Reddit mentions of The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation

A simple technique I also use along with daily meditation is to set a 15 minute timer whenever I need to concentrate for extended periods (e.g. coding). I know this sounds counter-intuitive, but bear with me for a second. I adopted this idea from a comment by Thich Nhat Nahn on being present in the moment.

I set the timer on my iPod or a desktop app for 15 minutes. When it goes off I immediately stop what I am doing, take three deep breaths, be present in the moment, and then return to my activity. If I've been distracted in those 15 minutes, this gentle reminder returns me to my work. If I've been concentrating well, this is a gentle break and quick sustenance.

I find this trick helps increase self-awareness, break up a long period of concentration into easy to digest portions, improve my productivity and push distractions to a defined "rest" period (usually after a couple hours).

Couple this with a meditation practice (start with just 10-15 minute sessions) and I suspect you'll find your effectiveness increasing significantly.

By the way, I strongly recommend Thich Nhat Nahn's writings on meditation and presence. I started with The Miracle of Mindfulness and have read many others as well as listened to several of his talks available online.

Good luck!

Something to chew on:

CBT (Cognitive Behavioral Therapy)

-Book: Dr. Burns, Feeling Good-The New Mood Therapy

-Learning about CBT-Basics

-Cognitive-behavioural tools that anyone can use

-The Ultimate List of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) Techniques

-Reddit CBT Top Links

-25 CBT Techniques and Worksheets for Cognitive Behavioral Therapy





Mindfulness

-HeadSpace

-Book: The Miracle of Mindfullness

-Sam Harris on Mindfulness


-In my option, mindfulness is something you have to practice to experience yourself rather than reading about. When I first started, I read countless articles on the topic and found websites/sources but it wasn’t until I began meditating myself and practicing mindfulness myself that it made sense to me. As a result, I deleted most of my sources on this front but the book listed made a lot of things click for me.

Edit: Also, thank you for asking about this. I brushed up on some old files to find my archive of information on this and it was fun to look through them again.

I recommend The Miracle of Mindfulness

Have you ever seen the film Little Miss Sunshine? You might enjoy it if you happen to find a spare minute. There's a character in it who's a teenager like yourself who takes a vow of silence, for political reasons in his case. You might expect that the film might take the attitude of making fun of him, and occasionally it does, but it also takes a very human and understanding attitude towards him. If I recall correctly he's really one of the best characters.

Keep in mind this film is what you might call black humor; please don't blame me if you watch it and it offends you. But it might also make you smile as it has made me smile. I hope you enjoy it if you do watch it.

Anyway, you sound like you're in a place where you are trying to heal and mourn. I don't know what it's like to experience your mental state, so no one except you can tell you whether it is a healthy place or not. Does that make sense? Human contact is really important to the healthy human experience, but it's not like you're completely forgoing human contact (e.g. you're presumably still listening to class discussion and responding in nominal ways, and here you are, also, talking to us). That's still a lot of stimulation as /u/NotBeth pointed out; I definitely would feel overstimulated if I had to sit through high school again.

You sound like you're working on yourself right now, possibly in a way that you don't fully understand. Certainly it's unlikely that we, from reading 82 words that you posted on the Internet, can understand what's going on.

From noticing your posts elsewhere on this account, it definitely seems like you are struggling with some depression. So, as a fellow stoner, a former teacher, and a person who has also suffered loss and who has struggled with depression, I actually will issue some advice.

• Smile sometimes. Smile at yourself in the mirror. This might sound like stupid advice but it isn't. Smiles make people happy, and it works shockingly well on oneself.
  
  
• Cut the weed to a bare minimum, if not completely out of your life. I say this as a semi-daily stoner myself - but I'm 28 years old and fully physically mature. Weed in teenage years is associated with anxiety disorders in adulthood. That is no joke. While you are still physically growing, you need to let yourself reach physical maturity without too much physical interference. The weed will still be there when you're 22 or 23. /r/leaves is a resource for you; they're committed to quitting weed and they're not too terribly pretentious about it.
  
  
• Find people to talk to about these feelings -- not necessarily on an "every day" basis, but it's important to be able to process them and trying to do so alone is massively overrated. Some suggestions: your doctor (if they are a good doctor), a therapist (always an excellent call; I'm sure your parents would hook you up if you haven't been speaking for two weeks lol), or the web site 7 Cups of Tea, which connects you anonymously right away to a caring listener via text chat, and there are other self-care exercises you can do.
  
  
• None of this means you're crazy/weak/not a man/not a woman/whatever you might be worrying about. Part of this self-care stuff means learning to listen to the narratives that you tell yourself when you're in your head, and pruning the unhealthy ones (not in a violent way, but in a nurturing way) so that the healthy ones can grow.
  
