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Chapter
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The
Tao of Contemplation:
Resourcing the Inner Life
Samuel
Weiser, Inc, 2000.
$12.95
Order this book
Here
is a book that pierces right to the heart of spiritual transformation. It is a guidebook not just for what has been
narrowly defined as contemplation, but for living a more harmonious
and balanced life. Practical
exercises throughout the book make it a course in itself.
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What the reviewers say…
A certain poetry is evident in every line, just
as her depth of reflection resonates in the book's design, constructed
to ease our way onto the path of "entering silence" and bringing
us to the recognition of how spirit exists in everything. The Tao
of Contemplation, with its gently enfolding grace, invites us to take
up more permanent residence in that place of peace within.
Heidi Rain,
reviewer, Spirit of Change.
It
was a pleasure and comfort to read this book. Post-it tabs marked many passages containing
some of the pithiest articulations of inner and outer states that I had
read in some time….Her words just glow.
Cynthia W. Butler, reviewer, Venture Inward
From the Introduction
Contemplative
life is nothing esoteric. It is a simple bloom not frequently found in
the climate of contemporary Western culture. We have been too busy to
cultivate the silence, simplicity, and emptiness necessary to reach the
fullness of mystical life. And yet the path is not as inaccessible as
we may first imagine.
We can all live a more contemplative life. There is not one way, but many
ways. We can start wherever we are and let a more contemplative lifestyle
evolve naturally; it is an expression of certain aspects of our being.
It is the stillness and coolness of a quiet mind, the openness of a surrendered
heart, the simplicity of just being ourselves. It is the balance of not
too tight and not too loose.
We will open more eagerly to contemplative life if we recognize it as
something that is rich and juicy. If it is only stern and dry, those with
a joyful heart will not be as interested. What a relief it is to discover
that we don’t have to behave like a monk! There is room to monkey around
a little. True Nature is not grim.
The Tao of Contemplation takes
the essence of contemplative life (the elements of silence, solitude,
simplicity, surrender, receptivity, and an orientation toward direct encounter
with the One Reality) and combines these with the naturalness, spontaneity,
and joy of a Taoist approach. I find them to be perfect partners.
The book straddles East and West, shuttling back and forth between the
language of theistic and nontheistic systems, finding the differences
totally unimportant to the true posture of contemplation. Exercises throughout
the text help readers integrate and embody the material. A few, like the
exercise on open presence, can be used as a practice.
The book is sequenced in a way that reflects the process of inner work.
The more practical issues are placed up front, and the deepest parts are
saved for the end. The first two chapters describe the context and approach
of the book. They begin to build a definition of contemplation and its
place in spiritual and personal growth work. In the first chapter, I differentiate
between two journeys: one to find ourselves and one to lose ourselves. I try to show how these two journeys relate
and how contemplation figures into each of them. The second chapter describes
the more intuitive and individual approach to contemplation that I am
calling “the natural way.”
The next four chapters are about creating the elements of a contemplative
lifestyle. Chapter 3 is about the need to create empty space in one’s
life, and Chapter 4 discusses the issues involved in returning to a simpler
way of living. Chapter 5 describes the balance between restraint and enjoyment,
the much championed “Middle Way.” In Chapter 6, this is applied to relationships,
finding that both solitude and intimacy have an important place in spiritual
life.
Just as the first star comes out when it is dark enough to see it, our
Deeper Self comes into range when we are quiet enough, clear enough, and
sensitive enough to perceive it. The next three chapters address this.
Chapter 7 is about the many ways people can cultivate a state of inner
quiet. Chapter 8 develops the theme of receptivity, and Chapter 9 explores
the central quality of openness.
In Chapter 10, I come back to the concept of the two journeys and the
importance of working on the personality. I introduce a method for staying
with one’s immediate experience as a useful tool in both psychological
and spiritual work.
Chapter 11 is about letting go and Chapter 12 is about the deepest surrender
of all–letting go of the separate self. This leads into the last two chapters
which are about the mystical side of spiritual life. Chapter 13 focuses
on the importance of love. The book ends (Chapter 14) with the jewels
of the night, the jewels of mystical union and other precious experiences
that happen on the way to this union. There is no question: contemplative
life is rich indeed.
I don’t think there will ever be a definitive text on how to create a
lifestyle that allows for more contact with spirit. There are too many
different ways. It is my hope that The
Tao of Contemplation will support you in moving toward the depths
in a way that is natural to you.
Listen, the Silence is calling.
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