to be understood and appreciated; there is much that contemplatives from different cultures can share with and learn from one another.
For many people, Part IV will prove the most interesting, where Goleman looks at the psychology of meditation. Here he is in his element (he is, after all, a psychologist), and he offers a good introductory survey of the Western attempt to come to grips with issues of mind and consciousness. A number of scientific studies of meditation are discussed, though one is left with the overwhelming feeling that so much more can--and should--be done. However, if one remembers that the book is almost a quarter century old, one can rest assured that since its publication much has indeed been done.
January 25, 2020
Me pareció una buena lectura para quienes quieran hacerse una idea general sobre los diferentes caminos que las tradiciones y religiones antiguas y modernas buscan la iluminación, los estados alterados de conciencia, o conocer a Dios a través de la práctica de la meditación.
Nos da una breve comparación de muchas tradiciones; pasando por el bhakti hindú, la cábala judía, el hesicasmo cristiano, el cuarto camino de Gurdgieff, entre otros, haciendo una reseña de cada uno utilizando como punto de referencia el Visuddhimagga budista clásico; que es uno de los sistemas mas detallados y estructurados, y compara los elementos categorizándolos con respecto a la preparación, la concentración y la percepción del estado elevado de conciencia.
Me llamó mucho la atención sobre como la mayor parte de los caminos aconsejan a sus practicantes despojarse de todo lo material y mundano para apenas empezar la práctica meditativa, cuando otros con los cuales sentí más afinidad ven esto como una consecuencia de la práctica.
Me quedo con la inquietud de leer más sobre la meditación trascendental, el cuarto camino y el zen.
Nos da una breve comparación de muchas tradiciones; pasando por el bhakti hindú, la cábala judía, el hesicasmo cristiano, el cuarto camino de Gurdgieff, entre otros, haciendo una reseña de cada uno utilizando como punto de referencia el Visuddhimagga budista clásico; que es uno de los sistemas mas detallados y estructurados, y compara los elementos categorizándolos con respecto a la preparación, la concentración y la percepción del estado elevado de conciencia.
Me llamó mucho la atención sobre como la mayor parte de los caminos aconsejan a sus practicantes despojarse de todo lo material y mundano para apenas empezar la práctica meditativa, cuando otros con los cuales sentí más afinidad ven esto como una consecuencia de la práctica.
Me quedo con la inquietud de leer más sobre la meditación trascendental, el cuarto camino y el zen.
January 5, 2019
I understand this book lies at the beginning of Daniel Goleman's career on his creation of Emotional Intelligence theory, a set of books that brought so much to my life and started me in new beneficial directions. The book is brief but comprehensive, substantive and so well written that it is a page turner.
A true scientific dissertation on meditative practices, offers fascinating descriptions of the nature of meditation, altered states of consciousness and the varieties of traditions and practices across time and places, from the most simple to the most complex. I ended up with a good understanding of the subject and infused strong motivation to start some sort of meditative practice
A true scientific dissertation on meditative practices, offers fascinating descriptions of the nature of meditation, altered states of consciousness and the varieties of traditions and practices across time and places, from the most simple to the most complex. I ended up with a good understanding of the subject and infused strong motivation to start some sort of meditative practice
May 4, 2020
Taking into account my life-long interest in meditation/contemplative religious practices, this is one of the best books I have ever read in my life. Daniel Goleman goes through a comparative description of contemplative traditions in the world covering some of the most important religions nowadays. He beautifully describes the Buddhist path, as well as some of the Christian practices, the Sufi, the Bakti Yoga. The most interesting part is that this book was written based on the author's own experience with meditation masters. I am so thankful that I came accross this book when I was only 19-years old.
August 7, 2019
It's the first book about meditation that I ever read and found it really documented and with a very good described content about meditation and mindfulness. I'll say that it's devided in 2 parts, firstly, talking about some primary spiritual traditions and their goals, offering a thoughtful explanation about Western and Eastern methodologies of meditating and secondly, ending by describing several techniques and meditation paths essentials for achiving the Zen mood. " Every method of meditation is like all others, like some others and like no other" according to D. Goleman.
May 17, 2020
I would call this book a systematic qualitative review of sacred texts and writings of spiritual leaders and philosophers. In contrast with other authors of his time,
Goleman produced a structured comparison of different meditation techniques and corresponding mental states rather than a collection of narratives. This approach was predictably appealing to researchers: in the course of my research I saw is cited in many publications. The reading was a bit tedious at times, but overall very enjoyable.
