ITT: meditation books

[Anonymous No.13157500]

Anyone read this book? I read Sam harris’ waking up book and have been using the app for guided meditations, and I’m looking for a good book to get deeper into it but I don’t want any metaphysical chakra bullshit.

[Anonymous No.13157518]

>>13157500
It's a masterpiece. I achieved mindblowing results thanks to it.

[Anonymous No.13157526]

>>13157500
>falling into the secular mindfulness meditation trap
You're gonna fuck your shit up, anon.

https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2016/jan/23/is-mindfulness-making-us-ill

[Anonymous No.13157532]

>>13157518
What did you like about it? Did you meditate before reading it and if so how did your practice change after reading this book?

[Anonymous No.13157538]

>>13157526
>implying the same doesn't happen to people going to vipassana retreats etc

[Anonymous No.13157569]

>Secular Meditation
Good bait thread.

[Anonymous No.13157574]

>>13157532
It's painstakingly detailed. I didn't meditate before reading it.

[Anonymous No.13157594]

>>13157538
They would've been driven insane anyway since they weren't educated on the Eightfold Path and the Four Noble Truths. They think they can have their cake and est it too without extinguishing all desire. You can't get anywhere without the right view. Western Buddhism is a meme and a very bad meme which will destroy you.

https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/sn/sn45/sn45.001.than.html

[Anonymous No.13157606]

>>13157594
Buddhism isn't just for the monks.

[Anonymous No.13157631]

>>13157526
>The Mind Illuminated
>mindfulness meditation
>>13157594
You claim to know better than teachers what is required and imply they don't mention the importance of the Eightfold Path and the Four Noble Truths

[Anonymous No.13157642]

>>13157606
You do know that capitalist Western Civilization society is antithetical to the notion of ridding yourself of desires, right?

[Anonymous No.13157654]

You need both insight and serenity. Pursue both vipassana and the jhanas.

[Anonymous No.13157671]

>>13157569
>>13157526
>>13157594
I have been lightly studying Buddhism with an eye towards the cessation of attachment and desire, but haven’t really been relating it to meditating. Any good books on Buddhism that I should read and keep in mind as I practice meditation?

[Anonymous No.13157703]

>>13157671
The is a Buddhism chart (mostly focused on Theravada) that has been posted in literally every Buddhism thread in the past month or so, but I'm on phone and don't have the chart on it. Maybe another anon can post it?

[Anonymous No.13157714]

>>13157642
>>13157594
All I'm saying is that it's called the Middle Way for a reason

[Anonymous No.13157724]

>>13157703
I’ve seen that, and I got the first book on it “in the Buddha’s words”. Is there any other recommended ones other than the ones on that chart? Also I saw some people saying it was shit but it seemed like a copy pasta

[Anonymous No.13157772]

>>13157703

[Anonymous No.13157775]

>>13157714
And what do you think that means?

[Anonymous No.13157797]

>>13157526
>dozens of paragraphs of a roastie whining
wow what an insightful read, thanks for linking that!

[Anonymous No.13157803]

It isn't difficult. Just pay attention to your breathing. Why do you need books to tell you this?

[Anonymous No.13157816]

>>13157526
So basically those with fucked up over active minds who try to immediately force a state of calm and peace with no growth run into things like panic attacks and breakdowns?

Please leave /lit/

[Anonymous No.13157863]

>>13157816
That, and employers who appropriate ascetic practices so they can exploit more labor out of their employees.

[Anonymous No.13157979]

I got into meditation through Ken Wilber, but one can cut out all of the metaphysical beliefs, (I think he's confused by what Atman meant to the Hindu mystics anyway.)

What is left is a much greater self-awareness.

I will describe what I have found. There is a natural state of bliss one can achieve that is self-perpetuating.

Also, I think there are 4 major attributes of mind : Spaciousness, Radiance, Expansiveness and Tenderness. (1) Spaciousness or the extent to which your mind is spread out, it should be vast like the sky. (2) Radiance or the continuous flow of your bliss. Your radiance should be like water always carrying itself forward. (3) Expansiveness or the exponential depth to your bliss. I think of it as "ordinary mind"^3 (4) Tenderness or the softness of your bliss. It can be made more vivid through focusing on the heart.

The human mind is capable of remembering past states of awareness, so that you can meditate for the evening, go to sleep, wake up and immediately remember your previous state of meditation.

