EZRA BAYDA

Being Zen: Bringing Meditation to Life

Zen Heart: Simple Advice for Living With Mindfulness and Compassion

JON KABAT-ZINN

Wherever You Go, There You Are

Full Catastrophe Living

JACK KORNFIELD

A Path with Heart

The Wise Heart

After the Ecstasy, the Laundry

SHARON SALZBBERG

Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness

Real Happiness: The Power of Meditation (A 28 Day Program)

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The Art of Living: Vipassana Meditation as Taught by S.N. Goenka

Awakening the Buddha Within, by Lama Surya Das

Commit to Sit: Tools for Cultivating a Meditation Practice (From the pages of Tricycle: The Buddhist Review), edited by Joan Duncan Oliver

Insight Meditation: The Practice of Freedom, by Joseph Goldstein

Meditation: An In-Depth Guide, by Ian Gawler & Paul Bedson

Meditation for the Love of It: Enjoying Your Own Deepest Experience, by Sally Kempton     – The author studied with an Indian guru and practices a tantric form of meditation that is Hindu-based. I have studied and practiced Buddhist meditation (though not deeply), particularly of the Theravada, or vipassana, tradition. It is also known as insight meditation, although these distinctions are simplistic. I’m not as familiar with the practices and traditions behind the meditation Kempton teaches. Her book is accessible to the beginner, and her love and enthusiasm for the practice are contagious. I expect I will read this book again and again, as there is so much to glean from it.

Mind in the Balance: Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity, by B. Alan Wallace – I heard Wallace speak at a conference sponsored by Rochester’s Zen Center. He is so brilliant it can be hard to keep up with him. His books are not how-to meditation manuals, but religion, history, metaphysics, neuroscience, and more.

The Myth of Freedom and the Way of Meditation, by Chogyam Trungpa

Running With the Mind of Meditation: Lessons for Training Body and Mind, by Sakyong Mipham

The Silent Question: Meditating in the Stillness of Not-Knowing, by Toni Packer – Many years ago Packer was asked to become the abbot of the Rochester Zen Center, but she chose instead to leave Buddhism and form a secular meditation center known as the Stillwater Center in New York’s Finger Lakes region.

Why Meditate? Working with Thoughts and Emotions, by Matthieu Ricard   Excellent for beginners. He is a master, and a master writer.

Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind, by Shunryu Suzuki  – This one is a classic.

Yoga

The Wisdom of Yoga: A Seeker’s Guide to Extraordinary Living, by Stephen Cope

The Woman’s Book of Yoga and Health: A Lifelong Guide to Wellness, by Linda Sparrowe

The Yoga of Breath: A Step-by-Step Guide to Pranayama, by Richard Rosen