Book picks similar to
Yoga and Psychotherapy: The Evolution of Consciousness by Swami Rama
yoga
psychology
spirituality
philosophy
Karma and Chaos: New and Collected Essays on Vipassana Meditation
Paul R. Fleischman - 1999
Drawn from the personal experiences of a therapist and practitioner of Vipassana meditation, this work explores meditation’s similarities and differences with psychotherapeutic and scientific endeavors. In the title essay, parallels are drawn between the atomic synthesis of free choice and lawful consequence in Chaos Theory and karma, offering contemporary insights into one of Buddhism’s core concepts. The empirical roots of meditation, its relevance to daily life, and the challenges and benefits of daily practice of Vipassana meditation are also addressed. Practical examples for continued observation outside of formal meditation retreats guide readers in incorporating Buddhist practice into daily life.
Ending the Pursuit of Happiness: A Zen Guide
Barry Magid - 2008
Magid invites us to consider that our "pursuit of happiness" may actually be a source of our suffering. He takes an unusual look at our "secret practices" - what we're really doing when we say we're meditating-like trying to feel calmer, or more compassionate, or even "enlightened" (whatever we imagine that means!). He also uncovers our "curative fantasies" about spiritual practice - those ideas that we can somehow fix all the messy human things about ourselves that we imagine are bad or wrong or unacceptable. In doing so, he helps us look squarely at-and avoid-such pitfalls. Along the way, Magid lays out a rich roadmap of the new "psychological-minded Zen" - a Zen that includes our entire life, our entire personality - as pioneered by his teacher, bestselling author Charlotte Joko Beck.
A Fistful of Love
Om Swami - 2015
After a couple of drinks, he asked his friends, "Do you love me?" "Of course, we do," they replied. "So do you know what I need?" No one answered. "If you don't know what I need then how can you say you love me?" To love and to be loved is the most basic human need. No wonder we are attracted to people who give us attention, care about us, and love us. Yet, love also remains the greatest challenge in most relationships. Why? A Fistful of Love is a collection of insightful, thought-provoking nuggets of wisdom appreciated by millions around the world. This book is full of humour and narratives most beautifully woven into learnings of life that will make you stop and think. A must read. Om Swami is a mystic living in the Himalayan foothills. He has a bachelor's degree in business and an MBA from Sydney, Australia. Prior to renunciation, he founded and ran a multi-million dollar software company successfully. He is the author of the best-seller If Truth Be Told: A Monk's Memoir, and a soon-to-be-released book on Kundalini.
The Satanic Bible
Anton Szandor LaVey - 1969
It is a collection of essays, observations and rituals, and outlines LaVey's Satanic ideology. It contains the core principles of the Church of Satan and is considered the foundation of the philosophy and dogma that constitute LaVeyan Satanism.
The Art of Loving
Erich Fromm - 1956
As with every art, love demands practice and concentration, as well as genuine insight and understanding.In his classic work, The Art of Loving, renowned psychoanalyst and social philosopher Erich Fromm explores love in all its aspects—not only romantic love, steeped in false conceptions and lofty expectations, but also brotherly love, erotic love, self-love, the love of God, and the love of parents for their children.
Trauma Stewardship: An Everyday Guide to Caring for Self While Caring for Others
Laura Van Dernoot Lipsky - 2007
We may feel tired, cynical, numb, or like we can never do enough. These, and other symptoms, affect us individually and collectively, sapping the energy and effectiveness we so desperately need if we are to benefit humankind, other animals, and the planet itself. Through Trauma Stewardship, we are called to meet these challenges in an intentional way--not by becoming overwhelmed but by developing a quality of mindful presence. Joining the wisdom of ancient cultural traditions with modern psychological research, Lipsky offers a variety of simple and profound practices that will allow us to remake ourselves--and ultimately the world.
The Key Muscles of Hatha Yoga
Ray Long - 2005
There is a new cover, over 50 new pages with an expanded chapter on the breath and more biomechanics in yoga. 244 page book with over 650 colour 3D computer generated images of a human skeleton covering over thirty key muscles as applied to Hatha Yoga including biomechanics and information on the chakras.
On Death and Dying
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross - 1969
Elisabeth Kübler-Ross's famous interdisciplinary seminar on death, life, and transition. In this remarkable book, Dr. Kübler-Ross first explored the now-famous five stages of death: denial and isolation, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. Through sample interviews and conversations, she gives the reader a better understanding of how imminent death affects the patient, the professionals who serve that patient, and the patient's family, bringing hope to all who are involved.
The Compassionate Mind
Paul A. Gilbert - 2009
Developing our sense of compassion can affect many areas of our lives, in particular our relationships with other people. In this book, Professor Paul Gilbert explores how our minds have developed to survive in dangerous and threatening environments by becoming sensitive and quick to react to perceived threats. This can sometimes lead to problems in how we respond to life's challenges and scientific evidence has demonstrated that compassion towards oneself and others can lead to an increased sense of happiness and wellbeing - particularly valuable when we are feeling stressed. Based on evolutionary research and scientific studies of how the brain processes emotional information, this compassionate approach offers an appealing alternative to the traditional western view of compassion, which sometimes sees it as a sign of weakness and can encourage self-criticism and a hard-nosed drive to achieve.