  
• Continue to let yourself grieve in your own way. In a way I think you are wise and courageous to give yourself "permission" to adopt this silence. But don't overdo it, because as I said, going it alone is overrated.
  
  
• Join us in /r/meditation if you want to find a community of others who are all working on ourselves, as patiently as we can. I warn you however that we are very long-winded over there.
  
  Please feel free to message me if you'd like to chat. Good luck!
  
  Edit: One final thing -- there is a book out there called The Miracle of Mindfulness that has helped me more than I can possibly say. I would be happy to pay for you to have a copy -- if you buy one off Amazon and post proof, I would be happy to PayPal you the cost of the book & shipping ($14.48 it looks like).

On the Road DVD

This book about Zen Buddhism and meditation

Led Zeppelin: The Song Remains the Same (concert DVD)

Hang in there!

For me, it has helped to realize that I cannot control other peoples' reactions; I can only control my own re/actions.

Try not to worry about the future, or possible reactions. I know that's easier said than done. To help the anxiety, one tool I recommend is mindfulness techniques, such as Thich Nhat Hanh's The Miracle of Mindfulness. Mindfulness is one of those things that is "10 minutes to learn and a lifetime to master," but it's really helpful.

Of course, disengaging from family members' reactions is easier said when a person is financially independent of the family (not sure how old you are, but often once we reach early 20s and become financially independent from our family, it gets easier to say, "This is who I am" with less fear).

Hugs, and know that we are here for you!

I can directly empathize with what you're saying here bud, and respect you a lot for seeking therapy. I too struggle with depression/anxiety, and have quite a few personal problems, but compensate heavily in social situations with humor, and think its definitely preferable.

After all, I've read that utilizing humor is one of the more mature coping mechanisms that people can utilize. I have found that by using humor to make others happy, my world can be filled with laughter and joy, despite the many negative emotions/factors that weigh me down otherwise. It's probably why I do not like being alone.

However, and I hope you get opportunities to do this, its necessary to appropriately respond to emotions such as sadness with 'feeling sad'/crying etc. sometimes, because its important to flex your emotional profile; one reason therapy is so useful. By being familiar with, and recognizing my emotions, I can let myself feel them, respect them, and then move on from them quickly. This approach has helped me solve issues without all the emotional cloudiness (though as an emotional being I have a lot of practicing left to do!). Good practice guide to this: The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh

Have an awesome day, dude.

I would suggest you read The Miracle of Mindfulness. One element of the book is training your brain to focus and be serene using breathing.

I bought this little book to start, thought it was good, I'm sure there's other good ones as well. 'cept I did 12 minutes instead of 8. It walks you through a meditation practice and strategies.

At the same time I was listening to the book miracle of mindfulness, by Thich Nhat Hanh. It is about using meditative type practices in day to day life activities, like washing the dishes.

Started me along the path and i just kept practicing and reading. my overactive mind led me to strong anxiety, there was a direct relation. by no means perfect now, but i definitely can say anxiety is much less of a problem. good luck if you look into it.

Genuine Happiness by B. Alan Wallace is the book that got me into meditation and stuff. Each chapter includes a meditation exercise, and then he talks about the meaning behind them and how they relate to Buddhist practice and such. I found it very straightforward and easy to read.

Thich Nhat Hanh is a rather famous current Buddhist writer and teacher, and while I haven't read him myself, I've heard very good things about a lot of his work, particularly The Miracle of Mindfulness.

I hope you find some of this helpful!

"Even in exile, representing overseas the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, he has continued to be a force for nonviolence and reconciliation in his homeland and an organizer of supportive responses from other countries. (His friendship with Martin Luther King was a factor in Dr. King's decision to ignore the advice of many colleagues and contributors who opposed his "mixing issues" and to join in the opposition of the Vietnam war. Shortly before his assassination, Dr. King nominated Nhat Hanh for the Nobel Prize for Peace.)" https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Practice-Meditation/dp/0807012394

An old guy who lived in China has a great answer for this question:

>Meet the ancestral teachers, be familiar with their instruction

Song of the Grass-Roof Hermitage - translation by Daniel Leighton

Basically, learn from other people. The Zen teachings are based on the writings of masters going back to the 5th century. However, these writings aren't particularly accessible. Luckily, we are currently living through an explosion of Buddhism in the west and there are many teachers that explain these ancient concepts in a manner that westerners can understand easily.

