Mindful Knitting: Inviting Contemplative Practice to the Craft - Softcover

Manning, Tara Jon

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0804835438 ISBN 13: 9780804835435

Publisher: Tuttle Publishing, 2030

Synopsis

Mindful Knitting looks at the art of knitting from a Buddhist perspective. Exploring the parallels between knitting and meditation, this book instructs the reader in how knitting can be a tool for contemplation. It explores the benefits of engaging in knitting in a mindful way, presents simple meditation exercises, and provides clear, easy-to-follow project instructions that complement and expand upon each meditation theme.

About this title

About the Author

Tara Jon Manning is a noted knitwear designer, retail knitting store owner, a Craft Yarn Council of America certified knitting instructor, and a Shambhala Buddhist practitioner. She has been exposed to and received teachings from numerous Tibetan Buddhist meditation masters, including the Dalai Lama and Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche.

From the Inside Flap

Reviews

The latest addition to the growing shelf of spiritual crafts books offers a purl of a connection: Buddhism and knitting. A "dharma brat"—child of American Buddhists who were students of the popular Tibetan teacher Chögyam Trungpa—and a knitter since age nine, when she left lots of unmatched mittens around the house, Manning has grown into a contemplative craftswoman. She rightly sees that the repetitive, rhythmic character of knitting is as much an ideal contemplative activity as is bead-telling or chanting. Knitting and meditation both necessitate careful, focused attention. The Buddhist meditation Manning is familiar with requires a focus on the breath; knitting requires focus on the stitch. Containing essays that preface 10 knitting projects ordered by difficulty, this short book is long on practicality. The author's tone ("When we meditate, we give ourselves a gift of time") makes it a friendly introduction to crafting and contemplation. Though beginners may need an additional reference for techniques, the book includes helpful and accessible glossaries of knitting and meditation terms. Devoting more space to knitting instructions than spiritual musings, the book's spirituality is not deep, but many readers will enjoy "casting on" to the patterns of wisdom contained herein.
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Edition details

• Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
• Publication date: 2030
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0804835438
• ISBN 13: 9780804835435
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 136