Sheena has written a review of ‘The Breath’ by Vessantara. You can find the book in the Ipswich Buddhist Centre (IBC) shop.
Vessantara is one of my favourite Triratna authors. His relaxed writing style is very easy to read.
The Breath is a short introduction to the Mindfulness of Breathing.
Vessantara begins with exercises exploring the breath, before introducing the four stages of the Mindfulness practice.
Having covered the basics, he then goes on to explore setting up a regular meditation practice, how to work with some common issues that arise such as working with energy and maintaining interest in our practice, and encourages us to take “awareness mini-breaks”. He finishes with a look at some of the wider benefits of a regular mediation practice.
Although basically a beginner’s book, I still find it helpful at those times when I struggle with my meditation.
And if you find The Breath helpful, you may interested in The Body, Vessantara’s book on the Metta Bhavana.