Goleman produced a structured comparison of different meditation techniques and corresponding mental states rather than a collection of narratives. This approach was predictably appealing to researchers: in the course of my research I saw is cited in many publications. The reading was a bit tedious at times, but overall very enjoyable.
March 14, 2023
Goleman is absolutely committed here to bringing us a thorough explanation of what exactly meditation is- a word that every culture and spiritual practice uses but uses differently. The book is clear, amazingly well-ordered, and offers a really wide view of the subject, but the author is somewhat beholden to the belief he came in with, that Buddhism and meditation as he learned it in the Visudhimagga is the best and smartest and most complete system that most accurately describes exactly what's going on. He might be right! He knows more than I do. Everything he said in the book checks out against itself and against everything else I know. I spotted no obvious errors, but I did feel sometimes suspicious that he just happened to believe so strongly in the one tradition that just happened to have all the answers already.
Even with that caveat, this was a 5 star book. Really amazing quality! Coleman brought a clarity and order to an extremely messy and mysterious subject. In his view, and in the view of the Visudhimagga as he explained it, all meditation is either about focus; single-pointedness or about mindfulness. He explained many times in many ways that perfection in one, could easily lead to perfection in the other. He explained that if you perfect your one-pointed focus, you could easily turn that focus back onto your own mind, and that if you perfect mindfulness, it is no trick at all to then observe yourself being mindful of just one Object. (Capital O because here Object is special word referring to the thing the mind is holding.) But here, once again, trust is required- as Goleman explains that all traditions contain some amount of either of these skills, but only Buddhism fully contains both and to the highest and most specifically verbalized levels. He might be right- he certainly SOUNDS right!- but it's just suspcious to me when one person's own belief system just happens to be the best one.
I enjoyed the subtle and restrained disrespect he had for Transcendental Meditation and other specially branded schools of technique that bring obscure knowledge of the East into the west with "updated" and comfortable terminology that makes it more palatable to the consumer. I also enjoyed the subtle and restrained disrespect he had to schools like Gurdjieff and Krishnamurti, which are really very idiosyncratic and individualistic pursuits of one person, half codified and half improvised which grasp at these spiritual truths discovered from the work of uncountable thousands over unknown amounts of times but from the limited perspective of one human life.
One thing I found beautiful about the book was the constant reminder that meditation is a spiritual work that can't be simply stripped of its spiritual context, and that understanding the spiritual contexts from which different methods arise, will help you understand the differences in language and technique which will then help you understand the similarities that exist at the deepest level.
Golem spends the second half of the book breezing through the scientific and medical findings about meditation and then gives very specific instruction for what kinds of purification/preparation is common to all traditions and what kinds of exercises are also common- a kind of DIY guide and also has an incredibly fascinating focus on Chinese psychology and the influence of Buddhism upon it.
The book was ALMOST everything I was looking for- I just have that small bit of doubt that his own attachment to the Buddhist tradition made him overlook some great stuff. But I believe that any oversight was accidental, I believe that Goleman gave this book his very best effort and though I keep searching, this might be the best book on the topic
Even with that caveat, this was a 5 star book. Really amazing quality! Coleman brought a clarity and order to an extremely messy and mysterious subject. In his view, and in the view of the Visudhimagga as he explained it, all meditation is either about focus; single-pointedness or about mindfulness. He explained many times in many ways that perfection in one, could easily lead to perfection in the other. He explained that if you perfect your one-pointed focus, you could easily turn that focus back onto your own mind, and that if you perfect mindfulness, it is no trick at all to then observe yourself being mindful of just one Object. (Capital O because here Object is special word referring to the thing the mind is holding.) But here, once again, trust is required- as Goleman explains that all traditions contain some amount of either of these skills, but only Buddhism fully contains both and to the highest and most specifically verbalized levels. He might be right- he certainly SOUNDS right!- but it's just suspcious to me when one person's own belief system just happens to be the best one.
I enjoyed the subtle and restrained disrespect he had for Transcendental Meditation and other specially branded schools of technique that bring obscure knowledge of the East into the west with "updated" and comfortable terminology that makes it more palatable to the consumer. I also enjoyed the subtle and restrained disrespect he had to schools like Gurdjieff and Krishnamurti, which are really very idiosyncratic and individualistic pursuits of one person, half codified and half improvised which grasp at these spiritual truths discovered from the work of uncountable thousands over unknown amounts of times but from the limited perspective of one human life.