Here are some recommendations for entry level, western-targeted Zen books:

>Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind - Shunryu Suzuki

Suzuki Roshi was one of the earliest Zen masters to immigrate to the United States back in the 1960's. His teachings are very simple and fundamental. He gets at the very heart of Zen in a concise, plain manner. This book is a collection of transcribed Dharma talks he gave in California during the 60's. It is likely the most well known book on Zen in the west. It is short and clearly written, making it one of the best places to start learning about Zen.

> The Miracle of Mindfulness - Tich Nhat Hanh

Tich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Zen monk. He has been a huge contributor to the spread of Zen in the west. He has established practice centers in France, New York, California, Mississippi, and Germany. This book is a practical guide to bringing Zen practice into your life. He offers a lot of analogies that make you take a step back and think about the way you live your life. Another short and accessible book.

> Inside the Grass Hut - Ben Connelly

Ben was my guitar teacher for many years before he introduced me to Zen. He is a Zen priest in the lineage of Dainin Katagiri, the founding abbot of the Minnesota Zen Mediation Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. This book is a study of the poem I have linked and quoted above, The Song of the Grass-Roof Hermitage by the 8th century Zen master Shitou. It was extremely useful book for me when I was at my darkest point. Ben distills Shitou's somewhat arcane parables into a simple, practical set of recommendations for living a life that will free you of suffering. Ben offers a lot of insight into incorporating Zen practice into a modern lifestyle. Like the other two, it also short and easy to read. This is a great introduction to what a lot of historic Zen writing is like. I think it is a particularly useful book for people struggling with addiction. Ben had some trouble with alcohol himself and I believe he is 10+ years sober.

Those are some great places to start, but you can read all the books you want about Zen and not get the picture if you don't meditate. Meditation is the foundation of Zen and all of Buddhist practice. The great thing about meditation is that you can do it on your own just about anywhere. The Miracle of Mindfulness gives a good description of how to meditate. There are also plenty of free resources available online. There are many ways to meditate and it is best to find one that works for you.

A daily mediation habit is not an easy thing to develop. Similar to abstinence, it takes discipline and commitment. I still struggle with it myself. It is, however, the best way to fully realize the benefits of Zen. Some things that might help with this is to find a Sangha to practice with or download an app like Headspace. Having a community to practice with has been the biggest help in getting me on the zafu. Doing something with other people makes it easier to do, a little bit like how this subreddit works. Headspace is really popular, although I have not used it myself. It can be used to track mediation sessions and work towards mediation goals. The app that I have found useful is MindBell, but really it's just a glorified timer. The last thing I would recommend are the guided meditations by Jon Kabat Zinn. JKZ is a professor emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and has conducted many clinical studies on the benefits of mindfulness in medicine and healthcare. He is a long time practitioner of Zen and has written several books about his work. I haven't read much of his work, but I have utilized his guided meditations extensively. I particularly like this body scan one. Even when I was at my most depressed and couldn't find the strength to get out of bed, I was able to get myself to queue this video up and follow along. There are a lot of other guided meditations floating around the web. I also like this one by Sam Harris that's only 9 minutes.

Zen is not necessarily an easy thing to get involved in. It requires a commitment of time and it is not particularly fun or pleasurable. However, any level of Zen practice will produce concrete rewards. If you have any question, I am always available for answers.

If that intrests you at all check out the book The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh. A very cool read and the whole book is about exactly that.

I highly recommend reading The Miracle of Mindfulness.

It's not complicated and quite concise.
And the Kindle version is only $3, which I can send over if you PM me your email :)

The Miracle of Mindfulness

Three Pillars of Zen

Zen Mind, Beginners Mind

Miracle of mindfulness

Those three got me hooked. From there I was able to go onto bigger and more "complicated" books.

The Miracle of Mindfulness appears to be by someone else:

• https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Practice-Meditation/dp/0807012394
  
  When I google a sentence above, I get hits for "The Secret," which is by Osho:
  
• http://www.osho.com/iosho/library/read-book/online-library-practicing-meditation-smoking-2cb3c8b8-c1c?p=360d1cb4c838798b75f60d626b05225a
  
  Which is it? The passage is intriguing, so it'd be nice not to have folks buying the wrong thing!

Pick up a copy of The Miracle of Mindfulness by Thich Nhat Hanh. If what you read interests you, then you might want to look around your area to see if there are any community workshops in Mindfulness or Zen practices. Mindfulness is a tool that has (stripped of its Zen roots) been used in the treatment of depression and personality disorders, so don't be put off if you can only find classes in a clinical setting.

