The 25th anniversary edition of the classic, comprehensive guide on meditation posture and how to carry its benefits into everyday life—for practitioners of all skill levelsWhen it comes to meditation practices, the body is as important as the mind—a fact that may come as a surprise to the many people who regard meditation as a strictly mental activity. But, as Will Johnson shows, the physical aspect of the practice is far too often underemphasized. The alert-yet-r...

The emphasis on the mind in meditation can be somewhat misleading: If we pay attention only to mental processes and overlook the experience of the body, we can remain stuck in our heads and not be able to break free of the involuntary thinking that we find so claustrophobic and toxic. This short, practical guide helps us embrace the fact of our embodiment—the experience of the sensations, movements, and gestures of the body—and to realize that mindfulness is the natural state of awareness ...

Poems and commentary that open the door for a new generation to experience the ecstatic and embodied spiritual truths contained in Rumi’s poetry• Reveals how the four practices of eating lightly, breathing deeply, moving freely, and gazing intently can invoke the divinity within us all• Explains how these practices dissolve the self’s need for identity so that we may experience a state of transcendent ecstasy and union with the divine• Takes Rumi’s path to finding G...

Explores the Buddha’s own words on breathing meditation for healing, wholeness, and a deeper understanding of his teachings• Explains the complete series of steps in the Buddha’s Satipatthana Sutta for refining awareness of the breath, from posture and center of gravity to extending breath awareness beyond the nostrils, lungs, and abdomen to the entire body• Shows that stillness in meditation refers only to the mind, not to the body• Reveals breath to be a ...

Presents three simple yogic principles from Tilopa's Song of Mahamudra• Explains how balance is the key to achieving higher consciousness• Includes somatic koansMahamudra, literally "the great gesture," is often looked upon as the highest manifestation of consciousness known within the Tibetan Vajrayana tradition. In Yoga of the Mahamudra, Will Johnson explains how it is possible to bring forth the condition of mahamudra naturally by utilizing the ...

A guide to meditative breathing practices in Western religions and how these practices provide a direct experience of God• Reveals how Western spiritual traditions, such as the Book of Genesis, the Jewish teachings of ruach, and the poetry of Rumi, contain hidden instruction for meditative breathing practices• Explains how breathing practices can bring all of us, including Christians, Muslims, and Jews, closer to a direct experience of the palpable presence of God

Meditation practices to awaken the body and create a mind like a mirror, to literally see things as they are• Draws on the story of the monk Shenxiu to create a meditation practice for profound relaxation, inclusion and connection to the world around us, and realization of our essential nature• Explains how our attitudes, beliefs, and bodily tensions distort our perceptions and lead to our sense of separation from the world outside our bodies• Details techniques of ...

Between interstates and county lines, life in rural Missouri unfolds in a progression of simple moments that carry the weight of every hard thing gone by. Parker and Melinda are searching for themselves in the hollows of their estranged marriage. Parker, haunted by the demons of addiction, lives every moment at the edge of an undiagnosed disorder - a darkness that steals his awareness and throws him into convulsions. Melinda, on an odyssey of her own, knows Parker's struggles all too well,...

An exploration of the use of cannabis as a sacrament in spiritual practice• Provides instructions for using marijuana for the spiritual practices of spontaneous movement, ecstatic dance, sitting meditation, and gazing meditation, allowing you to open the body’s energies more fully and get closer to the Divine or your higher self• Includes a new translation of the Five Moral Precepts of Buddhism, adapted to include energetic practices and the judicious use of entheogenic sub...

A guide to meditative breathing practices in Western religions and how these practices provide a direct experience of God• Reveals how Western spiritual traditions, such as the Book of Genesis, the Jewish teachings of ruach, and the poetry of Rumi, contain hidden instruction for meditative breathing practices• Explains how breathing practices can bring all of us, including Christians, Muslims, and Jews, closer to a direct experience of the palpable presence of God

The secret Rumi found in beholding the Divine in his sacred relationship with Shams-i-Tabriz• Shows how, in 1244, Sufi poet and mystic Jalaluddin Rumi was first brought to a state of ecstatic union with the cosmos and all its creatures• Reveals the radical spiritual practice Rumi formulated in his private retreat with the mendicant seeker Shams-i-Tabriz• Uses the poetry and prose of Rumi to explain how to come face-to-face with the DivineOne of the most extr...

An account of spiritual awakening told through the rites of passage of a father and son• Reveals the essential role spirituality can play in our mundane lives• Celebrates not only traditional rites of passage, but also the more subtle moments of change that continually take place within each of us• Reflects on the power of prayer and intention in guiding our life journeyPart spiritual travelogue, part personal memoir, The Sailfish and the Sacred Mountain...