Start Here Now An Open-Hearted Guide to the Path and Practice of Meditation

A concise, jargon-free guide to learning what Buddhist meditation is—and isn't—with advice on how to start a meditation practice

If you want to meditate but have no idea where to begin, then best-selling author and Buddhist teacher Susan Piver is here to help. Her book Start Here Now contains everything you need to know in order to begin—and maintain—your own meditation practice. Piver covers a variety of essential topics such as:

· What meditation is (and what it is not)
· The three most common misconceptions about meditation
· How to overcome obstacles that get in the way of your practice
· The positive effects of meditation on relationships, creativity, and difficult emotions
· Frequently asked questions

Piver presents meditation as something more than the self-help technique du jour—it is a path to love, joy, and courage. This book contains two self-paced meditation programs to help you start here—now!

SUSAN PIVER is an author, meditation instructor, and founder of the virtual mindfulness community, the Open Heart Project. She has taught thousands of people how to meditate. Her books include How Not to Be Afraid of Your Own Life, The Wisdom of a Broken Heart, and the New York Times bestseller The Hard Questions. She has appeared on Oprah, The Today Show, The CBS Early Show, The Tyra Banks Show, and other national television programs in connection with her books. She leads workshops and retreats around the world.

Introduction
1. Benefits
2. What Meditation Is
3. What Meditation Is Not
4. Common Misconceptions
5. Kinds of Meditation
6. Three Yanas
7. How to Choose
8. Our Practice: Shamatha
9. How to Meditate
10. Tips for Establishing Your Practice
11. On Posture
12. Keeping It Sacred
13. Setting Up Your Space
14. Obstacles and Antidotes
15. FAQs
16. About the 8-Part Class
Appendix A: Important Figures
Appendix B: Personal Story
Appendix C: Resources