WILLA BLYTHE BAKER, PhD is the founder and spiritual director of
Natural Dharma Fellowship in Boston, MA, and its retreat center
Wonderwell Mountain Refuge in Springfield, NH. She was authorized
as a dharma teacher and lineage holder in the Kagyu lineage of
Tibetan Buddhism after twelve years of monastic training and two
consecutive three-year retreats.
Willa completed a doctorate at Harvard University and was visiting
lecturer in Buddhist Ministry from 2013 to 2017. At present, Willa
writes, teaches, guides meditation retreats, and develops curricula
for lay Buddhists interested in cultivating a deep meditation
practice in daily life. She also teaches at Kripalu. She is the
author of several other works including The Arts of Contemplative
Care (Wisdom, 2012) and Everyday Dharma (Quest Books, 2009), and is
the translator of Essence of Ambrosia- A Guide to Buddhist
Contemplations (Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 2005.)
“This remarkable book brings the body into clear focus as a medium
of awakening.”—Roshi Joan Halifax, abbot, Upaya Zen Center
“The Wakeful Body is a wisdom treasure bringing forth the insights,
life stories, hidden teachings, and practice pathways on how
to tend the ‘agriculture of the soul,’ including knots,
entanglements, and uprooting embodied suffering toward liberation
and integration. Lama Willa’s experience and collection of
teachings on the power of flow, dance, and movement practices
in Tibetan Buddhist traditions is a rare treasure offered by a
pioneering teacher with great benefit to all. Emaho! A classic is
born for future generations.”—Shiva Rea, founder of Samudra Global
School of Living Yoga and author of Tending the Heart Fire
“In a most refreshing way, Lama Willa invites us to wake up to the
wisdom of our bodies. Her skillful and practical guidance, informed
by years of deep practice in yoga and Tibetan Buddhist meditation,
literally moves us in new ways to be embodied and get out of our
heads. The Wakeful Body is a treasure of a book filled with
countless gems to nourish and ground. It will be a trusted resource
for years to come that I will return to time and time again.”—Susan
Bauer-Wu, PhD, RN, president of the Mind & Life Institute and
author of Leaves Falling Gently
“The Wakeful Body is a gift to the world and cements
Willa Blythe Baker as one of our strongest and most
convincing voices of a deeply somatic approach to Buddhist
practice. Baker persuasively theorizes that meditation is
misconceived as something we do with our mind. Far more
profitable is an exploration of bodily experience, and this shift
in focus from mind to body changes everything for the aspiring
meditator. Filled with anecdotes from her life, we follow her
journey of awakening as she enters as a young novitiate on the path
and emerges as one of the most important teachers of our
time.”—Will Johnson, author of The Posture of Meditation and
Breathing through the Whole Body
“The human body is a sacred form full of potential. This book lays
out rich and practical guidance to utilize it as a doorway to
healing and spiritual awakening.”—Anam Thubten, author of Choosing
Compassion
“A beautifully written expression of devotion to the body as
teacher—wherein one can clearly feel the depth and authenticity of
the author’s exploration and practice.”—Elizabeth Mattis Namgyel,
author of The Logic of Faith
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