Rethinking Consciousness: A Scientific Theory of Subjective Experience
Michael S.A. Graziano - 2019
It also may have led to consciousness. Tracing evolution over millions of years, Michael S. A. Graziano uses examples from the natural world to show how neurons first allowed animals to develop simple forms of attention: taking in messages from the environment, prioritizing them, and responding as necessary.Then some animals evolved covert attention—a roving mental focus that can take in information apart from where the senses are pointed, like hearing sirens at a distance or recalling a memory.Graziano proposes that in order to monitor and control this specialized attention, the brain evolved a simplified model of it—a cartoonish self-description depicting an internal essence with a capacity for knowledge and experience. In other words, consciousness.In this eye-opening work drawn from his and other scientists’ experiments, Graziano accessibly explores how this sense of an inner being led to empathy and formed us into social beings. The theory may point the way to engineers for building consciousness artificially, and even someday taking the natural consciousness of a person and uploading it into a machine for a digital afterlife. Graziano discusses what a future with artificial conscious might be like, including both advantages and risks, and what AI might mean for our evolutionary future.
What Makes You Not a Buddhist
Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse - 2006
The director of two feature films with Buddhist themes (the international sensation The Cup and Travelers and Magicians), this provocative teacher, artist, and poet is widely known and admired by Western Buddhists.Moving away from conventional presentations of Buddhist teachings, Khyentse challenges readers to make sure they know what they're talking about before they claim to be Buddhist. With wit and irony, Khyentse urges readers to move beyond the superficial trappings of Buddhism beyond a romance with beads, incense, and exotic people in robes straight to the heart of what the Buddha taught.In essence, this book explains what a Buddhist really is, namely, someone who deeply understands the truth of impermanence and how our emotions can trap us in cycles of suffering. Khyentse presents the fundamental tenets of Buddhism in simple language, using examples we can all relate to.
The Promise of Energy Psychology: Revolutionary Tools for Dramatic Personal Change
David Feinstein - 2005
If you can shift these energies, you can influence your physical health, your emotional patterns, and your state of mind. The Promise of Energy Psychology gives simple step-by-step instructions that will help you to: - overcome fear, guilt, shame, jealousy, or anger - change unwanted habits and behaviors - enhance your ability to love, succeed, and enjoy life The energy approach presented in this book can help bring about significant change in your life. With this strategy, stubborn phobias often fade in minutes; the lifelong effects of an early trauma can frequently be reduced or completely eliminated; uncontrollable anger can rapidly become manageable; even elusive physical problems may respond where other treatments have failed. The Promise of Energy Psychology is an amazing tool that puts the ability to effect change directly into your hands, and finally gives you control over your fears, pain, and destructive behaviors.
What the Buddha Taught
Walpola Rahula - 1959
For years,” says the Journal of the Buddhist Society, the newcomer to Buddhism has lacked a simple and reliable introduction to the complexities of the subject. Dr. Rahula’s What the Buddha Taught fills the need as only could be done by one having a firm grasp of the vast material to be sifted. It is a model of what a book should be that is addressed first of all to the educated and intelligent reader.’ Authoritative and clear, logical and sober, this study is as comprehensive as it is masterly.”This edition contains a selection of illustrative texts from the Suttas and the Dhammapada (specially translated by the author), sixteen illustrations, and a bibliography, glossary and index.
2,100 Asanas: The Complete Yoga Poses
Daniel Lacerda - 2015
Organized into eight sections for the major types of poses -- standing, seated, core, quadruped, inversions, prone, supine and backbends -- and each section gently progresses from easy to more challenging. Each pose is accompanied by the name of the pose in English and Sanskrit, the Drishti point (eye gaze), the chakras affected and primary benefits.
The Prophet's Way: A Guide to Living in the Now
Thom Hartmann - 2001
To truly flourish, the human spirit needs to be present in its surroundings and attuned to the Now. It needs to act on what it knows is possible and to experience how the smallest actions can have massive consequences. This is the reality of the Prophet’s Way, a path--both literal and figurative--that the author walked with his spiritual mentor Herr Müller that skirts the edge of the precipice, where one can experience a truly spontaneous life under seemingly overwhelming and impossible circumstances.In The Prophet’s Way, Thom Hartmann shares his intense spiritual journey, a story that melds recent discoveries in science with ancient truths. Through insightful and engaging vignettes Hartmann teaches that accepting the challenge to have faith means living on the edge--remaining in the moment--because it is here where the material and spiritual worlds meet. He offers readers a unique view into his experiences of expanded consciousness, providing a powerful example of how we can re-create our future by reconnecting to the sacred heartbeat of the world.