Guided Mindfulness Meditation (Guided Mindfulness)

Book Description

Perhaps no other person has done more to bring mindfulness meditation into the contemporary landscape of America than Jon Kabat-Zinn. Th rough a number of research studies, and through Kabat-Zinn's pioneering work at the University of Massachusetts Medical School where he is founder of its world-renowned Stress Reduction Clinic, mindfulness is finally being recognized as a highly effective tool for dealing with stress, chronic pain, and other illnesses. Today, with a four-part home training course, Jon Kabat-Zinn offers listeners the definitive mindfulness meditation practice on CD. "We are not trying to actively achieve a state of deep relaxation—or any other state for that matter—while practicing mindfulness," he teaches. "But interestingly, by opening to an awareness of how things actually are in the present moment, we often taste very deep states of relaxation and well-being—of both body and mind." Join the bestselling author of Coming to Our Senses (Hyperion, 2005) and Wherever You Go, There You Are (Hyperion 1995) to develop and deepen your personal mindfulness practice, and to taste the universal aspects of stillness, clarity, wisdom, compassion, and well-being that Guided Mindfulness Meditation offers.

Customer Reviews:

How do I order a copy for my son?.......2007-07-07

I am trying to place a reorder to be shipped to my son as I feel that he would like/benefit from it and I cannot find it again on Amazon. HELP!

Does Zinn have a myspace page?.......2007-06-27

The purpose of meditation is to let go, not to listen to music. Accept everything, let your thoughts and feelings escape as quickly as they enter. There is no enjoyment in meditation, per se. Ultimately, you will not be disturbed, when you have mastered meditation, you will have learned to accept all things as they come in whatever form they arrive, and in a state of relaxation and "mindfulness" let them pass just as easy. We all fight daily with noises and feelings and pains and distractions. For 10,15,45, or 60 minutes you will have made a conscious choice to accept that your spirit is your soul and there is nothing but peace and harmony here and there. The enjoyment will be an effect of peace within, but is actually another distraction. Jon Kabat-Zinn rocks! But sometimes it's difficult to convey what one feels and knows to another in writing, or even in speaking for that matter. Sometimes It is the listener who has the difficulties. This and Jon's book may not have communicated messages well, but there is truth to be found for all searchers.

Good for revitalizing your practice but you might need to buy the book too........2007-05-25

I was almost put off buying this set by some negative reviews here, but I enjoy his books very much and find JK-Z's approach to mindfulness interesting and imaginative so, after much research, I bought this set. (FWIW, I think his voice is great. If you do a search for the author you can hear free audio clips on many sites.)

I've done some meditation before and was looking for guided meditations because I felt my practice had gone a bit stale. This set has helped me to achieve what I wanted - to refresh my commitment to making meditation a regular part of my life.

So far I've only worked through the Body Scan CD - this is very relaxing, almost too relaxing as I often fall asleep (totally cheating). I'm pleased with the first CD, but there are two points worth mentioning:

1. At 45 mins, these guided meditations are looong, and JK-Z recommends that you do these meditations every day.

2. I wish I'd known that this set on its own is not a full program. The set is described as a 'complete mindfulness program' but when you buy the set and read the liner notes, it says the yoga postures are outlined in his book Full Catastrophe Living. There are no diagrams in the CD liner so you've no idea what the poses are supposed to look like and have to rely entirely on the audio. I've listened to the yoga CD to see if it sounds feasible but haven't 'done' it yet.

I've heard good things about Full Catastrophe Living and, sure, I'd love to read it sometime. However I think omitting the posture illustrations from the notes and just referring you to another book is a bit... off. It was probably a commercial decision taken by the publisher rather than the author, and to be fair, he does describe the poses without referring you to page 72, etc. But I think it should be clearer that the CD was designed to be used in conjunction with the book so you have that information when you buy. Either that or include the illustrations as a courtesy to people who only buy the CD set.