One thing I found beautiful about the book was the constant reminder that meditation is a spiritual work that can't be simply stripped of its spiritual context, and that understanding the spiritual contexts from which different methods arise, will help you understand the differences in language and technique which will then help you understand the similarities that exist at the deepest level.
Golem spends the second half of the book breezing through the scientific and medical findings about meditation and then gives very specific instruction for what kinds of purification/preparation is common to all traditions and what kinds of exercises are also common- a kind of DIY guide and also has an incredibly fascinating focus on Chinese psychology and the influence of Buddhism upon it.
The book was ALMOST everything I was looking for- I just have that small bit of doubt that his own attachment to the Buddhist tradition made him overlook some great stuff. But I believe that any oversight was accidental, I believe that Goleman gave this book his very best effort and though I keep searching, this might be the best book on the topic
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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July 31, 2019Según me cuenta la Flaca, este libro que “apareció por ahí” me lo regaló La Lucha. Yo no me acuerdo cuándo fue, pero es uno de ésos libros excepcionales: excepcionalmente corto (77 páginas), excepcionalmente profundo (el camino hacia el nirvana) y excepcionalmente retador, ya que nos conecta con el mapa de Buda para que "prendamos nuestra propia lámpara".
El buda trabajó sobre sí mismo y penetró la impermanencia, la insatisfactoriedad y la impersonalidad. Realizó las cuatro nobles verdades: sufrimiento, origen del sufrimiento, la cesasión del sufrimiento y el camino para aniquilar el sufrimiento.
El libro trata sobre los estados específicos de meditación (EEM), presentando un studio detallado del relato Vissudhimagga (Siglo V). Del SILA (pureza) pasamos a SAMADHI (concentración) y PRAJNA (discernimiento). Son tres facetas de un proceso único.
SILA tiene su código disciplinario para seglares (cinco), para los novicios (diez) y para los monjes (doscientos veintisiete). Con esta disciplina nos preparamos para meditar. “Desprenderse de las obligaciones mundanas lo libera a uno para dedicarse de lleno a la meditación”. 20 PRESTA ATENCION A LA MEDITACION.
Concentración (Samadhi) es no estar distraído: se fija en el tema, entra en él, lo absorbe y se hace una con él. Los temas llegan hasta 101, detallados en p.22 Con los varios temas se van logrando hasta ocho jhana (ruptura total con la conciencia normal). El Budha, los maestros son claves para definir el camino específico propio.
Es uno de ésos libros de lectura repetida. Mientras tanto toca meditar y ser capaces de identificar del punto específico de la ruta en que nos encontramos.
“Uno de los pocos estudios con que contamos sobre los yoguis que practican el Samadhi descubrió en algunos sujetos un ritmo respiratorio extraordinariamente lento, entre cuatro y seis respiraciones por minuto. (Bagchi et al. 1971). Los jhanas y el retraso de la respiración constituyen lo que Wallace (1970,1971) ha dado en llamar el “cuarto estado de la conciencia”. 70
El que experimenta conoce (proverbio sufí)
“Tal como dijo Meher Baba (1967):
En la vida spiritual no es necesario tener un
mapa completo del Camino para empezar el viaje.
Al contrario, empeñarse en poseer todo ese
conocimiento puede, en realidad, ser más un
impedimento que una ayuda para avanzar… El
que especula desde la playa sobre lo que es el
océano solo conocerá su superficie. Sin embargo,
quien realmente quiere conocer las profundidades
del océano tiene que estar deseando zambullirse en él”. 76
El buda trabajó sobre sí mismo y penetró la impermanencia, la insatisfactoriedad y la impersonalidad. Realizó las cuatro nobles verdades: sufrimiento, origen del sufrimiento, la cesasión del sufrimiento y el camino para aniquilar el sufrimiento.
El libro trata sobre los estados específicos de meditación (EEM), presentando un studio detallado del relato Vissudhimagga (Siglo V). Del SILA (pureza) pasamos a SAMADHI (concentración) y PRAJNA (discernimiento). Son tres facetas de un proceso único.
