Meditations with Meister Eckhart

A nice (hardcover) book that has a good amount of short meditations that can be read as a daily practice or when you are on the go. Broken down into sections using a "four fold way" there is plenty of food for thought to last you a long time.

The writings of Meister Eckhart come down to us from 13th century Europe, but the wisdom could...save for the cultural references that inform it...be straight out of the Eastern traditions. There is little doubt that Eckhart, at some point, had the life-altering experience often called 'enlightenment', and when he spoke, his words reflected his understanding of what is most fundimentally important in life, of who we really are, and of what our true relationship with 'God' is. In fact, Eckhart uses the word 'God' for what some might call 'the ground of being', and one can see clearly from his usage that he is not referring to the Old Testament God that looked down from above...from outside...and passed out judgment and condemnation. How radical Eckhart's understandings must have seemed to those around him! And how easily received they would be (and are) in Buddhist, Sufi and other non-dual traditions of today. Certain to bring a smile to many faces.

This is one of the best books that i own that speaks to my inner spirit. Do not buy this book for historical content. Read each statement slowly and you may feel a subtle peacefulness come upon you. Meister Eckhart is awesome. Matthew Fox has managed to pulled out the best nuggets and put them in this precious book...enjoy.

Great shape. On time

I found Matthew Fox's translation and selection of Meister Eckhart's words to be the most poetic and moving version of the great German mystic's works. This book is very short, with only a few words poetically arranged on most pages, but these pages are infinitely deep and worthy of being read several times to absorb the Eckhart's intuitive experience of God beyond reason and intellect. Fox helps the reader to see what Eckhart has in common with Zen monks, Sufi devotees, and the mystics of all religious traditions, even as Eckhart transcends religious dogma and limitation.

A curious book with obvious links to various religions and philosophy.Reading it you step back into the dim past and come to understand how slowly things developed, just how important the spread of printing and book selling has been...inspirational.

This book has so many deep thoughts presented in such a simple way that every time I grab it I always nurture my mind with what I consider better understanding of God.One of my favorite passages has to do with the fact that life is a series of letting go moments from the time we are born all the way to death.

This is a great little book to become acquainted with Meister Eckhart. Matthew Fox has done a good job of translating and the layout makes it easy to use for contemplative reading.

If you want a small anthology of Meister Eckhart's work then look elsewhere. This book is laid out with few words per page; one page has one sentence only spread out across the page and many pages contain not much more. If you want to read like this and dwell or meditate upon each phrase then this book will suit. If you want to read his sermons and counsels in their own right it will sadly disappoint. Eckhart is a spiritual writer who should be read so I hope that these notes will help you pick the right book for you.

Author Matthew Fox does a very job here laying out the enlightened spirituality of the great 13th century German mystic in a style that is easy to read and immediately impactful. Meister Eckhart knew from personal experience that human beings can relate and connect to the universal consciousness (commonly known as God) inwardly and directly: that God is not something/someone "out there" in some fictional after-life, but that He/It resides deeply within each individual, all the time, waiting to be discovered and enjoyed. The Church prosecuted Eckhart as a heretic for revealing this eternal truth, yet this has only elevated him into the status of a true mystic, a man of vision and experience who went beyond the limiting dogma and literalism of Christian Scripture. Eckhart easily rivals Ramana Maharshi as the most adept spiritual teacher of the last two thousand years, and yet is still relatively unknown. Discovering Eckhart is therefore a real treat and reward for all genuine seekers. He won't let you down! Each page of this book offers Eckhart's splended insights as snippets, like poems, just a few lines per page, giving the reader just enough to contemplate and digest before moving on. This is a very astute method, especially if you're to new Eckhart and want to taste before you buy, so to speak. After this, read Meister Eckhart: From Whom God Hid Nothing, to get a more thorough and absorbing experience of Eckhart's brilliance.

Meister Eckhart is one of my favorite writers for meditations and way of living. It is short and concise and contains everything I need for a spiritual life. We should think of WHAT IS and WHAT WE ARE and not what should be and what we are coming short of.

Use it all the time!

book is very sparse in information. if written like a traditional book it would scarsely contain 30 pages, but instead each sentance is strached out to fill an enire page (!) - - this is deemed meditative?also, the book doesn't say whether this is eckhart's actual words or if they are the author's (editor's?). thats a grave flaw.as for the work itself, it stars off well as an almost buddhist theme of emptiness and thusness, but then turns gradually more trite as we approach the end. the text is broken off like poety but then still saturated with words. instead of creating a lyrical experience, the tone is often more just one of broken prose.and the enlightened content becomes more and more dim the further one gets into the book.