Not What I Expected.......2007-03-22

I know that Jon Kabat-Zinn has a tremendous amount of knowledge to share however it did not come through for me in this CD collection. The pacing of the movement sequences is very slow and the voice quality is somewhat distracting. Based on the title of the CD's I was under the impression that there would be more information about meditation techniques, however the majority of the information presented is a very gentle guided yoga practice. Somewhat disappointing.

Useful mixture of practices, but not complete in itself..........2007-01-29

It well known that Jon Kabat-Zinn is one of the biggest names in meditation instruction and has done much to give the field academic credibility and validation. His work is valuable and this CD is no exception. However, it seems to be overly ambitious and incomplete without other information to augment it. At the least, you need his book FULL CATASTROPHE LIVING to go along with it.

For context, I am a former research scientist and taught physiology in a university and was a biochemist for Merck. I have a good background in yoga, meditation and have done graduate work in Integral Psychology which studies psychology within the context of the world's wisdom traditions. I also teach meditation as part of my living including using biofeedback and other western aids to learning these concepts. This context will help you to judge the merit of my interview and the point of view I'm writing it for.

One thing I like about this CD is that in a sense it is one stop shopping. In one package, you get a Body Scan Meditation, A thorough Mindfulness Meditation methodology and some basic yoga instruction. This is a lot to get in one package and usually you don't get a Body Scan Meditation along with a Mindfulness practice in the same set. All of these meditations and the yoga instruction is useful, but while technically accurate Jon Kabat-Zinn doesn't have the most soothing voice, there was little though to music of any aesthetic dimension which helps one to enter various mind states and there is a bit of a clinical feel the whole series.

With respect to the yoga instruction, I think this information is useful for someone who has studied at least a little bit with a teacher or who has attended classes. A lot of yoga has to do with body awareness and without a teacher to point out the things you think you are doing right, but are unaware of you can keep reinforcing bad habits or at worse hurt yourself. Also, giving yoga instruction via a book or audio CD is not the best way to learn it. It's highly visual and requires someone to look at what you are doing in three dimensions. However, if this gets people started with a yoga practice and curious about learning more, I'm all for it. Besides some classes or lessons, however, you may also want to explore a beginning yoga book such as BACK CARE BASICS or 30 ESSENTIAL YOGA POSES by Judith Lasater. The first book is written by a physician and Iyengar practioner and has a lot of good hints on how not to get hurt. The latter is a great introduction for beginners and can almost stand alone in it's well written descriptions and safety tips.

I agree with the other reviewers that the meditations are an ideal length for long time practice. Beginners may find this a bit overwhelming, but they augment their work with shorter more soothing meditation audios such as Jack Kornfield's BEGINNER'S GUIDE TO MEDITATION. This CD is done from a Western Buddhist perspective, but Kornfield also is a Western clinical psychologist and does not push any religious agenda to hard.

There are some comments in other reviews about a Buddhist orientation in this meditation set by Jon Kabat-Zinn. While I think this is true, I don't see that he is pushing a religious agenda. It just happens to be a fact that the Buddhists have been studying the nature of mind and experimenting with meditation for thousands of years. There are many writing about it within this tradition and they have a lot to tell us about what works and what doesn't. I have found this to be validated by my own experience.

While this set is a good start for those beginning a practice, I would also consider one or both of the following books. First, BREATH BY BREATH by Rosenberg. This is an excellent, thorough and very readable introduction to a variety of meditation techniques in the Buddhist tradition. You don't have to be a Buddhist to benefit from them, however. If your desire is to go even deeper, then MINDFULNESS WITH BREATHING by Buddhadasa Bhikkhu will pick up where BREATH BY BREATH leaves off and go into more fine points that will help you to refine your attention even more and go deeper.

One component of full stress reduction program that I feel is missing from these recordings is the potential health and stress reduction benefits of loving-kindness meditation. This affects heart rate variability, the reduction of the chronic stress hormone cortisol and the production of the anti-aging hormone DHEA. It is now a proven fact that the heart indirectly affects the brain and a lot of new research on this has been appearing in the Journal of Cardiology and others. You can get an introduction to this whole area by reading the book HEART MATH or you can explore loving-kindness meditation without reading up on the medical benefits. If you wish to take a very western approach, then the program FREEZE FRAMER is an excellent investment! If you want to just get an introduction to this technique Shinzen Young has a set of five meditations including loving-kindess which is inexpensive and good. Salzberg also has written a book called Loving-Kindess from a Buddhist perspective and there is an inexpensive audio program by her and Goldstein called INSIGHT MEDITATION.

