This is one of my favorite books. Sharon Salzberg is a marvelous teacher!

She has published several books, including “Lovingkindness: The Revolutionary Art of Happiness”, “Faith: Trusting Your Own Deepest Experience “, “The Mindful Path to Self Compassion”, “The Kindness Handbook” and “Quiet Mind: A Beginners Guide to Meditation.”

“A Heart as Wide as the World” was published in 1997. It came to me in 1999 from a dear friend. I have read it over and over and the book always inspires me to deeper understanding.. She breaks down some of the loftier Buddhist concepts into ways we can practice and look at our lives and ourselves in new ways.

In the book are essays on “The Spirit of Meditation”, “The Practice of Transformation”, and “Living with Wisdom and Compassion.” To me, it’s all about opening your heart to love more.

Her stories take real life incidents and weave them around concepts. Sharon takes a lofty subject, like meditation, and brings the concept into concrete terms. “This is meditation as a way of life, a way of recapturing our lives so we can delight in the integrity, joy and peace that arises from understanding the truth of who we are.”

In the essay, “Resting the Exhausted Mind,” she says, “. . . resting the mind by being present to whatever is happening in the moment, without adding to it the effort of attempting to control.” I find her highly quotable. “One of the most powerful moments of insight we can have is when, in the midst of an experience, we see that there is a clear difference between our immediate sensation and the mental response we add to it.”

Simple. Straightforward. Real. That’s the sign of a Great Teacher.

Check out her web site at SharonSalzberg.com and the Insight Meditation Society she helped to build at dharma.org for more information on her. If you haven’t already, read her books. She is one of the best.