A Path with Heart: A Guide Through the Perils and Promises of Spiritual Life
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A Random House Kindle book.Amazon.com Review
In undertaking a spiritual life, we must make certain that our path is connected with our heart, according to leader and Buddhist monk Jack Kornfield. Since 1974 (long before it gained popularity in the 1990s), Kornfield has been teaching westerners how to integrate Eastern teaching into their daily lives. Through generous storytelling and unmitigated warmth, Kornfield offers this brilliant guidebook on living with attentiveness, meditation, and full-tilt compassion.
Part of what makes this book so accessible is Kornfield’s use of everyday descriptions to clarify the elusive lessons of spiritual transformation. For example, he opens with “the one seat” lesson taught to him by his esteemed teacher. Factually it means sitting in the center of a room and not being swayed or stirred by all the people and dramas happening around you. On a spiritual level it means sticking “with one practice and teacher among all of the possibilities,” writes Kornfield; “inwardly it means having the determination to stick with that practice through whatever difficulties and doubts arise until you have come to right clarity and understanding.” The same could be said for this “one book.” Among all the spiritual self-help books, this is a classic worth sticking with and returning to–a highly approachable teacher that can only lead to greater clarity and understanding. –Gail Hudson
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I downloaded a very long article written by a Bhikku. He is very outranged by Kornfield and others of his ilk. He states that Buddhism causes the stopping of ALL suffering. And that Kornfield’s mixing psychiatric help in the form of Jungian and Reichian therapy is rapidly turning American Buddhism into diluted root beer. I want to give a quote from this book. Then maybe you can choose. Page 245. “Problems such as early abuse, addiction, and difficulties of like and sexuality require the close, concious, and ongoing support of a skillful healer to resolve.” Well, my excellent friend Ed in San Antonio and I have had very small luck with therapists in an accumulation of over 60 years with a multitude of therapists. Jack’s pure like of psychiatric help and fame seemed to have rocked his brain. Does he know what he is doing? Nhat Hanh suggests in one of his books that what he calls “The Five Wonderful Precepts” can cure childhood wounds. If Jack thinks that we should
sit at a CoDA metting with a teddy bear Bear named “Fluffy” on our laps while we weep out what our Mommy and Daddy have done to us, then okay. Page 221. “We can reflect on how needs were met in our family tree, how limits were set, how insecurity was treated. Until then, we will repeat them in our spiitual life. Twelve Step meetings offer participants to hear the personal tales of additional members. This honest telling of our family tree tale can be a powerful process in our sorting out health from dependence, respect from dread, and finding a wise and right compassion.” Well, Jack, I’ve been to 120 12-step CoDA meetings. I’ve lead groups. And I’ve spilled my guts for ten minutes which is supposedly healthy. Everybody seems to be involved in the John Bradshaw view of blaming your parents and your past. This is dharma? I would read the books of Nhat Hanh and stay away from this filth. It will do you no excellent.
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
Jack Kornfield’s “A Path with HEART” is just another book of New Age “fluff”.
Like all New Age publications, it just rambles on, with no clear foundational assumptions, and no clear objective.
So why would I even bother reviewing it?
It was recommended to me by a Christian colleague. A couple of months later, I learned that my Christian colleage exemplified far more New Age doctrine, than Christian doctrine. In additional words, he wasn’t following Jesus Christ.
This is not entirely unusual in modern American, where Christians, regularly as not, are entirely confused as to what it is specifically, that they follow. In this sense, they will recommend New Age authors like Kornfield, as though they were just as authoritative in spiritual and worldly matters, as the Fathers of the Church.
Such books postulate, as does Jack Kornfield, the being of an identity termed
SPIRITUAL LIFE. After bandying such terminology about but, the thoughtful reader will realize that such terms have no point meaning. In fact, the sale and publication of New Age books altogether, means precisely that terminology permanently be vague, generalized, and inaccurate.
This is in strong contrast with Christian doctrine, which is at least precise in regard to the essential Christian propositions for:
(1) Originial Sin
and
(2) The necessity of Redemption by Jesus Christ
Moreover, New Age publications like Kornfields, present propositions for vague SPIRITUAL LIFE as an eclectic hodge-podge, or imitation, in which the reason of man plays a large role, in negotiating the roller-coaster of alternative doctrines from several religions, in the hopes of developing, abstractedly, a more advanced theology, which advances the individual above ever hurdle in life.
It does not work, and in fact, represents a kind of DEAD ZONE, wherein nobody ever stands for anything, and worse, nobody ever really does anything, additional than wander about in life, arguably, being nothing more than POLITE with everyone.
_________________________________________
I will offer a unadorned and simple example of a common New Age tactic. On page 23 of Kornfield’s book, the leader makes one of the many claims which are predictable of NEW AGE authors.
