The Complete Idiot's Guide to Meditation

by Joan Budilovsky, Eve Adamson

You’re no idiot, of course. Sometimes you just want to relax, clear your head, rest your aching muscles, and rejuvenate your weary soul. You’ve heard meditation is a great stress reliever, but sometimes it seems so complicated it makes you downright uptight. Relax! Meditation is easy to learn—especially if you rely on The Complete Idiot’s Guide® to Meditation, Second Edition, as you follow the path to inner peace. In this Complete Idiot’s Guide®, you --Zen techniques, including guided imagery and mindfulness, to help you meditate effectively. --Tips for learning how to use meditation in daily life, including stressful situations, exercise, and fatigue. --An easy-to-understand explanation of the connections between meditation, sleep, and dreams. --Expert advice on how and when to meditate and detailed drawings and diagrams for breathing, positions, and more. --Techniques for meditating to music or modern chants.  

Genres: Nonfiction, Meditation, Spirituality, Reference, Self Help, How To, Paganism

384 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

Reviews

[Leslie Jonsson · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was not what I was expecting, at all. I wanted to learn how to meditate, and become familiar with different meditation techniques. What I got was a synopsis of different cultures and their take on meditation. I guess I will keep looking for a basic guide for this.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good introduction to meditation, different techniques and styles, etc.

[Em · Rating 1 out of 5]

It seemed the longer I read this book (usually a chapter a week) that my meditation practice became weaker. The authors covered up and down the aspects of meditation from western Christian prayer to chakras to yoga to reiki to whatever else they could think of, aura and all, until it became rather meaningless. I guess since it's the idiot's guide their approach turned conglomeration into idiocy. The thing is these idiot's guides are so fragmented and repetitive and ultimately watered down that they lose any impact at all. My own wisdom and intuition is better than an old orange idiot's guide I never should have purchased in the first place.

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A clear and encouraging book, which does a fair job of trying to be all things to all people... or more specifically, all types of meditation to all types of people that might be picking this book up. I'm still not great shakes at putting it into practice but I *do* now clearly know what I *should* be doing!

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked this book alot. It helps teach you to quiet your mind and be calm and at peace. Obviously you're going to want to expand on it, do what feels good for you, but this is a great place to start. :)

[Gary · Rating 2 out of 5]

One really has to wade through a lot of unrelated and unneccesary material to finally get some guidance on how to meditate. Just reading sections 4 & 5 (about 140 pages) is enough. I recall seeing another CIG to shorter meditations-maybe that would have been a better choice.

[Ross · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simply put: Great overview of the origins and uses of meditation. I knew nothing about meditation going into this book and came out more mindful of various practices throughout the world and the benefits of meditation.

A few good exercises and a few great ways to focus while meditating.

[Alicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked reading this a lot and pledged myself to start meditating. Too bad I never followed through. If you're interested in learning the discipline you can't really go wrong with this.

[Mary Ann]

I'm reading this on my Kindle. It uses language I understand.

[Kara · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of really simple yet valuable exercises, even for someone who has been sitting for a while.

[Catherine]

Recommended by my yoga instructor as a starting point for meditation

[Earthchild · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found a lot of good information which will help me with learning to meditate.

[Robin · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great introductory resource to all things meditation.