I have read this book three times. Once to see what it contained, a second time to study it (it took me three years), the third time to remind me of The Path. This may appear to be a book for Buddhists but you'd be sadly mistaken. This is a valuable tool to anyone who is seeking to follow a spiritual path. ( )

Could have been thinner by at least a quarter of an inch were Kornfield able to write, or had he a competent editor. The result is that the writing is sub-par, and as result unclear -- as in, not clearly thought about or through by the author. As in, insufficient rewriting. That reality should be compared and contrasted with his "expertise" and claims about the results for him of his method. There are far too many Westerners (and no few Easterners) whose primary motivation in this field is power and money; unfortunately, it is less rare than one would ideally want and hope.

He should have left it to Gunaratana's "Mindfulness in Plain English".

A guide to spiritual living in the modern world. I've always found Kornfield to be the most practical of spiritual guides. This book on Buddhist meditation is clear and convincing, without being all mushy about it. ( )

from the opening chapter: "Most Americans do not wish to live as traditional priests or monks or nuns, yet many of us wish to bring a genuine spiritual practice to life in our own world. This book will speak to this possibility. ... I did not know what lay ahead at the time of my early training and left Asia still very idealistic, expecting that the special meditation experience I had found would solve all my problems. ... Since beginning to teach, I've seen how many other students misunderstand spiritual practice, how many have hoped to use it to escape from their lives, how many have used its ideals and language as a way to avoid the pains and difficulties of human existence as I tried to do, how many have entered temples, churches, and monasteries looking for the special effects. ... my meditation had helped me very little with my human relationships. I was still emotionally immature, acting out the same painful patterns of blame and fear, acceptance and rejection that I had before my Buddhist training, only the horror now was that I was beginning to see these patterns more clearly. I could do loving-kindness meditations for a thousand beings elsewhere but had terrible trouble relating intimately to one person here and now. ... I was forced to shift my whole practice down the chakras from the mind to the heart." Thus began Kornfield's personal journey, which he uses to introduce and explain Buddhist principles and practice that lead to a satisfying spiritual life.

An extremely good book for anyone interested in meditation and Eastern spirituality. ( )