Wildmind: A Step-by-Step Guide to Meditation

Bodhipaksa

Windhorse Publications, 2003 - Body, Mind & Spirit - 247 pages

Developed from the on-line meditation course, this book gets you started straight away, offering a practical approach to meditation for complete beginners.

Contents

• 1 Wildmind versus wild mind: 4
• 2 The unexamined life: 7
• 3 Seeking the beauty within: 9
• 4 No easy path: 12
• 5 How to use this book: 14
• The examined life an introduction to meditation: 17
• 1 An informal description of meditation: 18
• 2 The raisin experiment: 22
• 3 What we can learn from the raisin experiment: 23
• 4 A more formal definition of meditation: 25
• 5 The value of mindfulness: 27
• 6 Common problems for new meditators: 29
• 7 Helpful habits in meditating: 32
• 8 Can anyone learn to meditate?: 34
• Sit like a mountain a posture workshop: 37
• 1 Principles of posture: 38
• 2 Sitting in a chair: 39
• 3 Using an office chair: 40
• 4 Using a stool: 41
• 5 Sitting astride cushions: 42
• 6 Protecting your ankles: 43
• 8 Sitting crosslegged: 44
• 9 Padding under the knees: 45
• 10 Preventing sleepy feet: 46
• 11 Elements of good posture: 47
• slumping: 48
• overarching: 49
• 14 Avoiding slumping and overarching: 50
• 15 Shoulders: 51
• 16 Supporting your hands: 52
• 17 Adjusting your head and neck: 54
• 18 Posture checklist: 55
• 19 Body awareness and relaxation: 56
• 20 Dealing with discomfort: 58
• 21 Meditation equipment: 59
• 22 Sources of meditation equipment: 60
• 23 Making your own stool: 61
• Mind like the clear blue sky breathing with awareness: 63
• 1 Background: 64
• 2 The essence of the practice: 65
• 3 Outline of the stages of the mindfulness of breathing: 67
• 4 The first stage of the mindfulness of breathing: 68
• 5 Whats next?: 69
• 6 Dealing with being distracted: 70
• the importance of preparation: 71
• 8 A sense of purpose in stage zero: 72
• 9 The difference that makes the difference: 73
• 10 Whats the counting for?: 74
• 11 Dealing with drifting numbers: 75
• 12 Facing the demons: 76
• 13 The meditation process: 78
• 14 The benefits of the practice: 81
• 15 The second stage of the mindfulness of breathing: 83
• 16 Varying the firmness of the numbers: 84
• 17 When the counting seems boring: 85
• 18 The differences between the first two stages: 86
• 19 Why the first two stages feel different: 87
• 20 Relaxing before energizing: 88
• 21 When your breathing feels awkward: 89
• 22 Noticing after noticing before: 90
• 23 Counting on your fingers: 92
• 24 Stepping back from the process: 93
• 25 Between the stages: 94
• 26 The third stage of the mindfulness of breathing: 95
• 27 Balancing alertness and relaxation: 96
• 28 Thought trains: 97
• 29 Using anchors: 98
• 30 Whats a good meditation?: 99
• 31 Signs of progress: 100
• 32 Transcending time just a little: 102
• 33 Parkinsons law and meditation: 103
• 34 Timing the stages: 104
• 35 The fourth stage of the mindfulness of breathing: 105
• 36 A nasal experiment best performed alone: 106
• 37 Moving from stage three to stage four: 107
• 38 Maintaining subtlety in the practice: 108
• 39 Becoming a dragon: 109
• 40 Times to meditate: 110
• 41 Choosing a time: 111
• 42 Places to meditate: 112
• 43 Should you listen to music while meditating?: 113
• 44 Dealing with noise: 114
• 45 Reviewing where weve been: 115
• 46 Why all the emphasis on concentration?: 116
• 47 Stage omega: 117
• 48 A meditation toolkit: 119
• 49 Guiding not controlling: 120
• 50 Four dimensions of mindfulness: 121
• 51 Standing back once more: 122
• 52 Where are you going?: 123
• 53 Reflections in mindfulness: 125
• 54 Keeping a meditation journal: 127
• 55 Being in the moment: 129
• 56 Whats next now that Ive learned this practice?: 131