Another practice that I think is particulary useful to Westerner's, but missing from this program is walking meditation. This done VERY WELL in the INSIGHT MEDITATION series offered above. However, what Zinn offers that others don't is a well-rounded program for life time change. While I've made a lot of comments and suggestions above, I am not knocking this series. It is an ambitious endeavor and Zinn does a great job of covering a lot of ground. I wouldn't hesitate to buy this audio set, but at a minimum I would augment it with FULL CATASTROPHE LIVING and perhaps some of the other resources I mentioned above.

Kindly Awareness: Managing Pain, Illness, and Stress with Guided Mindfulness Meditation

Average customer rating:

Enjoyable
kindly awareness
Connecting with all of life
Recovering from Breast Cancer
A Must

Kindly Awareness: Managing Pain, Illness, and Stress with Guided Mindfulness Meditation
Sona , and Vidyamala
Manufacturer: Breathworks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

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ASIN: 0955012023

Book Description

This meditation practice helps us feel more positive, accepting and kindly towards both ourselves and others. It aims at cultivating a sense of connectedness and shared humanity with others, and is adapted from a traditional Buddhist meditation practice, the Metta Bhavana.

The CD includes two different approaches to the practice of developing kindly awareness.

Customer Reviews:

Enjoyable.......2006-07-31

An enjoyable meditation, helping me to reconcile my ambivalence towards certain people while appreciating both the differences and the similarities between them, myself and others that I admire. Helpful for changing attitudes...

kindly awareness.......2006-03-26

KINDLY AWARENESS
I have always loved this meditation for the feeling of love and intimacy to my friends strangers and the whole world that it gives but recently I had even greater reason to be thankful for it.

I was sent away from home for 6 weeks when my brother was born when I was 1year old. Then I was sexually abused by my father from when I was 5 to about 9. This is the first time I have written about these experiences but I am writing to show how much the Kindly Awareness and mindful moment practice can help even someone who has been deeply disturbed. These experiences have left me depressed and very scared of being alone. I have had lots of Counselling and lots of medication, some of it helpful and insightful(for a long time I didn't know why I was scared) some of it not.

Recently my eldest son went to live abroad for 2 years after living in Bristol and this induced the most terrible panic attacks in me. Then my younger son decided to leave home. I also got a terrible virus which relapsed my M.E. It was back on the merry-go-round of drugs and anti-depressants so that I just slept all day. Then when I managed to drag myself to a Retreat day and we were practicing the Kindly Awareness meditation (which I had been avoiding because I was scared to think about my feelings). Especially I have always been scared to have my father as the person I have difficulty with in case it brought on flash backs, overwhelming anger or fear. I cleared my mind to think how I was feeling emotionally, physically and mentally in THIS moment and it came to me that in this moment I am safe and in the next moment and the next moment. In other words when I cleared all the worries, fears, hang ups from the past out of my head for a moment I learned that I can be safe in each moment. Now every time I feel the fear coming back and I have accepted that it will come back instead of trying to avoid it (and avoiding issues takes such a lot of energy) I think to myself am I safe in this moment? If I am safe in this moment I can continue to be in each moment in spite of all that has happened. Of course there will be times in everyone's life occasionally that we are not safe, accidents and crimes do happen but they come from the real world and not in my fears and fantasies from the past which have dominated my life to now. Kindly Awareness and mindfulness is turning my life around.

............................................................................................................

Connecting with all of life.......2006-02-21

I'd been practising the Metta Bhavana (Development of Kindness) in it's traditional form for about 25 years when I came across Vidyamala and Sona's adaptation of it. I think both ways of doing it are very good, but Vidyamala and Sona have adapted the practice specifically for people suffering from chronic pain and/or other chronic conditions, and I think it works very well. It helps you to empathise first with your own suffering, but then to expand outwards to use your pain as a point of empathy with all beings. Fantastic!

