Radiant Mindfulness - by Will Johnson (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Embodied mindfulness in daily life

- Explores the culminating instruction of the Buddha in the Satipatthana Sutta to breathe through the whole body

- Teaches you how to alter your physiology to move beyond the static consciousness of mindfulness to a natural, spontaneous state of embodied awareness

- Provides instruction and somatic koans for practicing the core principles of radiant mindfulness--awakening the body, liberating the breath, and opening up to vision and sound

Drawing on the Buddha's teachings, Will Johnson provides a daily practice that moves beyond the static consciousness of mindfulness to a natural, spontaneous state of embodied awareness. Acknowledging the foundational importance and structural limitations of mindfulness practice, he explores the often overlooked culminating instruction of the Buddha in the Satipatthana Sutta to breathe through the whole body.

Through somatic reflections and meditations, Johnson shows you how to alter your physiology to change consciousness. He explains how to move through levels of conscious awareness, from the passive observation of the breath and the reality of this present moment to radiant mindfulness--an awakening of the body, liberation of breath, and opening up to vision and sound. In this state, the "I" disappears but awareness becomes heightened and unfiltered, allowing a direct experience of unity with the world and within oneself.

This book offers ways to spontaneously achieve the enlightened state beyond the mind that the Buddha taught as the true goal of meditation. The simple yet profound practice of radiant mindfulness can transform everyday life into a path of spiritual awakening.

Review Quotes

"Radiant Mindfulness is Will Johnson's masterwork--a clear, potent, and deeply embodied guide to living a wakeful life. Drawing on decades of experiential insight, he shows with rare precision that true mindfulness does not emerge from transcending the body but from entering it fully. A must-read handbook for anyone seeking to free their practice from the confines of the meditation cushion."-- "Lama Willa Blythe Baker, PhD, founder of Natural Dharma Fellowship and author of The Wakeful Body an"

"Will Johnson continues to expand and illuminate the truth of the Buddha's teaching. From Johnson's seminal work with the posture of meditation and movement in stillness, to resting our practice more expansively, to breathing with the whole body and expanding our experience to sight and sound, we now move off the cushion and into our lives, radiantly. Mindfulness, now so ubiquitous in our world, has a true and firm foundation, somatically based in his wisdom and masterful guidance. This book invites us to more fully expand into our lives with ease and capacity to connect with the shimmering nature of what is present, always."-- "Jackie Ashley LPC, BC-DMT, ACS, ESMHL, somatic psychotherapist and equine facilitated psychotherapis"

About the Author

Will Johnson is the director of the Institute for Embodiment Training and the founder of Bambu Hueco, a retreat center in Costa Rica that views the body as the doorway to spiritual growth and transformation. The author of several books, including Breathing through the Whole Body, The Radical Path of Somatic Dharma, Breathing as Spiritual Practice, and Eyes Wide Open, he teaches a deeply body-oriented approach to sitting meditation at Buddhist centers around the world. He lives in Costa Rica.