Personal Transformation, Spiritual, Meditation, Compulsive Behavior, Alcoholism, Substance Abuse, Twelve-Step Programs, Rituals & Practice, Spiritualism 

Step one. "We admitted we were powerless over alcohol; that our lives had become unmanageable" ; Meditation exercise: Vipassana -- Step two. "Came to believe that a power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity" -- Step three. "Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of God as we understood him" -- Step four. "Made a searching and fearless moral inventory of ourselves" ; Mediation exercise: noting the hindrances -- Step five. "Admitted to God, to ourselves, and to another human being the exact nature of our wrongs" -- Step six. "Were entirely ready to have God remove all these defects of character" -- Step seven. "Humbly asked him to remove our shortcomings" -- Step eight. "Made a list of all persons we had harmed, and became willing to make amends to them all" -- Step nine. "Made direct amends to such people whenever possible, except when to do so would injure them or others" -- Step ten. "Continued to take personal inventory and when we were wrong promptly admitted it" -- Step eleven. "Sought through prayer and meditation to improve our conscious contact with God as we understood him, praying only for knowledge of his will for us and the power to carry that out" ; Meditation exercise: cultivating the wholsome: Mudita and Karuna -- Step twelve. "Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other alcoholics, and to practice these principles in all our affairs" -- Back to step one -- Gratitude and appreciation.

What would the Buddha say to an alcoholic or addict? What could those in recovery offer to the Buddhist path? Kevin Griffin has immersed himself in the Buddhist and Twelve Step traditions, and in One Breath at a Time he gives some surprising and inspiring answers to these questions. The author, a Buddhist meditation teacher and longtime Twelve Step practitioner, weaves his personal story of recovery with traditional Buddhist teachings. The book takes us on a journey through the Steps, examining critical Twelve Step ideas like Powerlessness, Higher Power, and Moral Inventory through the lens of Buddhism. One Breath at a Time presents potent ancient techniques for finding calm and clarity and offers a vision of a Higher Power not tied to traditional Western Judeo-Christian concepts. One Breath at a Time, describes the convergence of two vital traditions, one ancient, the other contemporary, and shows how they are working together to create a rich spiritual path for our times.

 

xx, 281 pages ; 23 cm 

54694491