SILA tiene su código disciplinario para seglares (cinco), para los novicios (diez) y para los monjes (doscientos veintisiete). Con esta disciplina nos preparamos para meditar. “Desprenderse de las obligaciones mundanas lo libera a uno para dedicarse de lleno a la meditación”. 20 PRESTA ATENCION A LA MEDITACION.
Concentración (Samadhi) es no estar distraído: se fija en el tema, entra en él, lo absorbe y se hace una con él. Los temas llegan hasta 101, detallados en p.22 Con los varios temas se van logrando hasta ocho jhana (ruptura total con la conciencia normal). El Budha, los maestros son claves para definir el camino específico propio.
Es uno de ésos libros de lectura repetida. Mientras tanto toca meditar y ser capaces de identificar del punto específico de la ruta en que nos encontramos.
“Uno de los pocos estudios con que contamos sobre los yoguis que practican el Samadhi descubrió en algunos sujetos un ritmo respiratorio extraordinariamente lento, entre cuatro y seis respiraciones por minuto. (Bagchi et al. 1971). Los jhanas y el retraso de la respiración constituyen lo que Wallace (1970,1971) ha dado en llamar el “cuarto estado de la conciencia”. 70
El que experimenta conoce (proverbio sufí)
“Tal como dijo Meher Baba (1967):
En la vida spiritual no es necesario tener un
mapa completo del Camino para empezar el viaje.
Al contrario, empeñarse en poseer todo ese
conocimiento puede, en realidad, ser más un
impedimento que una ayuda para avanzar… El
que especula desde la playa sobre lo que es el
océano solo conocerá su superficie. Sin embargo,
quien realmente quiere conocer las profundidades
del océano tiene que estar deseando zambullirse en él”. 76
May 5, 2022
Este libro es para aquellas personas que se sientan atraídas por conocer más sobre la meditación y las distintas tradiciones que la utilizan cómo medio para transformar la consciencia.
En lo personal me es curioso cómo nos aferramos a una ideología y a capa y espada la defendemos y decimos que esta es la verdad absoluta y que este es El Camino. En este libro entiendo que cada tradición etiqueta y categoriza la experiencia de la meditación de manera distinta pero al final todas coinciden en el uso de la meditación cómo un medio para ser más humanos.
Justo este libro habla que el camino hacía la consciencia a través de la meditación nos lleva al desapego de estas ideas, de estos deseos de que la vida sea cómo yo quiero, y nos lleva a un estado de profunda aceptación y calma con lo que la vida es.
Todas las tradiciones coinciden en que en el camino de la meditación observamos a este yo condicionado y que para ser más humanos y conscientes hay que atravesar un umbral de dolor, de desapego, de desprendimiento.
Algunas tradiciones le llaman nirvana, otras iluminación, otras pureza de corazón pero todas apuntan a lo mismo: vivir en armonía con nuestro entorno, unificarnos con él, siendo más humanos y conscientes.
En lo personal me es curioso cómo nos aferramos a una ideología y a capa y espada la defendemos y decimos que esta es la verdad absoluta y que este es El Camino. En este libro entiendo que cada tradición etiqueta y categoriza la experiencia de la meditación de manera distinta pero al final todas coinciden en el uso de la meditación cómo un medio para ser más humanos.
Justo este libro habla que el camino hacía la consciencia a través de la meditación nos lleva al desapego de estas ideas, de estos deseos de que la vida sea cómo yo quiero, y nos lleva a un estado de profunda aceptación y calma con lo que la vida es.
Todas las tradiciones coinciden en que en el camino de la meditación observamos a este yo condicionado y que para ser más humanos y conscientes hay que atravesar un umbral de dolor, de desapego, de desprendimiento.
Algunas tradiciones le llaman nirvana, otras iluminación, otras pureza de corazón pero todas apuntan a lo mismo: vivir en armonía con nuestro entorno, unificarnos con él, siendo más humanos y conscientes.
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November 10, 2018
A good introduction to meditation as it is practiced by various traditions around the world. What for me was helpful was the analysis of how different meditation practices relate, where they overlap, and where they seem to diverge. A good book for those who have some experience wth meditation and are trying to understand those who do other practices.
December 6, 2017
A brief, clear, and authoritative survey of the major meditation systems of the world, along with a look at the psychology of meditation and prospects for how Eastern and Western approaches might help us learn more about these altered states of consciousness.