Recovering from Breast Cancer.......2006-01-10

I would like to recommend the Breathworks Kindly Awareness meditation CD to anyone. I received it soon after being diagnosed with breast cancer and I found the CD very helpful, as it was hard at times to feel love and compassion for myself. I am sure this benefited my immune system, along with the other Breathworks Cds, which helped my recovery.

I particularly enjoyed the quality of Vidyamala's voice on the CDs - gentle, balanced and authoritative.

A Must.......2006-01-09

This CD has really helped me to develop a more positive attitude towards life. I try and do this practice every morning, as it sets me up for the day in that I feel more connected with people and more sympathetic towards them. I am an experienced meditator and can really recommend this CD to both those who are new to meditation as well as those who are more experienced. Highly recommended!

Mindfulness of Breathing: Managing Pain, Illness, and Stress with Guided Mindfulness Meditation

Average customer rating:

Being in the moment
This really works
Breath
A MUST
excellent support for meditation practice

Mindfulness of Breathing: Managing Pain, Illness, and Stress with Guided Mindfulness Meditation
Sona , and Vidyamala
Manufacturer: Breathworks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Meditation | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Stress Management | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Chronic Pain | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0955012015

Book Description

The Mindfulness of Breathing practice helps us develop awareness of our experience in greater detail. By resting in a responsive space between suppressing our experience of pain or illness on the one hand, and over-identifying with it on the other, we can learn to make choices as to how we respond to our moment-by-moment experience.

The CD introduces two different approaches to this practice, helping us to develop "moments of awareness" which help free us from stress.

Customer Reviews:

Being in the moment.......2006-02-21

I've been using this CD for about two years, along with the Body Scan and Kindly Awareness, also by Vidyamala and Sona. Practising this meditation with the CD has helped me to live in the present moment, and this in turn has helped me to enjoy life much more. The ancient Greek Philosopher Epicurus thought that the main reason we suffer was to do with thoughts about that past and the future, and that if we could just stay with our present moment experience we would be happy. I agree with him and heartily recommend this CD as a way of doing just that.

This really works.......2006-01-19

I have a long standing back injury and have tried many many treatments from all sorts of disciplines. This mindfulness approach is the most effective thing I have ever done for my back pain. It is somehow ironic that switching from trying to treat or fix the pain to just living with it and managing it is what has worked, but there you are.... I really enjoy the slowing down that this CD brings for me. I got the benefits by using the CD over time so this is not a quick fix. But it does work.

Breath.......2006-01-10

Wonderful- who could have thought the breath could be so interesting and sooo relaxing.

A MUST.......2006-01-09

This CD has really helped me develop more awareness in my life. I would highly recommend it to anyone who has a stressful job, as it can help you bring more spaciousness and calmness into the way you relate to the demands of the job. I know this from experience having worked as nurse, and now as a psychologist for a number of years. At the same time I can recommend this CD to both those who are new to meditation as well as those who are more experienced. Highly recommended!

excellent support for meditation practice.......2005-12-15

This is an excellent support for breathing/mindfulness meditation practice. The option of led and unled practice sessions is really helpful - and Vidyamala's calming voice is a great bonus!

Body Scan: Managing Pain, Illness, & Stress with Guided Mindfulness Meditation

Average customer rating:

Relaxation the easy way
This approach really works
Managing M.E. with the Body Scan meditation
An act of kindness
chilled

Body Scan: Managing Pain, Illness, & Stress with Guided Mindfulness Meditation
Sona , and Vidyamala
Manufacturer: Breathworks
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Meditation | Alternative Medicine | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Stress Management | Self-Help | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Psychology & Counseling | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

Chronic Pain | Disorders & Diseases | Health, Mind & Body | Subjects | Books

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

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ASIN: 0955012007

Book Description

The Body Scan is a meditation practice that helps us to develop habits of greater ease and awareness of the body. Adopting a comfortable posture (lying down or sitting) we 'scan' through the whole body with our awareness, using the breath to 'let go' of areas of pain and/or tension.

