"Do your work, for the Buddhas only teach the way." Buddha
Do I need a meditation
teacher?
In his book, Meditation for Dummies, Stephen Bodian writes: "Learning to meditate from a book is like learning tennis from a book. You can do it, but sooner or later, you may want to take some lessons or go to a tennis class." Bodian gives advice about how to find a meditation class or a teacher with suitable spiritual affiliations according to your personal preferences.
Zen meditation teacher Robert Aitken writes: "In the long history of Buddhism, only the Buddha himself came to full maturity without at least a touch from a teacher. The rest of us need guidance."
Jack Kornfield teaches mindfulness meditation and writes: "Our culture gives us few or no models for how to find or work with spiritual teachers. When I am asked about this, the most honest answer I can give is that finding a teacher is a mysterious process. We run into them, or hear about them, or find them in some unexpected way. We can visit spiritual centers, go to meditation lectures, try their teachings. In the end, the true purpose of any teacher is to guide us toward discovering our inherent freedom."
The search can be begin from home because most living meditation teachers travel and give lectures. Their teaching schedules are generally posted at their websites. You can also buy guided meditations and instruction lectures on recordings or videos. You may find a meditation center in your town, at the local church, synagog or Zen center. And you can also find retreat centers that provide short-term meditation practice training (over a weekend or so).
Books Available from Amazon
Meditation for Dummies, by Stephen Bodian ($14) Bodian is a therapist and meditator who was also the editor of Yoga Journal magazine for ten years. His book covers all the basics and provides detailed instructions for a handful of meditation techniques, including how to find a suitable teacher.
Taking the Path of Zen, by Robert Aitken, ($10) This is the ‘how-to-meditate” book that you’ve been looking for, with detailed instructions about establishing meditation in your daily life.
Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness, by Jon Kabat-Zinn ($19) Kabat-Zinn, founder of the Stress Reduction Clinic at the University of Massachusetts Medical Center, is perhaps the best-known proponent of using meditation to help patients deal with illness. This book is also a terrific introduction for anyone who has considered meditating but was afraid it would be too difficult or would include religious practices they found foreign.
Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life, by Jon Kabat-Zinn ($11). This book blends stories, anecdotes, poems, images, and scientific observations with easily followed meditation instructions
Meditation for Beginners: Six Meditations for Insight, Greater Clarity and Cultivating a Compassionate Heart, by Jack Kornfield ($20) hardback book with CD or CD without the book. Kornfield uses clear language and step-by-step demonstrations to show how simple it is to start - and stick with - a daily meditation practice.
Links
Stephen Bodian has a site www.meditationsource.com which includes his biography and information about his meditation teaching, writings and therapy practice.
Robert Aitken founded the Diamond Sangha zen centers in Hawaii. www.diamondsangha.org
Zenspace is an online directory of zen documents and resources maintained by a volunteer.
Shunryu Suzuki Roshi founded the San Francisco Zen Center, the Tassajara retreat center, and Green Gulch farm. All three accept overnight guests and offer a rich array of meditation training programs. www.sfzc.com
The Insight Meditation Society, founded by Sharon Salzberg and others, offers training in Loving Kindness and Vipassana meditation techniques. Their site has links to other centers teaching these practices.
Many Vipassana meditation centers offer retreats and classes for beginners. Check with these two: the Spirit Rock Meditation Center www.spiritrock.org and the Insight Meditation Society www.dharma.org