Get him a book on mindfulness if he's a reader. This is just an example - it's short and quite good - https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Practice-Meditation/dp/0807012394/ref=asap_bc?ie=UTF8

I would recommend The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation by Thich Nhat Hanh. Reading about changing your life for the better isn't worth much until you act upon it, which sometimes can be difficult without proper guidance. I believe this could be a good book to help you out with as meditating can give you more insight in what it means to be (and stay) positive.

Mindfulness my friend. It's a great skill but can time to cultivate. This is a great intro and super short read..

Hmm, good question. I can't claim to have read a lot of Thay's work (because as you said, there's quite a bit), but my hunch based on what I have read is that where you should start depends on your current knowledge of Buddhism.

Thay seems to write two types of books: a "general audience" type book that draws on Buddhism, but only to the extent that the teachings can be practiced by anyone regardless of their background. The Miracle of Mindfulness might be an example of this, or his "one-word-title books" as I call them: Power, Savor, Fear, etc.

The other type of book he writes seems to be intended for readers who either are already Buddhist or interested in going more deeply into Buddhist teachings. To know where to start with these works, a lot depends on how familiar you already are with the Buddha's teachings. I can tell you the order I read them, which seemed to work quite well:

Started with: The Heart of the Buddha's Teaching: This is Thay's overview of the core teachings of Buddhism. I see this book like this: if Buddhism was a country, this would be a map of it. It shows you all the major points of interest, and the roads connecting all of them together. After reading this, you'll have a good grasp of what the different pieces of Buddhism are and how they work together to help you toward awakening/enlightenment.

But if you've never read anything about Buddhism at all before, I'm personally not sure if this is a good first book as it's not exactly a light read. Don't get me wrong: it's written with Thay's usual elegance and clarity, but it's packed with a lot of stuff (in the best sense). I was already somewhat familiar with the basics of Buddhism, so for me it was easy to build on that; but for someone brand new, I think the "general audience" books would still be a better start.

After that first book: In the first book itself, Thay recommends three sutras every serious practitioner should study regularly: the Bhaddekaratta Sutra, the Anapatasati Sutra, and the Satipatthana Sutra. Thankfully, Thay has translated and written commentaries on all three sutras and my links go to his books on these sutras.

Not much more I can share given that I'm about halfway through Thay's book on the Anapanasati Sutra. What I can say is that I can see why he says these are sutras to be studied throughout your life. They have some really powerful teachings that I have no doubt will take me years to grasp and practice properly.

Hope that helps. I'm sure others have read far more of Thay's work than I have, and can either correct my attempt here or give better recommendations.

>In this beautiful and lucid guide, Zen master Thich Nhat Hanh offers gentle anecdotes and practical exercise as a means of learning the skills of mindfulness--being awake and fully aware. From washing the dishes to answering the phone to peeling an orange, he reminds us that each moment holds within it an opportunity to work toward greater self-understanding and peacefulness.

The Miracle of Mindfulness: An Introduction to the Practice of Meditation

https://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Practice-Meditation/dp/0807012394

http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Practice-Meditation/dp/0807012394/ref=la_B000AP5YRY_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1406491648&sr=1-3

That is THE beginners guide. It's short and each story leads to a zen lesson and complimentary meditation technique.

Its been 20 years when I started, I have o idea what book I started with but I would read anything from thick naht hahn.

http://www.amazon.com/The-Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Meditation/dp/0807012394/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394231519&sr=1-1&keywords=meditation+thich+nhat+hanh

Yeah I apply doublethink to spirituality, its often very effective to work with metaphors.

Guided meditation is the way to go for us that cant just empty mind or come up with our own routine. I use these mp3's just ignore his introduction which is often cheesy. You are training your mind to settle down and calmly take stock of life, eventually everybody can rewire their brain. This book is awesome my friend. Its an introduction, not to spirituality but to meditation and mindful living.

At first its hard to maintain 30 minutes so start with the ten. If nothing else the barrier of entry is very low (just sit your ass down, put the mp3 on your ipod or whatever, close your eyes and breathe as fast in as you breathe out) so you might as well, eh?

Please check out Thich Nhat Hanh. Here are some of my favorite CDs.
http://www.amazon.com/Present-Moment-Retreat-Practice-Mindfulness/dp/159179126X/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394927822&sr=1-6&keywords=Thich+Nhat+Hanh

http://www.amazon.com/Mindful-Living-Thich-Nhat-Hanh/dp/1591790891/ref=sr_1_12?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394927822&sr=1-12&keywords=Thich+Nhat+Hanh

Favorite books
http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Mindfulness-Introduction-Practice-Meditation/dp/0807012394/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394928117&sr=1-3

http://www.amazon.com/Peace-Every-Step-Mindfulness-Everyday/dp/0553351397/ref=sr_1_4?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1394928162&sr=1-4