What is the purpose of meditating? Well, it is blissful and peaceful. *Shrug*

[Anonymous No.13158000]

>>13157979
I nominate this post for The Gayest Post of the Day award

[Anonymous No.13158122]

(Non-literal) Bhikkus of /lit/, do you think it's possible to lose access to samadhi states by the circumstances of your body? When I used to meditate, I would feel all these interesting phenomena, but since I became depressed (MDD kind, the traditional one, with all the symptoms), I'll get lucky if I feel any energy movement at all in 20 minutes. A lot of the time, it just feels like sitting down and nothing happening. However, I've only sat for more than 20 minutes less than a dozen times, so perhaps that's the issue. Don't they say to ignore those tiny sensations at the start of meditation anyways?

I may be paranoid, but I'd like anyone's thoughts on it. That must be impossible to lose the ability to reach access to jhana, right?

[Anonymous No.13158170]

>>13158122
>do you think it's possible to lose access to samadhi states by the circumstances of your body?
Yes

[Anonymous No.13158200]

>>13158170
Then tell more. It's one thing of course to not be able to by means of, say, just going totally nuts, but I guess if it functions in a not-too-distant way from hallucinogens and plays on the pineal gland, theoretically it should be impossible to lose the ability so long as you can maintain the practice. Do you have any reasoning behind your answer?

[Anonymous No.13158236]

>>13157979
>(I think he's confused by what Atman meant to the Hindu mystics anyway.)
What makes you say that?

[Anonymous No.13158280]

>>13158200
Enlightenment is not a one-and-done deal deal. It comes and goes in degrees, but it is also possible to lose it by falling into ignorance again. I'm just going from what I read in Vasistha's Yoga, which doesn't try to discredit Buddhism.

[Anonymous No.13158317]

>>13158280
That runs directly counter to what I've read about enlightenment as the Buddha experienced it. Once you escape samsara, they say there is no going back. How certain are you of this? But besides, doesn't that seem unrelated to what I wrote? I meant not awakening, but temporary liberation, and so long as one does the right thing, shouldn't it be a given they experience that state (the jhanas)? If they do all of the right actions, that is.

[Anonymous No.13158333]

There is Mindfulnes in Plain English which can be downloaded as a free ebook.

[Anonymous No.13158353]

>I don’t want any metaphysical chakra bullshit.

you're probably not going to make it, but this book is what many of you need

http://www.mysticknowledge.org/148a-Concentration__A_Guide_To_Mental_Mastery__By_Mouni-Sadhu.pdf

[Anonymous No.13158370]

>>13157803

this is just calming yourself down, and does nothing to tackle the root problems of life and consciousness. breath meditation is nothing more than a stepping stone

[Anonymous No.13158386]

>>13158370
Developing samadhi and vipassana is a bit more than just calming yourself down, no?

[Anonymous No.13158405]

>>13158386

"just pay attention to your breathing" isn't helpful, and doesn't provide insight on anything

[Anonymous No.13158422]

>>13158405
It's remarkable how your knowledge seems to eclipse nearly all the basic literature out there. Can you share with us your secrets?

[Anonymous No.13158437]

>>13157526
Yeah, meditation is like natural, light psychedelics. You will unearth things previously under the surface, mental illness included.

[Anonymous No.13158448]

>>13158353
what if i want only metaphysical chakra shit?

[Anonymous No.13158462]

>>13158422

a book probably won't help you much if you're blind, sorry

[Anonymous No.13158466]

>>13158448
Chakras is more perscriotive than descriptive anyway, and there many types systems that include more than the traditional 7, depending on your needs.

[Anonymous No.13158471]

>>13158462
So you have no sources and you're full of shit. Gotcha.

[Anonymous No.13158518]

>>13157500
>>13157526
Why does meditation always have to include spirituality?
I've seen a number of people make this argument but no one has given a good answer other than muh news article, muh breakdown.

[Anonymous No.13158551]

>>13157569
Meditation can more akin to "lifting" the mind.

[Anonymous No.13158665]

>>13157724
it is a copypasta
another alternative to In The Buddha's Words is What The Buddha Taught by Walpola Rahula Thero

[Anonymous No.13158675]

>>13157606
It is true that it isn't just for the monks but you don't have to be a monastic to study the actual religion and go through with its practices.
It is possible to be a lay Buddhist without being a secularist who treats the religion like a buffet, taking what they already agree with and discarding anything that doesn't align with their pre-existing inclinations.

[Anonymous No.13158683]

>>13157703
>mostly focused on Theravada
I still don't understand why people keep saying this. There is one Theravadin book in the entire chart - and its a meditation book. The Pali Canon is not exclusive to Theravada. Theravada itself on occasion diverges from the Pali Canon. Mahayana and Zen consider the Agamas (equivalent to Nikayas) to be essential, authoritative texts.

