When it comes to meditation practices, the body is as important as the mind
Will Johnson is a certified bodyworker and director of the Institute for Embodiment Training. He is the author of more than a dozen books and lives with his wife in Delicias, Costa Rica, where they run the Hollow Bamboo Retreat Centre.
"When Will Johnson first offered The Posture of Meditation
in 1996, meditation posture was widely seen as a relatively
unimportant, somewhat peripheral aspect of one's practice. This
book changed all that, and, over the course of the next 25 years,
Johnson convinced more and more practitioners that without the
three somatic foundations-alignment, relaxation, and
resilience-meditation can't go anywhere. With those three
fundaments, it can and does go everywhere, right up to realization.
And it doesn't matter what your meditative tradition is. Johnson's
book has deeply influenced several generations of meditators and
meditation teachers. He has changed the conversation. He has been a
bright light in the darkness of the disembodied-as he says, the
'somatophobic'-spirituality of our times. Hence, the reissuing of
his groundbreaking work must be a source of delight and joy for all
who practice and teach meditation."-Reggie Ray, author of
Somatic Descent and The Awakening Body
"Finally, after years in the shadows, the somatic turn is
revolutionizing modern Buddhism. Will Johnson, with the gentleness
and clarity of a master meditator, leads us home to the body where
the wakefulness we have been seeking awaits. The Posture of
Meditation, a true classic, demonstrates how body and breath
are our true spiritual home, how the simplest of practices ground,
enliven, and free you. This path of somatic dharma will not only
transform your mindfulness practice-it may well change your
life."-Willa Miller, author of Everyday Dharma
"Instantly enriching and insightful. Will offers a refreshing
exploration of the body's central role in the path of
transformation. Filled with 'a-ha' moments, this book breathes new
life into the core concepts and philosophical underpinnings of
meditation. Anyone desiring deeper clarity in their practice and
life would benefit from reading this."-Ralph De La Rosa, author of
The Monkey Is the Messenger and Don't Tell Me to
Relax
"Will Johnson's much-welcomed second edition to his classic book,
The Posture of Meditation, is a poetic and powerful
declaration of the centrality of bodily experience in our task of
waking up. Going thoroughly through and then beyond the important
physicalities of sitting practice, Johnson deftly shows us how
sensation and movement can be our primary delivery systems of
resilience, quiescence, and profound presence. He calls this
somatic dharma, and it is indeed a powerful teaching. He
simply and clearly reveals the ways in which our physical
aliveness-our being with our ongoing shimmering sensations and
amoeba-like movements-carries us into awakened states of mind. This
in turn helps us to experience a 'felt union with all.' Once again,
a classic is born."-Christine Caldwell, author of
Bodyfulness and Getting Our Bodies Back
"Spiritual awakening is not an escape from the human body, but
rather a conscious surrender into the experience of being fully
human. Will Johnson understands the vital importance of humanity
realizing its true nature as living form, living
embodiment."-Robert K. Hall, MD, cofounder of the Lomi Foundation
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