I have been in book writing mode for the last little while. Three years? I love the idea of Amazon and being able to publish instantly in ebook format without having to worry about actually printing a book on paper, editors, and the rest of it.
I wrote a book about two years ago, “Meditation for Beginners – a 22 day course” that is picking up at Amazon and finally doing pretty well. I am not sure why book sales tend to ramp up there over time after release… I can only guess that, as more websites try to sell it to make commission – it results in more sales. Don’t be discouraged if you write a book at Amazon and it doesn’t take off immediately. It might take a year or so.
Two days ago I started another book with a topic in the meditation space, this one about – mindfulness. I haven’t chosen a name for it yet. It will an introduction to mindfulness, have some exercises, and have some of my experiences told in first person.
I used mindfulness early on, in conjunction with meditation. Using both, I think the benefit was compounded – and I was able to progress quickly through some of the meditation experiences that seem to take others years to reach.
Meditation and mindfulness together are a tag-team of sorts. Meditation is the focus on a very small sense object like the subtle feeling of breath on the inside of your nostrils. Meditation excludes all other objects. Mindfulness is similar, and yet the focus is bigger. Much bigger. Mindfulness includes all that is going on at the moment. Mindfulness includes, not excludes.
Mindfulness is something that new students don’t seem to grasp quickly. I’ve talked with many people that wonder if they’re doing it “right’.
I think the problem is that many of them read an in-depth book on the subject, filled with new vocabulary and they lose sight of the point. Mindfulness is exceptionally easy… there is little effort required. To continue on in mindfulness requires a lot of effort – but, it isn’t substantial effort – it’s easy effort. Refocus the mind on being mindful of the moment. It’s like a redirection of the mind to be present instead of thinking about the past or future.
So, this book will be a basic guide for meditation that anyone – beginner or those with some knowledge, can use and grasp the concept quickly.
Do you practice mindfulness alongside your meditation practice? Without a meditation practice?