[Anonymous No.13158710]

>>13158122
Read about the dukkha nyanas, they may be relevant to your experience:
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/mahasi/progress.html
>However, I've only sat for more than 20 minutes less than a dozen times, so perhaps that's the issue
Yea most people don't even experience piti or come close to Jhana until they are regularly putting in 45+ minute meditation sessions.
>That must be impossible to lose the ability to reach access to jhana, right?
Not impossible - jhana is not an insight and if your samatha practice regresses so will your ability to reach jhana.
General rule: insight attainments (stream-entry, once-returner, non-returner...etc etc) cannot be reversed no matter what. There can be backsliding, however, in samatha due to a variety of reasons.

[Anonymous No.13158765]

>>13158710
Thank you for the details.
>Not impossible - jhana is not an insight and if your samatha practice regresses so will your ability to reach jhana.
It's difficult to phrase what I was asking there in clear words, but I meant, "Is it possible to become completely unable to reach jhana or attain insight for the rest of one's life due to a circumstance?". Of course, the practical answer here would be yes due to, say, a schizophrenic who can't bring himself to sit or trust in the teachings due to some delusion, but I'm more concerned with the idea that you could theoretically do all the teachings right and still nothing could happen. However, the popular interpretation by most (including some monks) suggests the experiences to be somewhat like a drug trip, which is basically impossible to make yourself immune to as a category of things, so I was hoping the property transferred.

[Anonymous No.13158773]

>>13157606
and meditation isn't just for Buddhism

[Anonymous No.13158788]

>>13158683
maybe because it includes barely any Mahayana literature you dummy, at the bare minimum a chart representing/including early Mahayana should have the works of both Nagarjuna, Asanga and Vasubandhu, in addition to the various Tathagatagarbha sutras which are essential to understanding later Buddhism. Just having Nagarjuna doesn't cut it.

[Anonymous No.13158870]

>>13158765
>"Is it possible to become completely unable to reach jhana or attain insight for the rest of one's life due to a circumstance?"
Canonically, only killing a parent or an Arahant can make you completely incapable of reaching any attainment. Other than that there's nothing that bars you from jhana or attainment completely.

[Anonymous No.13158877]

>>13158788
It doesn't say early Mahayana, it says Early Buddhism (and texts that align with it). Early Buddhism does not equal Theravada.

[Anonymous No.13158889]

>>13158877
>It doesn't say early Mahayana, it says Early Buddhism
Early Mahayana is included in early Buddhism, if you're arbitrarily cutting it off to only include Nagarjuna then that's not really 'early Buddhism' but just Theravada and Nagarjuna, hence you shouldn't be surprised when people complain

[Anonymous No.13158914]

>>13158518
Because when you meditate you discover that there's part of you which is always present in every moment and yet is completely silent and peaceful

[Anonymous No.13158924]

>>13158518
a materialist worldview is antithetical to the insights one might realize in meditation

[Anonymous No.13158927]

>>13158000
Nominated, checked, and kekked.

[Anonymous No.13158945]

>>13158870
Oh, that's fascinating.
>killing a parent or an Arahant
There's an interesting pattern in how the old world saw murder of one's parents or a king as the most heinous act imaginable, but nowadays it would be murder of an infant that takes precedence way above everything else, and rape seems to be like a cardinal sin nowadays too when it's not mentioned so often in the older literature. Sidenote really but it's interesting.

[Anonymous No.13158955]

>>13157642
This goy gets it

[Anonymous No.13158978]

>>13158870
Are you barred from attainment forever and doomed to repeat the samsaric cycle for eternity, or is it only for the life you are currently living? Can I also get a source?

[Anonymous No.13158993]

>>13158978
The life you are currently living.
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html

[Anonymous No.13159236]

>>13158914
Yes that's the self, nothing spiritual.
>>13158924
Nothing to do with materialism.

[Anonymous No.13159256]

>>13159236
>the self, nothing spiritual.
lol

[Anonymous No.13159267]

>>13159236
>Capitalism has nothing to do with materialism and desire
You're really grasping at straws there, rabbi.

[Anonymous No.13159923]

>>13158122
Yes you can lose Samadhi due to depression. Advice from John Yates based on his teaching experience is that you should take your meds and seek therapy. Depression can seriously impair Samatha meditation - collapse mindfulness, make you unable to feel meditative joy, making you unable to concentrate.
Also seconding all what that anon said:
>>13158710