The Meditation Retreat Manual: In Search of Ultimate Peace

Embark on the most rewarding and illuminating journey of your life, with this step by step guide to mastering internal reflection Meditation can be a long, and for beginners, often an intimidating process to embark on as the landmarks on the meditative journey can be mind-blowing, mind-numbing, heavenly, disturbing, transformative and more. However, in his fascinating book, Peter Stuckings provides a wealth of advice on the questions people might encounter when starting on the practice of intensive meditation. In an elegant and witty prose, The Meditation Retreat Manual covers everything from basics, such as what you need to bring on a retreat and how to sit well, to the more intensive mental and conceptual challenges commonly faced. The book works as a reference text, so readers can dip in and out of topics that interest them most. There is also a selection of meditation instructions to pique the interest of beginner readers, as well as a special focus on meditation methods with roots in Buddhist teachings.

Table of Contents:
INTRODUCTION PART I: RETREATS: PHYSICAL  CHAPTER ONE - Meditation equipment CHAPTER TWO - Noble Silence CHAPTER THREE - Meals CHAPTER FOUR - To bring or not to bring CHAPTER FIVE - Journaling CHAPTER SIX - Pali chanting and formalities CHAPTER SEVEN - Finding a centre CHAPTER EIGHT - Discomforts and inconveniences CHAPTER NINE - Ordination on retreat CHAPTER TEN - Donations CHAPTER ELEVEN - Visas and international travel CHAPTER TWELVE - A day on retreat INTERLUDE 1 -  Concentration meditation instructions PART II: RETREATS: MENTAL CHAPTER THIRTEEN - Preparing yourself CHAPTER FOURTEEN - Commitment vs. Quitting CHAPTER FIFTEE - Devices CHAPTER SIXTEEN - East and West CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - Teachers CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - Continuity of practice CHAPTER NINETEEN - Sleep time CHAPTER TWENTY - Mental health CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE - Other meditators CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO - Leaving retreat INTERLUDE 2 -insight meditation instructions
 PART III: MEDITATION: PHYSICAL CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE - Morality CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR - Aches and pains CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE- Postures CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX - Samatha vs. Vipassana CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN - Restraint of the senses CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT - Anicca CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE - The meditation hall CHAPTER THIRTY - Exercising 
 CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE 
 - Daily practice post-retreat INTERLUDE 3 - Walking meditation instructions PART IV: MEDITATION: MENTAL CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO - Effort CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE - The Five Hindrances CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR - Maps CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE - Faith CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX - Mindfulness vs. Concentration CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN - Conceit CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT - Enlightenment CHAPTER THIRTY-NINE - Dark Night FURTHER RESOURCES ABOUT THE AUTHOR  

About the Author :
Peter Stuckings comes from Australia and has lived around Asia for most of his life due to a fascination with the region's ancient wisdom traditions. He obtained a Masters Degree in Buddhist Studies from Hong Kong University, and also completed Pali language studies in Sri Lanka and with Oxford University. To make the most of the region's training opportunities, he spent some years hopping from country to country and monastery to monastery, which was the inspiration for this book. Nowadays he has taken the robes and dwells as a monk in the forests of Sri Lanka. His blog, called Places To Meditate, lists meditation centres of good standing throughout the region.