“Contemporary society fosters our mental trend to deny or suppress our awareness of reality.”—-sentence 1, paragraph 2, page 23, Chapter Two, “A Path with HEART” by Jack Kornfield
So, what’s the huge deal. Why is such a sentence problematic?
Because it basically, does not mean anything. None of the identities are factually identifiable, and no factual evidence exists, or is open to support the obscure premise.
Does such an IDENTITY as CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY EXIST? Does it do the things the leader claims it does?
Also, look at what the leader invites the reader to do. He invites you to assume an objective being for the identity referred to as REALITY.
So, does CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY exist as a REALITY?
Well, about as much as the U. S. Government regulates the Weather coming out of the North Pole; but try to rationally engage a NEW AGE leader concerning such a proposition.
No mechanism or methodology, operated by a CONTEMPORARY SOCIETY can factually be identified; but you see, this is the very BREAD & BUTTER of NEW AGE authors. They only run in the pretense of appearing to write factual things. They virtually never get caught writing something which CAN or CANNOT be factually substantiated.
Beyond this, are the large masses of people for whom NEW AGE publications seem to represent not merely an alternative philosophy, religion, or spirituality. The represent the leadership for an entirely alternative REALITY, and arguably, one that can never be identified in fact.
_______________________________________________
KORNFIELD continues:
“We relegate our poor to ghettos.”—–sentence 5, paragraph 3, page 23, Chapter Two, “A Path with HEART” by Jack Kornfield
In this paragraph, KORNFIELD lists any number of RELEGATIONS, based upon some vague proposition for:
(1) Collective guilt
(2) An identity statement regarding an unknown, referred to as WE.
WE do this. WE do that.
What is so odd about such generalizations is that they more or less presuppose that WE are in control of everything. Therefore, it is rational to conclude that you and I are possibly, GOD, and moreover, WE are reliable for every social scenario involving PEOPLE.
KORNFIELD does not identify really people; but rather identifies them as social stereotypes. He mentions:
(1) OLD PEOPLE
(2) MENTAL PATIENTS
(3) OUR POOR
KORNFIELD goes on to write, WE…this, and WE….that.
I don’t know how any human being can possibly maintain rational comprehension, wallowing around in such generalities; but it should be recalled, NEW AGE authors do not rely upon comprehension of anything in the SPECIFIC. All NEW AGE writing depends heavily upon GENERALITY, after GENERALITY, after GENERALITY.
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Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5
For persons of you who are bone idle to mow your lawn, this book is not for you. It’s thick and too intricate. I personally find the exercises between each chapters obnoxious. Go get Open Heart… by Dalai Lama, it’s much simpler read, very inspiring, and excellent glimpse into Eastern Buddhism.
Reader’s Rating: 2 / 5
A psychologist e-mailed that when I gave this book one-star before, I was very incorrect. He stated that he agreed with me in part, but that he has gotten results in the past by delving into the the childhood of some of his clients. But he agreed that there should be no blame. This book is a must read for ALL practioners. Jack makes a code for the ethics of teachers. This book covers all persons questions you are worried to question. Psychiatric help and meditation as a form of treatment is covered in detail. If you are going out of your mind, Jack has a whole algorithym of how to deal with these “demons” as he calls them. If this doesn’t work, go to step 2. And so into the world. So I would recommend this book for anyone, but not everybody. Jack states that meditation is not psychiatric help. Well, I talked to a secretary at the Insight Meditation Society which Jack made. And she told me that Insight Meditation is HER therapy. And please watch out a small for the suggested reading. Don’t blame anyone for the suffering you are in or it will just get worse. Thank you.
Reader’s Rating: 4 / 5
While it is very ‘pragmatic’, I reflect this will be it’s breakdown. All the mystery is replaced with how ‘meditation’ will be such an aid in building one righteous. EMPTINESS and NO-SELF (rather wondrous buddhist teachings) are treated, in my opinion, to a very one-sided interpretation. Only persons taken with ’sitting’ will find this book inspiring.
Here’s a sample:
‘As our development of self grows and our heart becomes less entangled, we start to learn a deeper truth about self. We do not have to improve ourselves; we just have to let go or what blocks our heart.’ (pg. 209)
This sounds rather too psychological for me. If its psychology we’re advocating (very pragmatic) then lets call a spade a spade. Aren’t we merely using ‘meditation’ to work on ourselves? Oh, and all persons ‘contradictory’ buddhist terms really are nothing more then the way Easterners talk about what we call psychology, only they use ‘meditation’ as a replacement for of a couch! It’s ok if one feels that way, but, that may obscure things that don’t fit that profile. The real danger here.
“Wishing to get out of birth and death, wishing to attain relief, you try to become unified; but one does not attain unification after apt homogenized. If you try to make yourself unified, you will certainly not attain unification.” Chan Master Foyan (1067-1120)
Reader’s Rating: 1 / 5