Culadasa blends neuroscience with traditional Buddhist techniques to guide the reader through ten distinct stages on the path of developing concentration and awareness. You’re provided with stage-specific instructions for your sits, and tools to overcome the obstacles you’ll experience along the way. In-between each stage are chapters that explore various aspects of how the mind functions, helping you better understand your experience in meditation and in daily life.

I highly recommend this book for anyone who’s practice has stagnated or if you only have a surface level understanding of what meditation aims to accomplish. It de-mystifies the process and makes it approachable no matter where you’re at. The technical and systematic style won’t be for everyone—some people prefer the simplicity of Zen or Nondual traditions—but if you want a more structured, science-based approach, I’d try it out.

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Daniel Ingram clearly lays out the core Buddhist teachings, the techniques required for deep practice, and the stages a meditator may pass through on the path of awakening. His work has inspired a new generation of practitioners, myself included, who appreciate the transparency that he presents this information with. He speaks openly about the highs and lows of this journey, the transformative power of these practices, and all the strange territory in-between. If you’re interested in taking your practice deeper I would highly recommend this book, I think it will be a valuable companion for you along the way. Daniel lays the entire meditation path out for you, inviting you to walk it and experience everything for yourself.

Here’s a link to his free online version.

Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha – Online Version
Daniel Ingrams Personal Website – PDF Download, E-reader Download, Audiobook

Seeing that Frees focuses on a different dimension of practice than most meditation books. It’s packed with “Insight” exercises that help you begin to deconstruct the many ways we grasp at experience and create suffering throughout the day. Whether you’re seated on a meditation cushion, out for a walk, or sitting on a bus, he offers a wide range of practices that you can bring into your daily life.

The practices in this book are designed to disrupt your normal patterns of perception by deconstructing your experience so you can see things as they truly are, rather than seeing through your conditioning. As you shift away from your conditioned ways of seeing the world, your mind begins to hold less tightly to ideas and experiences, allowing it to feel freer and more open as you move through the world.

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This book was invaluable in helping me understand my own awakening process. Adyashanti speaks in clear and direct language about what’s happening during an awakening and its implications. I found his blunt style to be really refreshing. I’ve also spoken with a number of people who found this book—and Adyashanti’s teachings in general—to be helpful during the early stages of their own awakening process. His books and talks seem to have a great ability to bring the reader or viewer into a place of stillness. You can find his YouTube channel below.

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Adyashanti YouTube

This book is great for anyone who is serious about developing very high levels of concentration. Leigh goes in-depth into the eight “Jhanas”, states of mental absorption that can be accessed once the mind remains steady and peaceful for long periods of time. He outlines the experience of them and provides instructions for entering into and shifting between each one.

Although it’s inspiring to hear about the different states that can be achieved, this book won’t be of much use until you have a solid footing in your concentration practice.

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This is the only book on the list that doesn’t focus entirely on meditation and Buddhist practices. Using a clear and pragmatic approach, Damo takes the reader through a systematic process of developing our bodies energetic system. This journey moves from awakening our lower energy centre, to building and moving Qi to nourish our body and open various energetic pathways. These practices take us deep inside, opening us to the subtle energetic world within our being. The byproduct of this work is that we start to bring our body and mind into harmony, leading to higher levels of health and a deeper connection to ourselves and the world around us.

You can find more about this work on the Qigong & Tai Chi page.

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