CONTENTS
Introduction
1. Living Consciously: First Principles
Acquiring a sense of reality Awareness: Outer and inner Reason: The noncontradictory integration of experience Reason and emotion: Challenging the necessity for conflict
2. Choice and Responsibility
Free will: The choice to turn consciousness brighter or dimmer Context determines what state of consciousness is appropriate Strategies of avoidance Against consciousness: Motives for flight from awareness To be in love with life on earth
3. A Conscious Life -- 1: Knowing What We Are Doing While We Are Doing It
What mindfulness entails as a way of life: Areas to be considered The joy of awareness Choices and actions Seeking knowledge Managing avoidance impulses Self-awareness
4. A Conscious Life -- 2: Bringing To Our Pursuits the Awareness They Require
Conscious relationships Conscious parenting Consciousness in the workplace Consciousness of context Consciousness of our ideas and their roots
5. Self-Awareness: Examining Our Inner World
Consciousness of the body Consciousness of our needs and wants Consciousness of our feelings and emotions Consciousness of our actions and reactions Concluding observations
6. Consciousness and Self-Esteem
Misconceptions about self-esteem Awareness of what affects our self-esteem
7. Consciousness and Spirituality
Definitions: The importance of being clear about meanings Spirituality: A this-worldly interpretation God: An all-purpose word referring to -- ? Self-transcendence: But who is doing the transcending? Mysticism: What are its claims to legitimacy? Selflessness: Rethinking our basic assumptions and discovering enlightened selfishness
Afterword Appendix: A Sentence-Completion Program to Facilitate Living Consciously Notes Selected Bibliography Acknowledgments Index