Abstract

This moving book provides an inside-view of life in prison, and people's remarkable ability to make sense of their lives there as they learn to meditate. Drawing on years of intimate correspondence between prisoners and charity workers of the Prison Phoenix Trust, it traces prisoners' struggles through the harshest of circumstances to find authenticity, friendship and hope. This is not only an empowering guide for those in prison, but a testament to the liberating power of peace, which, in spite of all obstacles, can be unlocked within us all.
This book will change lives for the better for people who are locked up in places not readily associated with freedom, calm and personal insight. The gentle clarity throughout brings the seemingly impossible within reach and introduces a way of living that can bring a new light to life inside and beyond.
Pete White, once a prisoner now Chief Executive of Positive Prison? Positive Futures
Sam Settle is a yoga teacher and meditator, who leads workshops in prisons across the UK and Ireland. Sam has worked for the Prison Phoenix Trust since 2003, and became its Director in 2010.
What a wonderful book. Clear, friendly, supportive, this is a superb manual and introduction to meditation practice, not just for people inside, but for all of us, inside and out. The writing from the prisoners is moving and luminous, and shows us all what meditation can do for a human being - the book is a teaching and a gift for us all.
Henry Shukman, writer, poet and Director of Mountain Cloud Zen Center, USA
This powerful book of hope and healing is both a guide, and a moving account of prisoners' struggles and successes as they learn to meditate, and to make sense of their life and prison experiences. It is written for prisoners, but it has much wider relevance too. It is about friendship, love, and living truthfully. It draws on correspondence over many years between Prison Phoenix Trust staff and prisoners, showing how human beings can survive, and even flourish, in the most testing circumstances. This works when we are helped to reclaim the peace in ourselves, and to share it with others. Sam Settle's Peace Inside is full of humanity. Read it!
Alison Liebling, Professor of Criminology and Criminal Justice, University of Cambridge
Sam Settle's Peace Inside is a clear assistant along the path of yoga and meditation for prisoners. Having myself spent a decade in prison, I found Peace Inside an accessible way to help prisoners find freedom whilst in prison. Brilliant, welcome, and a good companion on the way to spiritual freedom.
James Bishop, author of A Way in the Wilderness (Bloomsbury), International Coordinator for Prison Outreach, The World Community for Christian Meditation