After the Ecstasy, the Laundry How the Heart Grows Wise on the Spiritual Path by Jack Kornfield   Hardback 320 pages (June 2000) Doubleday Dell Pub ISBN: 0553102907 Bookshelf Categories Buddhism

* ORDER THIS BOOK *

Synopsis:

Amazon.com

Jack Kornfield, one of America's most beloved teachers of meditation, assures us that enlightenment does occur on the spiritual path but warns that it is not the end of the road. Bringing his thoughts to a personal level, Kornfield looks up many of the notable spiritual teachers of our times (Buddhist, Christian, Jewish, Sufi, etc.) and presents extended quotations of their trials and epiphanies. These anecdotes are woven together with fables and ruminations from Kornfield's own decades-long experience as a practitioner and teacher, creating an image of the spiritual life as challenging, multidimensional, rewarding, and, yes, mundane. In the old days in China, Zen monks were encouraged to travel for instruction under a variety of masters. Here, Kornfield introduces us to today's masters, but off their podiums, as equals. Genuine experiences of awakening, despair, fault, serious transgression, and simple childlike joy all appear as bridges on the way to the divine. After the Ecstasy, the Laundry is not just another inspirational bestseller, it is a lasting record of concrete insights forged from the fires of dedicated practice. --Brian Bruya

Reviews:

Demystifies the 'Mystique of Enlightenment'	9/1/2000
Reviewer: dervish from oakland, ca United States
A needed corrective to the often mistaken presumption by neophytes that the East has a monopoly on 'Enlightenment'. After all, as Kornfield shows so well, it is only what *used* to be known in the West as 'Conversion'. We of course know only too well the fickle nature of Christian experiences of metanoia/conversion, but presumed incorrectly, as Kornfield shows, that 'Enlightened' Buddhists are somehow different, i.e. 'more' enlightened. But Kornfield shows they are in the same boat, spiritually speaking. Its about time we realized that Buddhist so-called 'Enlightenment Experiences' are just as frequently realized by Christians, though described with different terminology. Perhaps now, we in the west can begin to reappreciate the Enlightened Christian, Jewish teachers who have been with us in the West all along, patiently waiting for the faddish and fickle public to wake up to the reality of Christian and Jewish spirituality, and stop assuming that, for example, commercial Christian televangelism, is at all representative of Christianity as a spiritual path. A conclusion all too easily drawn, sadly.

For Everyone On Their Own Spiritual Adventure	8/13/2000
Reviewer: Ivy Helstein, author of Infinite Abilities: Living Your Life On Purpose- A Story from Great Neck, New York
As a psychotherapist, author and 25 year seminar trainer in life strategies, I also believe as Jack Kornfield does, that each one of us can tranform our lives in a practical and spiritual way. We can choose to move away from suffering: fear, anger, seeing the worst and move onto that new path. We can not only change our own lives, but we can help change the world around us with new thoughts, new feelings and most importantly new actions, moment to moment and day by day. Read this book and let your heart, mind and life grow spritually wise.

A Needed Book	8/7/2000
Reviewer: A reader
Kornfield explains why people fail to maintain an enlightening experience. This book is realistic. I would also suggest reading An Encounter With A Prophet for some simple insight into maintaining a spiritual experience.

Excellent Book	6/20/2000
Reviewer: Brooks from Healdsburg, California
Jack Kornfield, the man, gives me hope that we can transform our lives a little bit at a time with some rushing moments of grace. And, we can help to change the world around us. He makes me want to try. "A Path With Heart" (1993) helped me to commit to a spiritual practice. "After the Ectasy, the Laundry" reminded me that my practice is at the core of my life and that so many others are aspiring for wholeness, and yes, enlightenment (there is actually such a thing). I recommend it highly.