The Fine Arts of Relaxation, Concentration, and Meditation Ancient Skills for Modern Minds

by Levey, Joel; Levey, Michelle; Wheatley, Margaret J.

• ISBN13: 9780861713493
• ISBN10: 0861713494
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2003-06-15
• Publisher: Wisdom Publications

Summary

Rewritten and revised for new readers, this classic manual on relaxation andeditation covers a wide range of techniques for focusing the mind andarmonizing it with the outside world. Original.

Author Biography

Joel and Michelle Levey have taught thousands of people around the globe to live in greater harmony and balance. Field-tested and refined over many years, the Leveys' unique approach to stress-mastery and personal development offers step-by-step guidance for developing personal strengths, enhancing the quality of life, and making a real contribution to the world.

Margaret Wheatley writes, teaches and speaks about how we can organize and accomplish work in chaotic times, sustain our relationships, and willingly step forward to serve. Since 1973, Meg has worked with an unusually broad variety of organizations; her clients and audiences range from the head of the U.S. Army to twelve-year-old Girl Scouts, from CEOs and government ministers to small town ministers, from large universities to rural aboriginal villages. All of these organizations and people wrestle with a common dilemma-how to maintain their integrity, focus and effectiveness as they cope with the relentless upheavals and rapid shifts of this troubling time. But there is another similarity: a common human desire to find ways to live together more harmoniously, more humanely, so that more people may benefit.

Table of Contents

Foreword	xiii
Awakening our full potential	1	(7)
How to get the most from this book	8	(3)
PART ONE: RELAXATION	11	(34)
Dynamic relaxation	13	(3)
Guidelines for developing relaxation skills	16	(29)
Letting go of tension	27	(2)
Flow sequence	29	(4)
Relaxing the body	33	(2)
Body scan	35	(1)
Autogenic imagery	36	(3)
Creating an inner oasis	39	(2)
Rainbow light relaxation	41	(3)
Symptoms of relaxation	44	(1)
PART TWO: CONCENTRATION	45	(30)
Focusing the mind	47	(3)
Guidelines for developing concentration skills	50	(25)
Self-remembering	53	(2)
An antidote to discouragement	55	(2)
Zen breathing exercise	57	(2)
Sufi breathing exercise	59	(2)
Breathing easy	61	(1)
Abdominal breathing	62	(2)
Concentration: The simple nine-part breath	64	(2)
Contemplative practice	66	(2)
Spheres of mind	68	(3)
Concentration with a natural object	71	(2)
Concentration while walking	73	(2)
PART THREE: MEDITATION	75	(126)
What is meditation?	76	(3)
Varieties of meditation	79	(3)
Meditation traditions as liberative art forms	82	(2)
Meditation: The path of awakening	84	(3)
Guidelines for developing meditation skills	87	(114)
Doing what we love to do	96	(2)
Listening	98	(3)
Continuum	101	(3)
Investigating the mind	104	(4)
Thoughts	108	(3)
Mindfulness of stories	111	(2)
Stopping the war	113	(2)
Kitchen yogi meditation	115	(2)
Eating mindfully	117	(2)
Waliking meditation	119	(1)
Sleeping meditation	120	(2)
Waking up within the dream	122	(2)
Waking up throughout the day	124	(3)
Two domains of reality	127	(2)
Buddhaverse	129	(2)
Reflective meditation	131	(3)
Standing in the possibility	134	(2)
Meditation on the five elements	136	(2)
Hollow body meditation	138	(4)
Mental massage	142	(1)
The center of your mandala	143	(1)
The drop and the ocean	144	(3)
Transforming emotions	147	(4)
Meditation on forgiveness	151	(3)
Increasing compassion	154	(3)
Loving-kindness meditation	157	(7)
Driving meditation	164	(2)
The four immeasurable attitudes	166	(2)
Breathing with all beings	168	(3)
Transforming energy	171	(2)
Meditation on the angel of universal compassion	173	(2)
Meditation on the teacher	175	(2)
Mother of compassion	177	(3)
Sphere of light	180	(2)
Meditations for dying	182	(4)
Mantra: protection for the mind	186	(4)
Meditations with a partner	190	(3)
Matrix of mind	193	(2)
Guidelines for daily practice	195	(6)
PART FOUR: CONTEMPLATIVE WISDOM IN DAILY LIFE	201	(70)
Deepening your meditation practice	203	(5)
Strategies for mastering stress	208	(4)
Guidelines for creative visualization	212	(5)
Transforming pain	217	(3)
Balancing breath, brain, and mind	220	(3)
Sports: A Western yoga	223	(7)
Cyberphysiology and biofeedback: Inner technologies of mindbody and spirit	230	(11)
PART FIVE: MEDITATION IN THE WORLD OF WORK	241	(2)
Relaxation, concentration, and meditation at work: an inspiring example	243	(6)
Leadership and spirit at work	249	(10)
Creative intelligence: the dynamic synergy of active and quiet mind skills	259	(3)
Profoundly inspired work: Visionary research	262	(3)
Glimpsing the sacred in daily work-life	265	(2)
Data to inspire faith	267	(4)
Resources	271	(2)
Suggested further readings and resources	273	(10)
Acknowledgments	283	(2)
Author's biography	285