Meditation training resources

Books on (mainly) buddhist philosophy and meditation practice

I am often asked about recommended readings. There are so many, of course, and this list will be added to I am sure. These references are all outstanding in one way or another, so they are a good place to start.

Dilgo Kyentse (1992). Heart treasure of the enlightened ones, Shambala.
            Detailed work with Chenrezig, goes into much of the Tibetan Buddhist path on the way. Don’t get put off by the scary hell stuff in Part 1 – this is Tibetan cultural way of encouraging people to practice, but does not work well for most westerners - the author even apologises for this at the end of the book!  But the rest of the book is very clear and powerful teaching. It may be best to read an introductory work like ‘Tibetan Buddhism from the ground up’ listed below first, as the teaching is detailed although fairly simply presented by two great teachers.

Hanh, T. N. (1991). Old path white clouds: walking in the footsteps of Buddha. New Delhi, Full Circle.
            This is one of the best accounts of the life of the Buddha that I have read. Includes much useful discussion of the Buddhas main teachings as well as rendering the whole history of Buddhas life and struggle for awakening in a very human light. Almost anything else by Thich Nath Hanh is good too.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (1990). Full catastrophe living: using the wisdom of your body and mind to face stress, pain and illness. NY, Dell.
            A useful book on meditation practice, health and well being written by a psychiatrist working in a medical context. Emphasises that patients need to make a commitment to participate with medical and other practitioners in their own healing, in particular through developing mindfulness.

Kornfield, J. (1994). A path with heart: a guide through the perils and promises of spiritual life. London, Rider.
            Comprehensive and contemporary discussion of meditation and the path. Clearly written in a way that is very useful and applicable to our ‘western’ lifestyles.

Lief, J. L. (2001). Making friends with death: A Buddhist guide to encountering mortality. Boston, Mass, Shambala.
            A practically oriented work on using meditation in working with life-threatening and terminal illness. Lief communicates her decades of relevant experience clearly and with insight. Along with Pema Chodron's books, one of the best books on tong len meditation I have read. Very readable and clear, by a very experienced practitioner.

McLeod, K. (2001). Wake up to your life: discovering the Buddhist path of attention. New York, NY, HarperCollins.
           This book sets out a practical, detailed, and profound program aimed at using meditation to develop insight into most of the troubling or confused areas of our lives, and thus gradually to open ourselves to the deepest potential in our lives. Not only a fine practical resource, the book is breathtaking in the care, intelligence and determination it communicates. More suited to the committed student with an established meditation practice.

Nisargadatta (2003 [1973]). I am that. Mumbai, India, Chetana.
            Wonderfully clear teaching by an awakened teacher with a very fine mind. Very readable, question and answer format. The vocabulary and concepts are Hindu-oriented, but it is all the same awakening we are talking about. Seeing those concepts pointing us to awakening from another cultural viewpoint helps us perhaps to see past the concepts into some of the qualities of awakening itself. An inspiring read.

Palmo, Tenzin. (2002). Reflections on a mountain lake. Crow's Nest, NSW, Allen & Unwin.
            A wonderful book of dharma talks by Tenzin Palmo, of ‘cave in the snow’ fame. Again, deep dharma presented in a way which is very thoughtful and very applicable to western lifestyles.

Pema Chodron (2003 [2001]). The places that scare you: a guide to fearlessness. London, Element/ HarperCollins.
            Teachings on becoming a warrior-in-training, ie learning to find the bodhicitta in the most ordinary of situations, and in our fears and other discomforts. Lightly written, clear and accessible. Pema Chodron's other books are all worthwhile reads.

Rathbun, Catherine. (2002). Developing the world mind. Toronto, Friends of the Heart.
            An interesting and useful book on working with the main mandala structure of Tibetan Buddhism as a way of transmuting our negative energy, integrating the different aspects of our being, and of gradually developing the ability to move into step with the deeper cycles in our lives. If not available on order locally you can order from the publishers at www.friendsoftheheart.com or amazon,com. on the same topic, perhaps easier to get hold of but much less broad ranging is Vessantara below.

Shah, I. (1967). Tales of the dervishes: teaching stories of the Sufi masters over the past thousand years. New York, Dutton.
            Inspiring and entertaining Sufi teaching stories. ‘The Pleasantries of the Incredible Mullah Nasrudin’ by the same author is also a good read.

Simmer-Brown, J. (2001). The dakini's warm breath, Shambala.
            Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism, with a special emphasis on female deities and women’s spirituality.

Sogyal Rinpoche (1992). The Tibetan book of living and dying, Harper Collins.
            A very useful resource and inspiration on many aspects of Tibetan Buddhist practice, written in a way that is very accessible to westerners. A great teacher.

Tolle, E. (1999). The power of now: a guide to spiritual enlightenment. Sydney, Hodder.
            A personal account of waking up and living that realisation outside of any particular tradition. The writing is both clear and strongly evocative of some of the mind-states Tolle describes. His aim is clearly that we experience these - to the extent we are able - and in my view the book goes a long way to accomplishing this. This is an unusual achievement in a book, as many of the mind-states and experiences of deeper meditation and awakening are altogether beyond the conceptual mind.

Vessantara (1993). The mandala of the five Buddhas. Birmingham, UK, Windhorse.
            If you get interested in Tibetan mandala work, this is a simple and good place to start. The same authors’ ‘Meeting the Buddhas’ is a comprehensive but somewhat formidable reference on the Tibetan deities.

Wallace, B. A. Tibetan Buddhism from the ground up: a practical approach for modern life. Boston, Mass, Wisdom.
            A useful, readable and reasonably thorough introduction to the richness of Tibetan Buddhism.