Presented, like a 12-step daily reader, in little chapterbursts, this is a guide to pure meditation. That is, meditation not "in order to relax, to experience a special state, to become a better person, to reduce some stress or pain, to break out of old habits and patterns, to become free or enlightened"--although those are "all valid reasons to take up meditation"--but for what Kabat-Zinn calls "mindfulness"--a waking from the dream of knowing what our lives are about and where we're headed to the realization that each of us is always in just one place and moment. Beyond that realization, we may achieve wisdom--at least so thought the Buddha and other sages Kabat-Zinn cites. In his book's three parts, Kabat-Zinn presents, first, the rationale for taking up "a personal practice of mindfulness," then some matters of meditational form (e.g., "Dignity," "Posture," "How Long to Practice?"), and last, applications and perspectives on mindfulness. Throughout his jargon-free, directly written text, Kabat-Zinn sprinkles suggestions for practice, and he appends a list of helpful tapes.
"Meditation is the art of paying attention, of listening to your heart. Rather than withdrawing from the world, meditation can help you enjoy it more fully, more effectively, and more peacefully. In Wherever You Go, There You Are, Jon Kabat-Zinn provides access to the essence of meditation."—Dean Ornish, MD, author of Dr. Dean Ornish's Program for Reversing Heart Disease
"Want to meet the most interesting, exciting person you will ever know? Let Jon Kabat-Zinn introduce you to YOU. Nowhere else in the literation of meditation can you find so simple and commonsensical a path to yourself."—Norman Lear, television producer, Los Angeles
"This book shines with an exquisite simplicity and straightforwardness. Jon Kabat-Zinn is one of the best teachers of mindfulness you will ever meet." —Jack Kornfield, author of A Path with Heart and After the Ecstasy, the Laundry
"Ideally, meditation is not something we do, but something we live. Jon Kabat-Zinn points the way to this living spirit with clarity, ease, and poetry."—Sharon Salzberg, author of Lovingkindness and Faith
"Wherever You Go, There You Are is a remarkably clear and practical guide to meditation. This is a truly profound book in its deceptive simplicity and insight. Dr. Jon Kabat-Zinn truly lives what he teaches."—Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier, Stanford University School of Medicine, author of Mind as Healer, Mind as Slayer
"Once more Jon Kabat-Zinn illuminates the simplicity and depth of the meditative path with the clarity of his own wisdom. In this insightful book he reminds us that the grist for awakening is no further from us than the moment we are presently in."—Christina Feldman, Gaia House, U.K., author of Women Awake and Silence
"Jon Kabat-Zinn has made an important contribution to modern health care with research done at his Stress Reduction Clinic, and in his other work with patients of many kinds. I trust him completely, because his writing so obviously comes out of his own honestly reported experience, and I admire him greatly because of his outstanding accomplishments in a culture that is in many ways antagonistic to the process of taking responsibility for own health and being. This book is a delight to read: full of warmth, love, and wisdom. I will recommend it to our own cancer patients."—Alastair J. Cunningham, PhD in Cell Biology, PhD in Psychology, C. Psych, Ontario Cancer Institute
