The 20 best books on meditation and relaxation

Although meditation is an ancient practice, it is very present today. Much of the blame for this is that it brings many benefits to people's health, especially in these times. For example, meditation mitigates the effects of stress, improves attention span, helps control emotions and pain management...

• Related article: “Science-backed benefits of meditation”

Books on meditation and relaxation

Seeing this, it is not surprising that many people practice meditation. If you want to go deeper into this subject or you are a person who wants to start meditative practice, in the following lines you can find a list of books on meditation and relaxation which can be very useful.

• You may be interested in: "The 8 types of meditation and their characteristics"

1. 50 Exercises to Learn to Meditate (Géraldine Prévot-Gigant)

Meditation has proven to be very effective in improving the well-being and health of people; however, some practitioners do not meditate well or adhere to the practice because of unreasonable expectations they may have of it. This text provides a

collection of exercises so that both beginners and experts can meditate in the best way and achieve the emotional balance they need to live in harmony.

• Interested? Get more information about him by clicking here.

2. Awakening the heart: The art of loving oneself well (Sandra García Sánchez-Beato)

The book "Awakening the heart: The art of loving oneself well", written by the psychologist Sandra García Sánchez-Beato, is a practical manual in which we will find a wide variety of therapeutic resources, reflections and meditations with which to reconnect with our innate goodness.

This book is aimed at all those people who want to learn how to find the way to awaken the heart and incorporate into their lives new ways of loving themselves and others the rest.

• You can read more about this book at this page.

3. Basic course for the practice of Zen (Robet Aitken)

Robert Aiken puts all his knowledge at the service of individuals who decide to start meditative practice. A very entertaining guide in which they are reviewed the foundations of this ancient practice of Zen and provides many tips to make us more aware of our internal and external experience. It helps us to better relate to the environment and empowers us in the face of life.

• If you want to read more about this book, Click here.

4. Meditate: perennial wisdom (Vicente Merlo)

This book deals with meditation from a practical perspective, since the work contains a CD that includes up to 10 guided meditations by Vicente Merlo. In addition, the book provides a lot of theoretical content, dealing with aspects of both Buddhism and Hinduism.

5. The Practice of Mindfulness (Jon Kabat-Zinn)

Jon Kabat-Zinn is one of the great masters of meditation in the West and the character who popularized the mindfulness also in the western world. This book is a complete work that explains the theoretical and practical foundations that help to understand the practice of Mindfulness and the different types of meditation that are part of it.

• In this link You will find more information about the book.

6. The Art of Living: Vipassana Meditation (William Hart)

Vipassana meditation is a type of meditation that focus awareness of the breath, tuning the air that enters and leaves through the nose. It also focuses on labeling thoughts and experiences as they arise. This book is undoubtedly ideal for learning to practice vipassana meditation, very useful for the Western rhythm of life.

• To learn more, go to this link.

7. Initiation to Mindfulness (Vicente Simón)

Much is said today about Mindfulness, in large part, thanks to Vicente Simón, a doctor, psychiatrist and professor of Psychobiology, and one of the best-known promoters of this practice. This work is a short manual-type work that helps beginners to delve into meditative practice and Mindfulness.

• To read more about him, Click here.

8. A new vision of Buddhism: synthesis of the Eastern soul and Western knowledge (Vichitr Ratna Dhiravamsa)

A text that tries to adapt the teachings of Vichitr Ratna Dhiravamsa to Western culture, to improve the psychological development of those people who wish to acquire greater well-being and, therefore, so much, greater emotional balance. A spiritual book, full of oriental teachings. However, very useful for today's pace of life.

• You will find more information here.

9. Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (Suzuki Roshi)

This book was published in 1970, but it is still one of the best manuals for learning Zen meditation. In the opening chapters, topics such as, for example, the proper posture for meditation and how to connect with the breath, but then delves into key aspects of meditation and the Zen tradition. It's a perfect manual to return to when necessary.

• If you want to read more about the book, this is your link.

10. Living Crises Fully (Jon Kabat-Zinn)

Moments of crisis can make us go through delicate moments, which means that we can lose our way a bit and we need to find our emotional balance again. Jon Kabat-Zinn teaches us to live fully in those delicate moments of life.

• Learn more about the book here.

11. Meditation: Developing Positive Emotions (Jon Kabat-Zinn)

Meditation is key to learning to manage and regulate emotions in a more adaptive way, as it helps us improve our self-knowledge and to find the ideal mentality to master emotions, thanks to the development of attention full. This work focuses on the Mettabhavana meditative technique, which has its origin in the beginnings of Buddhism and which, to this day, continues to be very effective.

12. There's no right way to meditate and other lessons (Yumi Sakugawa)

It's a cartoon book, and a brilliant work introducing meditative practice. While other books may focus more on theoretical knowledge, this book is rather practical. It is suitable for all audiences.

• If you would like to read more about this interesting meditation book, Click here.

13. It Won't Always Be This Way: The Path of Personal Transformation (Shunryu Suzuki)

Shunryu Suzuki was a well-known Zen master, who frequently spoke in his talks about the importance of having a beginner's mind, that is, an observant mind and not influenced by prejudices. In this book are some of his great teachings.

• Interested? Go on this link.

14. I Walk with Heart (Jack Kornfield)

A well-known meditation manual, which is in its 4th edition in Spanish. Mix humor with recommendations and suggestions so that the reader learns to meditate and get the most out of this practice. A very useful book for psychotherapists.

• Here you will find more information about the book.

15. Be Peace (Thich Nhat Hanh)

Thich Nhat Hanh is one of the most important figures of the generation that has allowed the Buddhist teachings to be known in the Western world. While the vast majority of his books focus on compassion, this one is perfect. for the beginner who yearns to understand how to live peace. His teachings on how to relate to everyday feelings and perceptions can be very helpful to the reader.

16. How to meditate (Pema Chodron)

If your goal is to start meditating from scratch, this book by Pema Chodron is ideal. It is a work that deals with a fundamental theme, that of understanding and accepting strong emotions. Treating yourself with love can make the difference between living in well-being or, instead, suffering from discomfort.

• To get it or know more about it, Click here.

17. Meditate day by day (Christophe André)

The day to day can become difficult if we have a mentality that leads us to it. Thinking negatively and living in unrealistic expectations can be detrimental to one's emotional health. This text by Christophe André is an ideal meditation guide for those people who want to learn to practice Mindfulness with the guided meditations in CD format that this work includes.

• In this page you will find more information about the book.

18. Meditate with Mandalas (Michal Beaucaire)

Mandalas are one of the artistic and cultural elements associated with meditation, which you can find out about in this article: “Mandalas: the Buddhist wheels used in meditation”. This work makes it possible to meditate with these elements, since they facilitate and make meditation more effective. Undoubtedly, a different but very instructive text.

• Beam click here to know more about him.

19. Meditation in 10 minutes (Sofía Correa and Vicente Nuñez)

In these times, the accelerated standard of living can lead us to suffer serious problems such as stress. The authors of this text, aware of this reality, have created this work full of content and techniques to reach a new level of peace in the life. It is a practical text to reduce anxiety and revitalize the body.

• To read its first pages, Click here and then on its cover.

20. Tale of an Awakening (David Smith)

This is an inspirational text for anyone who wants delve into buddhism and know the most important aspects of this way of thinking and behaving. The book has two distinct sections. One of them is a kind of autobiography of the author and the other is an interview that invites us to discover the soul of the human being.

• If you are interested, Click here.