This CD contains two body-scan meditations of different lengths. Body-scan meditation is a mindfulness practice that anyone can do while lying in bed or any other flat surface. The meditation directs attention to various parts of the body, bringing awareness and openness to the sensations that are experienced. By bringing awareness to these different areas, you'll begin to experience a relaxing of the muscles and joints, allowing you to be more fully present and at ease in your body.

Customer Reviews:

Relaxation the easy way.......2006-07-31

This is an excellent cd that invites the listener to allow their attention to move from place to place in the body, and to gradually let go of tension without having to feel like 'letting go'.
The accents of the people doing the narrative are very soothing, UK rather than US accent, and easy to listen to.
it could only be improved with the addition of a backing tape to ensure background noises are somewhat disguised. (eg a binaural tape)

This approach really works.......2006-01-19

I have a long standing back injury and have tried many many treatments from all sorts of disciplines. This body-scan and mindfulness approach is the most effective thing I have ever done for my back pain. I got the benefits by using the CD over time so this is not a quick fix. But it does work.

Managing M.E. with the Body Scan meditation.......2006-01-14

I've had M.E. (chronic fatigue syndrome) for the last 3 years; this CD has transformed the way I manage both the physical and mental challenges of living with a chronic illness.

Listening to the CD enables me to have "constructive" space for myself during the day, and helps me to keep perspective. It is useful as a way of breaking up different activities - ensuring that I don't over do it, but meaning that as long as I stop before I am too tired, I get more done in the day! It is also extremely relaxing - perfect for a racing mind in an exhausted body!

Now that I am getting better, and have more energy, I still include the bodyscan in my daily routine, but often the 20 rather than the 40 minute version!

An act of kindness.......2006-01-11

I love this CD!!!
Its amazing to have at my fingertips a tool that I can use to prompt me to take "time out" from the day (and activities), in confidence that I will return to it with more awareness of and connection with my mind and body after doing the practice.
I sometimes use it as a "stop-gap" between doing one thing then the next, and can choose whether to do it for 20 or 40 minutes. Sometimes, I just feel tired and lie down thinking its for 20 minutes but once I'm there, realise that its one of the kindest things I could do for myself - and keep lying on after its finished playing! I don't remember giving myself the permission to do that prior to using the CD (probably cos it was very rare for me to go just lie on my bed!).
Now it's a real treat - one to which I can give myself fully, and after doing so, I'm more wholly present to the rest of my experience(/my life?!).
I don't have loads of money, but I can safely say that this has been my best value-for-money CD ever, based on the amount of times I've played it, the quality of my "listening experience", and its endurance factor - cos I'll still be using it years from now.
Hope this helps anyone unsure about trying this CD.

But don't just take my word for it - decide for yourself!!

chilled.......2006-01-10

Fantastic- a real way of touching base after a busy day.

Guided Mindfulness Meditation Series 2 (Series 2)

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Guided Mindfulness Meditation Series 2 (Series 2)

ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD
Similar Items:

Guided Mindfulness Meditation (Guided Mindfulness)

ASIN: B000E6KQU4

Touching the Earth: Guided Meditations for Mindfulness Practice

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Touching the Earth: Guided Meditations for Mindfulness Practice
Thich Nhat Hanh
Manufacturer: Parallax Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books

Rituals & Practice | Buddhism | Religion & Spirituality | Subjects | Books
ASIN: 1888375876

Guided Mindfulness Meditation Series 2: 4 Practice CDs

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Guided Mindfulness Meditation Series 2: 4 Practice CDs
Jon Kabat-Zinn
Manufacturer: Mindfulness CDs
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B000KSPSAE

In This Moment, A Guided Mindfulness Meditation Practive

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In This Moment, A Guided Mindfulness Meditation Practive
Jon Kabat-Zinn
Manufacturer: One Spirit, Sounds True
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Audio CD
ASIN: B000Q1NOG0

Product Description

In This Moment: A Guided Mindfulness Meditation Practice. it is excerpted from Meditation for Optimum Health. 1 CD, Running Time: 1 Hour

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