Unconditional Bliss

We can be happy in spite of hardship, heartbreak, or a job we hate. Pie-in-the-sky? This down-to-earth guy shows us how. When personal tragedy struck, Howard Cushnir already knew the Zen practice of staying in the moment. But he wasn't prepared for the gift of grace he received. One day, all but lost, he was suddenly suffused with a complete sense of well-being---not a passing experience, but one available from then on. Paying close attention to the changes in his own inner states, Howard soon realized that feeling blissful is a choice we can always make, regardless of our circumstances.

This semi-autobiography has been used to explain the science and logistics of living a cancer-free life. A sincere attempt has been made to bridge secular and spiritual life, the science of cancer, and the science of wellness. This book conveys different ways to beat cancer and prevent cancer by systematically attacking the cancer cells with an anti-cancer lifestyle. The book has five sections. The first and the fifth sections summarize the book for a busy reader. The second section is on fighting cancer as the last game of your life by comparing this battle to world cup finals of any sport you like by diligent, unfailing team building and intelligent, blissful execution. The third section is about the prevention of cancer. Cancer survivors have to prevent cancer to remain cancer free. All of us have to prevent cancer in our life to be cancer-free. This section is an amalgamation of the science of cancer, mathematics of cancer, an anticancer lifestyle, and appreciating and realizing the infinite power within us. It explains about surrounding the body with healthy five elements (earth, water, air, fire and space) as in healthy food, healthy liquids, healthy air, healthy level of stress, and healthy companions to heal from and prevent cancer. Tapping into the infinite strength within us which the author calls as ‘Infinity’ is a common thread through fighting cancer and preventing cancer. In the fourth section on a commoner experiencing infinity, various spiritual paths to unveil that infinity have been quoted as the different methods to experience it. By democratizing spirituality, the author stresses that we all have access to Infinity, God, or Brahman in this life without waiting for it to be an afterlife experience. Some universal, mostly non-denominational, contemporary, non-dualistic and potent Hindu, Sikh and Buddhist texts have been quoted to efficiently describe these methods. These are logical and contemporary and can be practiced by all citizens of this universe of all faiths and ethnicity including atheists.

Stephen Phillips has devoted his career to excavating some of the most valuable gems of Indian philosophy and bringing them into conversation with contemporary thought. This volume honors him and follows his lead by continuing his lifelong project: faithfully interpreting Sanskrit texts to think along with their authors about ideas that still perplex us today. It features ten new essays focusing on epistemology, logic, and metaphysics from outstanding philosophers and scholars of Sanskrit philosophy, with contributions varying in methodology: both historical and cross-cultural. Further, in addition to essays on Nyāya and Advaita Vedānta, it engages with Navya-Nyāya (“new Nyāya”), an important but understudied part of Indian philosophy. Through these investigations, in conversation with Phillips's groundbreaking work, the contributors show the value of cross-cultural engagement for philosophical progress. The Vindication of the World will be of interest to scholars and advanced students working in Indian philosophy, comparative philosophy, and, more generally, epistemology, logic, and metaphysics.

Advances in Contemplative Psychotherapy offers mental health professionals of all disciplines and orientations the most comprehensive and rigorous introduction to the art of integrating contemplative psychology, ethics, and practices, including mindfulness, compassion, and embodiment techniques. It brings together clinicians, scholars, and thought leaders of unprecedented caliber, featuring some of the most eminent pioneers in the rapidly growing field of contemplative psychotherapy. The new edition offers an expanded array of effective contemplative interventions, contemplative psychotherapies, and contemplative approaches to clinical practice. New chapters discuss how contemplative work can effect positive psychosocial change at the personal, interpersonal, and collective levels to address racial, gender, and other forms of systemic oppression. The new edition also explores the cross-cultural nuances in the integration of Buddhist psychology and healing practices by Western researchers and clinicians and includes the voices of leading Tibetan doctors. Advances in Contemplative Psychotherapy offers a profound and synoptic overview of one of psychotherapy’s most intriguing and promising fields.

Focusing on techniques of spiritual development and awareness of the presence of spirit in ordinary life, Robbins challenges the reader to move beyond spiritual blockages and obstacles and raise the vibrational frequencies that bring us to greater enlightenment. This reduces negative emotions such as despair, meaninglessness, and unhappiness. Robbins wants to help us increase our pro-social activity thereby contributing to a more open-minded service towards others. In this book he shows how to use effective techniques for practical and spiritual change while following a path of heart.

Engages readers with its original philosophical and pragmatic analysis of traditional Asian religions, philosophy, meditation practice, and the supreme spiritual ideals associated with the Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist traditions. The text boldly bridges the theory/practice distinction. A central underpinning rests on the assumption that meditation practice without theory is groundless and that theory without practice is useless. Identifies and analyzes common elements found across traditions in which the practice of meditation plays a central role in human development, and readers will find a wealth of detailed reflection on the relationship between spiritual growth and meditation practice from the Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist perspectives. From publisher description.

For centuries, philosophers and theologians have pondered questions such as Who are we? and What is the self? Awakening to the Dream is a book about you and your true identity. Awakening to the Dream is a very clear, approachable overview of the enigmatic philosophy of Advaita Vedanta, also known as non duality. Essentially, this is a book about you. It points to and from the source of your true identity. The clear seeing that it refers to is neither complex nor simple. It is not something exclusive for intellectual or spiritual elite, nor is it remote or hiding in the future. It is all inclusive, pure presence, closer than your breath. It is the heart of hearts, your birthright and innermost self. This is your invitation to remember what was never really forgotten.

‘At the Center of our being is a point of pure truth, ‘ wrote Thomas Merton, ‘ a point or spark which belongs entirely to God...This little point of nothingness and of absolute poverty is the pure glory of God in us.’ Merton called this Center Point, Le Point Vierge the Virginal Point. Here, we and God are untied in a Mystery of inexpressible Presence. LE POINT VIERGE: Meditations on the Mystery of Presence is a year of daily meditations exploring the Mystery of Presence as we experience It in the Virginal Point in our hearts. Practicing Presence is a sure and certain way to make fresh contact with God. God is not an Object of our understanding but a Mystery of Presence encountered in the Virginal Point of our hearts. It is hoped that by reading LE POINT VIERGE, the reader will discover the truth of St. Augustine’s words: ‘You, O God, were more inward to me than my most inward parts and higher than my highest’ (Confessions 3.6.11).