June 5, 2018
Meditation - an exercise worth trying
It is a good read which will help one establish a belief in practices of meditation. Rather than just theorizing the significance of meditation, author has provided practical implications with decent set of examples
It is a good read which will help one establish a belief in practices of meditation. Rather than just theorizing the significance of meditation, author has provided practical implications with decent set of examples
August 11, 2018
A classic work, and probably the first comprehensive book on contemplative practices. I think this book will gain popularity in upcoming years with growing interest in various contemplative practices and their effects on health.
January 30, 2023
Vaya grado de complejidad...
La meditación explicada desde la razón es un libro breve pero con el que tienes que poner todos los sentidos al día para poder quedarte con una ínfima parte de toda la explicación.
La meditación explicada desde la razón es un libro breve pero con el que tienes que poner todos los sentidos al día para poder quedarte con una ínfima parte de toda la explicación.
August 8, 2023
Cuando la mente se aclara y aquieta, el ser humano puede conocerse a si mismo como realmente es. La ecuanimidad, el equilibrio mental y el recogimiento se logran liberándose de todos los pensamientos es decir tomando el camino de la meditación.
August 23, 2019
This book is more of an academic reference for people who are experienced mediators. Not the typical life altering ground breaking material of most of his other books.
August 24, 2020
Es demasiado técnico. Pero para las persona que están sumergidas en el tema espiritual es muy bueno
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December 14, 2024Kindle
December 26, 2025
Good overview on different types and techniques of meditation; a book for maybe a college class on meditation or for a spiritual seeker not sure what path to take.
April 8, 2014
I think this is a fair intro to meditation (why I picked it up.)However, as others have said, it contained a lot more information than one might find necessary or even desirable. The comprehensive explanations of meditation in different traditions was interesting and spoke to the skeptic in me, they showed the universality of meditative practice. I could trust Goleman as an expert by the time I had come to the end which is why I could finally take his simple instructions on how to begin meditation seriously.
I could have read the same implementation advice online in one of many places but for me Goleman's extensive catalog informs and supports meditation's form and function as a practice, and allays many loud doubts that would've distracted me, had I not been given such a well mapped lay of the land.
I could have read the same implementation advice online in one of many places but for me Goleman's extensive catalog informs and supports meditation's form and function as a practice, and allays many loud doubts that would've distracted me, had I not been given such a well mapped lay of the land.
July 5, 2020
Pensé que se trataría de un libro más de lado cientifico, sin embargo, me sorprendió sobre como el autor se sumergió en la filosofía del budismo y sus prácticas para desmarañar como según desde el punto del budismo se trasciende la mente desde los estados meditativos básicos hasta los más elevados según la frecuencia de la práctica.
Lo recomiendo si quieres tener un punto de comparación sobre la filosofia del oriente y los tiempos modernos, así como de repente puedes transcender tus propios estados de conciencia librándote de toda la carga emocional y simplemente prácticas estar en estado meditativo frecuentemente.
Lo recomiendo si quieres tener un punto de comparación sobre la filosofia del oriente y los tiempos modernos, así como de repente puedes transcender tus propios estados de conciencia librándote de toda la carga emocional y simplemente prácticas estar en estado meditativo frecuentemente.
September 1, 2013
A very good description on all the main paths of meditation. Every religion has some form of meditation although in some it is secretive or not utilized. Meditation has the power to change the individual who in turn changes the world. I highly recommend this book, particularly if you are of a faith that does not place enough emphasis on this important life practice.
February 9, 2011
I had to read this for my yoga training this month. It read more like a textbook than a user-friendly guide, but it was informative and gave a historical and psychological basis for the many different types of meditative practices.
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November 8, 2015This is heavy going, not an introductory work. I have read about as much of it as I'm going to read. I will admit to a bit of skimming here and there, but also say in my defense that I read lots of it very closely. I don't recommend it as a book to read to find out about meditation.
February 1, 2017
Tanta teoria, tante citazioni delle fonti. Conoscendo l'autore, mi aspettavo qualcosa un po' più accessibile -e un po' più occidentale, lo ammetto. Insegna molto, motiva un po' meno. Un ottimo libro per chi ha già una conoscenza di base.
December 10, 2008
First and last parts of book were great but middle part was not very intriguing.
July 2, 2013
Interesting review of different meditation schools and practices. Essentialy the foundations are the same for all schools.
March 14, 2016
Good book on meditation.
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August 3, 2019Very useful and enlightening to read.
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