The Notebooks of Paul Brunton: Advanced contemplation ; The peace within you
Author: Paul Brunton
Publisher:
Published: 1988
Total Pages: 392
ISBN-13:
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The Practice of Contemplation According to John of the Cross
Author: James W. Kinn
Publisher: ICS Publications
Published: 2018-07-23
Total Pages: 143
ISBN-13: 1939272777
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis book is for anyone who now meditates regularly or who practiced meditation in the past. As we grow in our prayer life, John of the Cross is an excellent and encouraging guide to show us the way to the practice of contemplative prayer. Many of us learned about meditation from spiritual directors or books. We practiced a reliable form of meditation for some years with varying degrees of success. Over time, however, our prayer slowed down and became simplified. We didn't find many new ideas to occupy our intellect and our emotions quieted down. In time, many of us experienced a crisis in our prayer life; our prayer became so simple that it almost disappeared. We tried different forms of prayer, but we seemed to be reaching a dead end. Throughout all of this, we were never told that our prayer was developing naturally and positively. What we were experiencing was not a dead end but the threshold of a new way of prayer. What we needed was an experienced guide to show us the road ahead. Enter John of the Cross! He encourages us to see that the place we came to is a necessary state of our progress in prayer. John teaches us that we come to contemplation not by struggling harder to pray but by calming remaining quiet before God. He encourages us to realize that we have not come to the end of the road but are being made ready to be transported on a wonderful journey. There is no better or more encouraging guide for us on this journey than John of the Cross. The entire focus of this book is quite narrow; it concentrates on John's teaching about the beginning of contemplation.
Contemplation
Author: Francis Kelly Nemeck
Publisher: Wipf and Stock Publishers
Published: 2001-10-17
Total Pages: 151
ISBN-13: 1579107850
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis book clearly presents the deepest insights of western Christian tradition regarding the mystery of contemplation to aid you in responding more fully to God's love in your life. Not light reading, some technical language, but a helpful explanation of a difficult subject. Charismatic Renewal Services Turning mainly to John of the Cross for his wisdom, the authors have written a brief work which combines a profound appreciation for the charism of contemplation with great common sense. It is hard to imagine a better handbook. America
Contemplation
Author: Malik Badri
Publisher: International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT)
Published: 2018-09-15
Total Pages: 173
ISBN-13: 1642052329
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe human race is in crisis and very few of us – if any – are able to understand what is wrong with our lives and the world at large. How did this happen and how did humans become so ‘disconnected’ with humanity? Why are psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety, fear, and suicide on the increase, and why are conventional Western therapies unable to stem the tide? To approach this we must first look inside ourselves – to explore our own purpose in life and extend that principle to the rest of humanity. Despite the advances of modern Western psychology and the development of therapies that do help many, one area that is largely unexplored is that of the ‘human spirit’ and spirituality since it is more convenient to consider the human mind as ‘machine’ that responds to external stimuli. In this powerful exploration into the human mind and its relationship with the human spirit, Malik Badri invites the reader to open the door to self-discovery, purpose and spirituality through the practice of contemplation, reflection and meditation – understanding the true meaning and experience of spirituality as well as one’s own place in Creation. Whilst central to worship in Islam, this will also be of great interest to, and help any reader wishing to explore the notion of spirituality whether as part of worship or simply as part of self development and inner healing.
The Cloud of Unknowing
Author: Anonymous
Publisher: Library of Alexandria
Published:
Total Pages: 194
ISBN-13: 1465541071
DOWNLOAD EBOOKPassage Meditation
Author: Eknath Easwaran
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant.com
Published: 2010-09
Total Pages: 270
ISBN-13: 1458778606
DOWNLOAD EBOOKPioneered by spiritual master Eknath Easwaran, passage meditation consists of memorizing an inspirational spiritual passage and then sending it deep into consciousness through slow, sustained attention. It keeps meditation fresh and varied because readers can select the passages - from one tradition or many - that embody their chosen ideals. Many readers also enjoy the passages for their poetic and intellectual appeal. This form of meditation offers all the richness and depth of traditional wisdom, together with a practical method for bringing that wisdom into daily life. The book situates passage meditation as part of Easwaran's eight-point program that, based on traditional spiritual practices but adjusted for modern lifestyles, shows readers how to stay calm and focused at work and home. This edition includes a new preface of previously unpublished material by Easwaran and an epilogue that explains the story behind the book and invites new readers to join the author on this adventure in the ''world within.''
Contemplating Reality
Author: Andy Karr
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
Published: 2007-04-10
Total Pages: 266
ISBN-13: 1590304292
DOWNLOAD EBOOKA clear, in-depth exploration of traditional Buddhist philosophy that unpacks difficult concepts through guided exercises that encourage experiential understanding This book is for intermediate and advanced Buddhist practitioners who wish to deepen their understanding by joining practice with study of traditional ideas. It introduces the reader to contemplations that investigate a series of views of reality as they evolved in the Buddhist tradition. These views are explained in plain English, with contemporary metaphors and examples to bring out their meaning for modern Buddhists. Quotations from both historical and living meditation masters and scholars are presented as examples of key principles. Topics include • Egolessness • Appearances and reality • Methods of investigation • Enlightenment • Tenets of different schools through the centuries • The root of compassion • The origin of thoughts Guided exercises encourage the reader to trust in experiential understanding through deep contemplation of complex concepts. The book is structured as a guide for the reader’s journey. For more information about this book, please visit www.contemplatingreality.org.
