From Publishers Weekly
Tibetan Buddhist practice is elaborate, esoteric and challenging for Westerners. This book by Lowenthal, a psychotherapist, meditation teacher and longtime student of Tibetan Buddhism, breaks ground as an English-language guide to the technique of dark retreat, a traditional Tibetan spiritual practice that a Western, non-monastic Buddhist can experience by sitting in a sound- and light-proof room. The dark retreat affords a clearer view of how mental and physical processes generate an individual's experience of reality. Lowenthal explains the practice, frames it in the context of teachings from the Buddhist and Bon spiritual traditions of Tibet, and uses his journal, recorded during his own retreats, as an example of the retreat experience. The journal excerpts are especially helpful as a way of concretely describing what a practitioner might encounter under these unconventional circumstances designed to promote spiritual growth. While the author writes clearly and helpfully about techniques-two appendices give useful practical instruction-and is transparent about his experience, Tibetan Buddhist teachings about the nature of reality are complex. A few chapters are too short to shed sufficient light on central concepts that are very difficult to grasp. This is not a book for beginners, but an advanced practitioner with good guidance from a teacher can benefit from this clear and helpful introduction to a little-known spiritual practice.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Inside Flap copy
Retreats in darkness have been used by all the great spiritual traditions for thousands of years as a method for tapping deep clarity, accessing sacred wisdom, connecting with the Divine, and training to transform the mind/body system into a manifestation of wisdom. In dark retreat, the practitioner lives in complete darkness--eating, sleeping, meditating, and simply existing in a world without external light.
Traditionally, in Tibet, dark retreats were performed by monks as part of their training with the support of their monastery and their fellow monks. But dark retreats are of value to people from all walks of life, from the monastic to the busy householder--those with jobs, families, and all-too-many responsibilities. Martin Lowenthal has taken a practice little-known in the West and made it accessible by incorporating methods based in western psychology with traditional Tibetan Buddhism.
There are many advantages of a retreat in the dark, one of which is rest for our eyes, weary from overstimulation in our visually oriented world, that then promotes overall relaxation of body and mind. This relaxation helps us cut through old mental and emotional habits, harmonizes the elements in the body, works with visions, and rests in the "Natural State."
Retreats in the dark also improve the quality of our daily life. We can develop greater clarity and awareness in every aspect of living. When we improve the conditions of our lives, we provide an atmosphere more conducive to continued meditation practices. Dark retreat is also a powerful setting for practicing tantra. Tantra uses imagination, senses, and creativity to transform experience into food for the spirit.
"Dawning of Clear Light" is a celebration, a joyous invitation to find the treasures that are hidden within your world and the world around you.
