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The Art & Science of Meditation: How to Deepen and Personalize Your Practice
Take your meditation practice to the next level with this marvelous book on overcoming challenges, enhancing your spirituality, and integrating meditation techniques into your daily life. The Art & Science of Meditation is your ideal resource for learning about a wide variety of topics, including the origins of meditation, an overview of the scientific research on it, advice for overcoming common obstacles, guidance for choosing meditation teachers and retreats, and more.
Lisa Erickson provides practical, in-depth information drawn from both historical sources and contemporary scientific research. Easy to personalize to your own needs, this book helps you truly unite your life and meditation practice.
Lisa Erickson provides practical, in-depth information drawn from both historical sources and contemporary scientific research. Easy to personalize to your own needs, this book helps you truly unite your life and meditation practice.
- GenresMeditationNonfiction
264 pages, Paperback
Published July 8, 2020
About the author
Lisa Erickson
3 books140 followersLisa Erickson is a chakra-based energy worker, writer, and teacher specializing in women’s energetics and sexual trauma healing. She has trained in many energy healing modalities and is certified in both mindfulness meditation instruction and trauma sensitivity. Lisa is a member of the International Association of Meditation Instructors, the American Holistic Health Association, the Energy Medicine Practitioners Association, and The Breathe Network, a non-profit dedicated to supporting holistic healing for sexual trauma survivors. She is also the creator of a popular DailyOM course Awakening Your Feminine Chakras.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
April 2, 2020
I received an advanced reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.
This is a thoroughly well researched and put together book that is very in-depth and knowledgeable.
This book gives both the science and historical information about meditation and the practice of meditation too.
There are some fantastic exercises within this book and it can be easily adapted for almost everyone.
Fantastic!
This is a thoroughly well researched and put together book that is very in-depth and knowledgeable.
This book gives both the science and historical information about meditation and the practice of meditation too.
There are some fantastic exercises within this book and it can be easily adapted for almost everyone.
Fantastic!
November 23, 2020
A thorough, solid and approachable work. Excellent resource for both self-taught patients and counselors. Meditation is something often discussed but rarely explained in the popular culture — and it’s definitely a useful tool in the kit for stress management as the world falls down around us, lol. Looking forward to more from this author!
August 9, 2020
I received an advance copy of this to review for a new blog on meditation, and I feel it is a great resource for someone who already meditates, or has at least dabbled in it, and would like to explore topics related to it in more depth. It is not a meditation primer for beginners, it is more of a survey resource, with chapters on many different topics that you can dip in and out of depending on what questions have arisen for you related to meditation, or based on another branch of meditation you would like to explore.
The book has 4 parts, and the first part is the most relevant to everyone, as it covers a lot of the most common challenges like drowsiness and posture, as well as how meditation impacts different parts of the brain. Part II is more relevant to spiritual meditators, because it covers how different spiritual meditation traditions such as yoga and Buddhism conceptualize the stages of meditation advancement (and covers a bit of the history of meditation in these traditions.) I found these chapters dense but interesting as a survey introduction to these topics, and they made me want to explore these topics more. The third section explores challenges that more long-term meditators are likely to experience, like energy disturbances or disassociation. Final chapters explore themes like going on a meditation retreat, pilgrimages, finding different levels of meditation teachers, etc. - also topics more likely to be relevant to someone meditating for spiritual reasons (or someone who is thinking of making the transition, or meditates from a spiritual perspective without an existing tradition.) The author really tried to make the book accessible for meditators from any tradition.
As the author states in the introduction, whole books have been written on most of the topics in each chapter in this book, so she includes a lot of quotes and a book list at the end so that you can use this as a jumping off point and explore in more depth on your own. So my only complaint is the title - I feel it should be titled as a meditation 'resource' book so people aren't expecting a pure 'how to' book. It does include many meditation exercises you can try, but they are mostly offered as a means to experiment with a form other than your own, or to add on to address some issue you might be having (like how to address drowsiness or disassociation for example.) So I think it is a book I will turn to in the future when additional questions arise, as different things come up for me in meditation. And I definitely plan to check out some of the books from the resource list at the end of the book.
All in all a great addition to someone's meditation library.
The book has 4 parts, and the first part is the most relevant to everyone, as it covers a lot of the most common challenges like drowsiness and posture, as well as how meditation impacts different parts of the brain. Part II is more relevant to spiritual meditators, because it covers how different spiritual meditation traditions such as yoga and Buddhism conceptualize the stages of meditation advancement (and covers a bit of the history of meditation in these traditions.) I found these chapters dense but interesting as a survey introduction to these topics, and they made me want to explore these topics more. The third section explores challenges that more long-term meditators are likely to experience, like energy disturbances or disassociation. Final chapters explore themes like going on a meditation retreat, pilgrimages, finding different levels of meditation teachers, etc. - also topics more likely to be relevant to someone meditating for spiritual reasons (or someone who is thinking of making the transition, or meditates from a spiritual perspective without an existing tradition.) The author really tried to make the book accessible for meditators from any tradition.