CULTIVATING A DAILY MEDITATION
Author: His Holiness the XIVth Dalai Lama
Publisher: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Published: 2014-01-01
Total Pages: 131
ISBN-13: 8185102791
DOWNLOAD EBOOKDuring April 1985 and then again in October 1986, His Holiness the Dalai Lama delivered a series a discourses on Buddhist view, meditation and action. The discourses and ensuing discussions were recorded at the time, and later prepared into an edited text of the encounter; the result of which is this book. In his discourses His Holiness touched upon all the essential points of the Buddhadharma, and provides a clear and simple method to cultivate a daily practise of meditation. He also goes into depth on how we should proceed in the effort to generate both the heart of compassion and the expansive view of emptiness, the Great Void, in our daily life. In addition, the question and answer sessions that follow each talk makes both inspirational and informative reading, which often leads to issues that arise in the course of a layperson's practise. In a sense His Holiness' discourses are principally a commentary on how one should proceed in order to cultivate a daily tantric meditational practise. The visualization used as the basis of the contemplation is that of Buddha and the four great Bodhisattvas: Avalokiteshvara, Manjushri, Vajrapani, and the female bodhisattva Arya Tara, and explains the symbolic significance of these figures. The picture that emerges from the totality of His Holiness' exposition is that Buddhism, in spite of its being labelled as religion, is mainly a way of life programmed to ensure that we bring some happiness, peace, meaning and purpose into lives, and that we learn to live in harmony with the environment.
The Riddle of Christian Mystical Experience
Author: Paul Mommaers
Publisher: Peeters Publishers
Published: 2003
Total Pages: 304
ISBN-13: 9789042912328
DOWNLOAD EBOOKA distinctive feature of mystical experience is that it is "imageless". Mystics of various traditions witness indeed to their going beyond all intermediaries so as to enjoy immediate union. Understandably, the idea of imageless immediacy is attractive, and it is especially in vogue with those who hope to discover that different (religious) spiritualities converge if only the particularity of, say, the Christian way would be left behind. However, a crucial question arises here. If mystical union consists in simply transcending what is part and parcel of the human condition, where is its relevance? Is the mystic as such in a position to be his or her human self - thinking and loving, enjoying and suffering? Can he or she be active in the world of humankind? Obviously, it is especially in the Christian tradition that this matter comes to the fore as a radical difficulty. For here there is the divine Image and Mediator, so much so that the Humanity of Jesus ought to be integral to a person's union with God. Perhaps the Christian mystic is such an extraordinary figure that the Humanity and all other images and intermediaries are, for him or her, at best a stepping-stone that is bound to disappear? The Riddle of Christian Mystical Experience aims to clarify this issue by analyzing the writings of such visionaries as Julian of Norwich, Teresa of Avila and Maria Petyt; of the ecstasy-minded masters Richard of Saint Victor, Bernard of Clairvaux and Bonaventure (describing Francis of Assisi's experience); of the cream of the Flemish mystics, namely Hadewijch and Jan van Ruusbroec. Nevertheless, the preference for the mystical text does not prevent the Riddle from drawing on the insights of modern philosophers such as Jean-Paul Sartre and Jean-Luc Marion when treating of images and idols, or Michael Polanyi and Ludwig Wittgenstein when reflecting on intermediaries. The main result of this procedure may come as a surprise. Far from turning into a detached creature who forgets about the Humanity and the human, the full-fledged mystic is, as a Flemish mystic puts it, "wholly in God, where he rests in enjoyment, and wholly in himself, where he loves with works". Experiencing union "with intermediary and without intermediary", the true Christian mystic is "unimaged" as well as "imaged upon the humanity of our Lord through heartfelt affection".
Poetry of Contemplation
Author: Arthur L. Clements
Publisher: State University of New York Press
Published: 1990-06-01
Total Pages: 340
ISBN-13: 0791499286
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis is the first systematic and thorough study of mysticism or contemplation in these three seventeenth-century poets and in three modern writers. It not only clarifies the very confused issue of mysticism in seventeenth-century poetry but also connects seventeenth-century poets with modern literature and science through the contemplative tradition; from the Bible and Plato and Church fathers and important mystics of the Middle Ages through Renaissance and modern contemplatives. The transformative and redemptive power of contemplative poetry or "holy writing" (regardless of genre or discipline) is prominent throughout the book, and the relevance, indeed the vital necessity, of such poetry and of the living contemplative tradition to our apocalyptic modern world is discussed in the last chapter. In this chapter, attention is given to modern science, especially to the new physics, and to philosophical and mystical writings of eminent scientists.
