From September 28 through November 9, 2020 I’m leading a program called “Contemplation and Practice” through Zeitgeist Atlanta. Here are some of the meditations that participants will have access to.
On this page I’m listing books that may be of interest to persons taking the course — or to anyone else interested in exploring meditation and contemplation from an interfaith/interspiritual perspective.
All of these books are optional reading — since the heart of this course is practice rather than study. Still, for anyone who’d like to learn more about the spiritualities of meditation and contemplation that we will be exploring, these resources can be helpful.
Also, for each topic I’m providing an audio guided meditation, inspired by the tradition it represents. The word “inspired” is important — I make no claims to be a teacher or expert on any of these traditions, with the possible exception of Christianity, where the meditation I present (Centering Prayer) is a method I have been trained to present. All the other meditations should be understood as general spiritual exercises, inspired by — but not necessarily representative of — each tradition.
Hope you enjoy these resources.
General
- Huston Smith, The World’s Religions
- Andrew Harvey, The Essential Mystics
- Wayne Teasdale, The Mystic Heart
Indigenous, Shamanic, and Pagan Contemplation and Practice
- Thomas Cleary, Taoist Meditations
- Rebekah Gamble, A Map to Otherworld: Meditative Shamanic Journeying
- Rachel Patterson, Pagan Portals: Meditation
Hindu, Yoga, and Vedantic Contemplation and Practice
- Eknath Easwaran, The Mantram Handbook
- Swami Adiswarananda, Meditation and Its Practices
- Deborah Adele, The Yamas & Niyamas
Buddhist Contemplation and Practice
- Thich Nhat Hanh, The Miracle of Mindfulness
- Sylvia Boorstein, It’s Easier Than You Think
- Pema Chödrön, How to Meditate
Jewish (Kabbalistic) Contemplation and Practice
- Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, Gate to the Heart
- Aryeh Kaplan, Meditation and Kabbalah
- Nan Fink Gefen, Discovering Jewish Meditation
Christian Contemplation and Practice
- Carl McColman, The Big Book of Christian Mysticism
- Cynthia Bourgeault, The Heart of Centering Prayer
- Martin Laird, Into the Silent Land
Islamic (Sufi) Contemplation and Practice
- Kabir Helminski, The Knowing Heart
- Annemarie Schimmel, Mystical Dimensions of Islam
- A. Helwa, Secrets of Divine Love
