Concentration a Guide to Mental Mastery

Rating:
Summary: A Challenge not to be taken lightly
Review: I note that the listed publication date is 1986. I purchased my copy in 1966. This book DESERVES a long sales life, being the most masterful work of its kind ever done. If you want to achieve pure concentration in its highest form and are willing to expend the necessary effort, buy and use this book!

Rating:
Summary: The Way It Is
Review: In the late 1960's and early 70's there was a phrase that was made popular which went, "Tell it the way it is." It came about as a result of the falsehoods which society was being inundated with from all sides of life. People, and especially the young people of that time, were tired of being lied to. In this book, published over four decades ago, Mouni Sadhu "tells it the way it is" in regard to the art and discipline of meditation. He pulls no punches and does not try to sugar coat the cold, hard facts about the development of the ability to concentrate and its necessity in being able to meditate properly.

Mouni Sadhu is the religious name taken by a Westerner who studied with Sri Ramana Maharshi, a famous and much beloved Indian spirtual teacher who passed away at the mid-point of the twentieth century. The word "mouni" means "silent" and "sadhu" refers to a wandering holy man of the Hindu faith. Though the author had tried many paths on the route to self-realization, it wasn't until he came upon his Indian teacher Sri Ramana that he managed to successfully break through the ego's hard exterior and into the infinity of being. He is therefore a bona fide spokesman for the truths which he recollects in this book.

Written in a simple and easily understandable style, Concentration is a classic among books on the art of meditation. Published, as it was, before our fascination with things "New Agey," it dispells many of the myths and misconceptions that have arisen and been promoted out of that movement. And for this reason alone, for the preservation of the truth, it is worth its weight in gold.

First and foremost among the myths it dispells is the idea that developing concentration is really of no consequence in the practical application of the art of meditation, as some so-called New Age gurus would have people believe. This is like saying that for an automobile to function properly it doesn't need gasoline! Without the ability to concentrate, our efforts at meditation will result only in going nowhere, in spinning our wheels in an unending rut.

Concentration is the cornerstone upon which our ability to engage ourselves in true meditation is based. Without its proper development it is as though we are in a car without a steering wheel. We have no way of directing ourselves toward our ultimate goal.

A second myth that is dealt with, which has been promoted in recent years, is that it is not important to be able to develop within oneself the ability to quiet the mind of all extraneous thoughts. This is the subject of Chapter Fourteen wherein is given a method of beginning to develop this ability to quiet the mind. In his usual straightforward way, Mouni Sadhu states quite unequivocally, "The key to success in this study is just the losing of interest in uncontrolled thinking. With that key you may open the golden gate, from which you expect so much. Without the key, there is no purpose in even beginning the exercises."

Mouni Sadhu gives a powerful presentation of all the aspects leading up to the attainment of the ability to concentrate, structuring the book into four sections. The first seven chapters deal with the definition, method, use, and roll of concentration in a spiritual search. The next seven chapters cover the psychological preliminaries and the keys to successful use of the techniques (which themselves are outlined in the third section of seven chapters) for developing concentration. The last chapter, Twenty-Two, deals with what he calls "guided intuitional knowledge, also called the wisdom of the Self, which is the ultimate aim of concentration." Here, whether you are a beginner or an old hand in working with the mind, is a compendium of inspiring information in the practical experience of the higher states of consciousness, useful in helping one to corroborate one's own experience with someone who has been there.

In this slender book, Mouni Sadhu manages to cover a great deal of important ground for the person interested in developing his mental faculties. Though he states at the outset that such abilities are not easily won, he does encourage the reader to follow his own inclinations regarding the level of commitment he is willing to make. He stresses not getting ahead of oneself, but to take it one step at a time. This is all one need do to have success with these exercises.

Rating:
Summary: written with personal experience,there can be no substitute.
Review: There are things you just aren't ready for.I've read this book and found the exerises too challenging.To even attempt the exercises,you need to pull yourself together.
I have no doubt that the exercises work and can personally guarantee you mastery over your mind if you perform them as described.If you are willing to give your life for the rewards,you may have the fortitude to practice these exercise.
I have great regard for the author but i think he overestimated the discipline of people of our times,or did he?

Rating:
Summary: A basic book for Mental development
Review: Training your mind to concentrate is one of the most difficult, but one of the most rewarding, tasks that you will ever undertake. This book is a guide through this difficult process. There is no royal road to mastering yor mind, but this book at least sets out some good guide posts.
My only quibble with the book is the author's fascination with his Indian Guru, and his acceptance of the Indian Hindu belief structure. This is not a serious enough quibble to harm the utility of the book. I reccomend it to all who wish to make their mind their tool.

Rating:
Summary: very good book on concentration
Review: Whether you are a Magus, Druid, Vitki, or Yogi, you will find this text absolutely essential in the developement of the Self, which is absolutely impossible without being able to bring order to the usual chaotic mind, so that one can set goals and concentrate on acheiving them. The result is one mind, one sound, one energy, one idea, all being woven together in a bond of strength. The writer of the book also has ideas on strengthening ones "centers", which is of extreme importants in the Indo European High Magic Traditions (Hermetic, Runic, Ogham, ect.), and even though he is a Hindu Mystic (by the way, Hinduism is an Indo-European, or "Aryan" religion), much of what he says applies to the High Magic Traditions of Europe.