• In beauty may I walk walking meditation: 133
• 1 What is walking meditation?: 134
• 2 How to do the practice: 135
• 3 Why walking meditation?: 138
• 4 Four areas for mindfulness: 140
• 5 Mindfulness of the body: 141
• 6 Mindfulness of feelings: 142
• 7 Mindfulness of emotional and mental states: 145
• 8 Mindfulness of objects of consciousness: 146
• 9 Balancing the inner and outer: 148
• 10 A little at a time: 149
• 11 Making the practice your own: 150
• 12 Walking meditation and the metta bhavana: 151
• 13 Other forms of walking meditation: 152
• 14 A bridge into your daily life: 154
• 15 In beauty may I walk: 155
• Heart like the sun cultivating lovingkindness: 157
• 1 The metta bhavana: 158
• 2 Cultivating emotions: 161
• 3 We cultivate emotions all the time: 162
• 4 What metta is: 163
• 5 What metta isnt: 164
• 6 Emotion is a river: 165
• 7 Emotions and your environment: 166
• 8 Emotions and your body: 167
• 9 Emotions and your will: 168
• 10 Emotions and your thoughts: 169
• 11 Emotions and your communication: 170
• 12 Contacting your emotions: 171
• 13 An outline of the metta bhavana meditation: 172
• 14 Nurturing seeds of emotion: 173
• 15 Using words to cultivate metta: 174
• 16 Using memories: 175
• 17 Using creative imagination: 176
• 18 Using your body: 177
• 19 Be flexible in your approach: 178
• 20 Metta bhavana stage one: 179
• 21 More on the first stage: 180
• 22 Whats supposed to happen?: 181
• 23 Dropping flowers into a still forest pool: 182
• 24 The other love that dare not speak its name: 183
• 25 The need for nourishment: 184
• 26 Procrustes bed: 185
• 27 What if I find it hard to like myself?: 187
• 28 Metta bhavana stage two: 188
• 29 How to choose this friend: 189
• 30 Should you choose the same person every time?: 190
• 31 Levels of friendship: 191
• 32 Whats meant to happen in stage two?: 192
• 33 What if you dont feel much?: 193
• 34 Metta and imagination: 194
• 35 What methods can I use?: 195
• 36 Walking in the forest of your mind: 196
• 37 Metta bhavana stage three: 197
• 38 More on the third stage: 198
• 39 Why do we have this stage?: 199
• 40 Ways of working in stage three: 200
• 41 The third stage as rehearsal: 201
• 42 Having trouble feeling much for a neutral person?: 202
• 43 If you cant find anyone you feel neutral about: 203
• 44 Metta bhavana stage four: 204
• 45 Ways to work in the fourth stage: 205
• 46 Is there anyone you shouldnt choose?: 206
• 47 Feeling and emotion in the metta bhavana: 207
• 48 Learning to be comfortable with discomfort: 209
• 49 When you find it hard to call the difficult person to mind: 210
• 50 The fourth stage as rehearsal: 211
• 51 Why should you develop metta for a bad person?: 212
• 52 Metta bhavana stage five: 214
• 53 Ways of working in the fifth stage: 215
• 54 Families and lovers: 217
• 55 Contacting emotions: 218
• 56 Metta and the divine: 219
• 57 The importance of practice: 221
• 58 Balancing the metta bhavana and the mindfulness of breathing: 222
• Metta in daily life: 225
• 1 Dimensions of metta: 226
• 2 Metta in everyday life: 227
• 3 Metta diet and lifestyle: 228
• 4 Metta and generosity: 230
• 5 Honouring the truth: 232
• 6 The power of appreciation: 234
• seek to understand: 235
• 8 Metta and insight: 236
• 9 The Buddhas words on metta: 238
• References and Further Reading: 240
• Index: 243

Bibliographic information

• Title: Wildmind: A Step-by-Step Guide to Meditation
• Author: Bodhipaksa
• Edition: illustrated
• Publisher: Windhorse Publications, 2003
• ISBN: 1899579559, 9781899579556
• Length: 247 pages
• Subjects: Body, Mind & Spirit / General; Body, Mind & Spirit / Mindfulness & Meditation; Religion / Buddhism / General; Religion / Spirituality; Self-Help / Personal Growth / General