As the author states in the introduction, whole books have been written on most of the topics in each chapter in this book, so she includes a lot of quotes and a book list at the end so that you can use this as a jumping off point and explore in more depth on your own. So my only complaint is the title - I feel it should be titled as a meditation 'resource' book so people aren't expecting a pure 'how to' book. It does include many meditation exercises you can try, but they are mostly offered as a means to experiment with a form other than your own, or to add on to address some issue you might be having (like how to address drowsiness or disassociation for example.) So I think it is a book I will turn to in the future when additional questions arise, as different things come up for me in meditation. And I definitely plan to check out some of the books from the resource list at the end of the book.
All in all a great addition to someone's meditation library.
July 9, 2020
Blow-Your-Mind Exploration of Meditation
I almost feel like all I can say is, WOW! This is simply one of the most amazing books I have seen on meditation. As the author states in the introduction, this is not for the meditation beginner. It is meant for those who already have an established practice but might want to go deeper or look at different aspects and traditions of meditation. The book covers so much I barely know how to speak of it all. The book is divided into four sections. The first gives a grounding in the different reasons people meditate, challenges, and the neuroscience of meditation—which I found absolutely fascinating. Then she looks at the spiritual aspects of meditation. She does not limit herself to Buddhism and Hinduism, which is what we typically see in meditation books. She also explores meditation traditions within the Jewish and Christian faiths, Sufism, and Egyptian practices as well as kundalini and chakra work. Each section is divided into chapters. Each chapter has multiple exercises scattered throughout that directly relate to what was discussed just previously. There is just an amazing amount of meditation ideas here; you will be itching to try some or all! The chapters also end on what the author calls “Contemplations,” which are questions that you can journal about the chapter’s topic chapter as it relates to your own practice. If you love meditation (or even like it at all) or simply want to explore the meditation possibilities, pick up this book! You will probably be as amazed as I am.
I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.
My book blog: https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com
I almost feel like all I can say is, WOW! This is simply one of the most amazing books I have seen on meditation. As the author states in the introduction, this is not for the meditation beginner. It is meant for those who already have an established practice but might want to go deeper or look at different aspects and traditions of meditation. The book covers so much I barely know how to speak of it all. The book is divided into four sections. The first gives a grounding in the different reasons people meditate, challenges, and the neuroscience of meditation—which I found absolutely fascinating. Then she looks at the spiritual aspects of meditation. She does not limit herself to Buddhism and Hinduism, which is what we typically see in meditation books. She also explores meditation traditions within the Jewish and Christian faiths, Sufism, and Egyptian practices as well as kundalini and chakra work. Each section is divided into chapters. Each chapter has multiple exercises scattered throughout that directly relate to what was discussed just previously. There is just an amazing amount of meditation ideas here; you will be itching to try some or all! The chapters also end on what the author calls “Contemplations,” which are questions that you can journal about the chapter’s topic chapter as it relates to your own practice. If you love meditation (or even like it at all) or simply want to explore the meditation possibilities, pick up this book! You will probably be as amazed as I am.
I received a free copy of this book, but that did not affect my review.
My book blog: https://www.readingfanaticreviews.com
December 9, 2020
As someone that is just getting into meditation, I do not recommend this book. The author does say that this book is geared towards those that have been practicing for a while and might want to adjust some of their practices. I was hoping for more science of meditation as the book is named... but I just felt like it was lacking evidence and really anything that useful. As other reviewers have stated, it felt all over the place. Several times the author would say “we will cover this later” and just felt like she was holding off on relevant info. I recommend reading the books on the authors recommended book list before reading this book.
April 16, 2020
Confused. Where was the Art & where was the Science? I thought the concepts were all over the place and nothing was fully explained. The Author jumped from topic to topic and I had trouble following particularly the "8 limbs of yoga"? What?! I thought the book was about meditation.?
Too much information with very little to no explanation & then it jumped to the next topic..again, again & again.
janne boswell
https://seniorbooklounge.blogspot.com/
Too much information with very little to no explanation & then it jumped to the next topic..again, again & again.
janne boswell
https://seniorbooklounge.blogspot.com/
June 12, 2025
Erickson blends historical insights with modern research to demystify meditation, offering clear tips for overcoming obstacles and choosing the right retreats or teachers. Practical and adaptable, this guide has deepened my practice and helped me integrate mindfulness into every day. Highly recommended!
April 24, 2020
This book just seemed to drag on for a long time. I know a lot goes into the science and art of meditation. Just seemed like so so much stuff, and did not take much from the learnings of the book. I love meditation and yoga but it seemed very remedial and not very interesting at all. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
July 7, 2020
ARC provided from NetGalley
Good explanations of mediations and some of the different practices that go along with it right now, including energy healings, etc.
Not for an advanced meditator who might have already done a lot of research about mediations.there is plenty of research cited in this book, which got a little distracting because of it being an ARC and it not being in final form. That being said, it is a good place to start with if you are beginning your mediation journey, as you can use her cited lists to find other books and things that might be of intent to you.
Good explanations of mediations and some of the different practices that go along with it right now, including energy healings, etc.
Not for an advanced meditator who might have already done a lot of research about mediations.there is plenty of research cited in this book, which got a little distracting because of it being an ARC and it not being in final form. That being said, it is a good place to start with if you are beginning your mediation journey, as you can use her cited lists to find other books and things that might be of intent to you.
April 18, 2020
I felt totally confused and lost while I read this book. It wasn't for me.
September 8, 2021
Learned a few new things especially how meditation with change our default mode of thinking.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews