Mind in the Balance

Mind in the Balance

Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity

By B. Alan Wallace
Hardcover $26.95 Paperback $24.00

$26.95

Publication Date: 3rd March 2009

By establishing a dialogue in which the meditative practices of Buddhism and Christianity speak to the theories of modern philosophy and science, B. Alan Wallace reveals the theoretical similarities... Read More
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By establishing a dialogue in which the meditative practices of Buddhism and Christianity speak to the theories of modern philosophy and science, B. Alan Wallace reveals the theoretical similarities... Read More
Description

By establishing a dialogue in which the meditative practices of Buddhism and Christianity speak to the theories of modern philosophy and science, B. Alan Wallace reveals the theoretical similarities underlying these disparate disciplines and their unified approach to making sense of the objective world.

Wallace begins by exploring the relationship between Christian and Buddhist meditative practices. He outlines a sequence of meditations the reader can undertake, showing that, though Buddhism and Christianity differ in their belief systems, their methods of cognitive inquiry provide similar insight into the nature and origins of consciousness.

From this convergence Wallace then connects the approaches of contemporary cognitive science, quantum mechanics, and the philosophy of the mind. He links Buddhist and Christian views to the provocative philosophical theories of Hilary Putnam, Charles Taylor, and Bas van Fraassen, and he seamlessly incorporates the work of such physicists as Anton Zeilinger, John Wheeler, and Stephen Hawking. Combining a concrete analysis of conceptions of consciousness with a guide to cultivating mindfulness and profound contemplative practice, Wallace takes the scientific and intellectual mapping of the mind in exciting new directions.

Details
  • Price: $26.95
  • Pages: 264
  • Carton Quantity: 26
  • Publisher: Columbia University Press
  • Imprint: Columbia University Press
  • Series: Columbia Series in Science and Religion
  • Publication Date: 3rd March 2009
  • Trim Size: 6 x 9 in
  • ISBN: 9780231147309
  • Format: Hardcover
  • BISACs:
    RELIGION / Comparative Religion
    RELIGION / Buddhism / Rituals & Practice
    RELIGION / Religion & Science
    MEDICAL / Neuroscience
Reviews
Anyone interested in understanding more about the mind and consciousness would enjoy reading this book.
- Marcia Howton, Inquiring Mind
Thought-provoking and at times insightful, this volume raises many interesting philosophical issues and presents many useful references.
- Choice
Wallace is a master, guiding our inquiry into consciousness in exciting new directions.
- Shift
Author Bio
B. Alan Wallace spent fourteen years as a Buddhist monk, ordained by H. H. the Dalai Lama. His Columbia University Press books are Meditations of a Buddhist Skeptic: A Manifesto for the Mind Sciences and Contemplative Practice; Hidden Dimensions: The Unification of Physics and Consciousness; Contemplative Science: Where Buddhism and Neuroscience Converge; and Buddhism and Science: Breaking New Ground (editor). A prolific writer who has translated numerous Tibetan Buddhist texts, he is also the founder and president of the Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness Studies (http://www.sbinstitute.com).
Table of Contents

Preface
Part I: Meditation: Where It Started and How It Got Here
1. Who Am I?
2. The Origins of Contemplation
3. The Scientific Externalization of Meditation
4. Scientific Studies of Meditation
Part II: Meditation in Theory and Practice
5. Practice: Attending to the Breath of Life
6. Theory: Coming to Our Senses
7. Practice: The Union of Stillness and Motion
8. Theory: Knowing and Healing the Mind
9. Practice: Behold the Light of Consciousness
10. Theory: Exploring the Nature of Consciousness
11. Practice: Probing the Nature of the Observer
12. Theory: The Ground State of Consciousness
13. Practice: Oscillating Awareness
14. Theory: Consciousness Without Beginning or End
15. Practice: Resting in the Stillness of Awareness
16. Theory: Worlds of Skepticism
17. Practice: The Emptiness of Mind
18. Theory: The Participatory Worlds of Buddhism
19. Practice: The Emptiness of Matter
20. Theory: The Participatory Worlds of Philosophy and Science
21. Practice: Resting in Timeless Consciousness
22. Theory: The Luminous Space of Pristine Awareness
23. Practice: Meditation in Action
24. The Universe as a Whole
25. What Shall We Become?
Notes
Bibliography
Index

By establishing a dialogue in which the meditative practices of Buddhism and Christianity speak to the theories of modern philosophy and science, B. Alan Wallace reveals the theoretical similarities underlying these disparate disciplines and their unified approach to making sense of the objective world.

Wallace begins by exploring the relationship between Christian and Buddhist meditative practices. He outlines a sequence of meditations the reader can undertake, showing that, though Buddhism and Christianity differ in their belief systems, their methods of cognitive inquiry provide similar insight into the nature and origins of consciousness.

From this convergence Wallace then connects the approaches of contemporary cognitive science, quantum mechanics, and the philosophy of the mind. He links Buddhist and Christian views to the provocative philosophical theories of Hilary Putnam, Charles Taylor, and Bas van Fraassen, and he seamlessly incorporates the work of such physicists as Anton Zeilinger, John Wheeler, and Stephen Hawking. Combining a concrete analysis of conceptions of consciousness with a guide to cultivating mindfulness and profound contemplative practice, Wallace takes the scientific and intellectual mapping of the mind in exciting new directions.

  • Price: $26.95
  • Pages: 264
  • Carton Quantity: 26
  • Publisher: Columbia University Press
  • Imprint: Columbia University Press
  • Series: Columbia Series in Science and Religion
  • Publication Date: 3rd March 2009
  • Trim Size: 6 x 9 in
  • ISBN: 9780231147309
  • Format: Hardcover
  • BISACs:
    RELIGION / Comparative Religion
    RELIGION / Buddhism / Rituals & Practice
    RELIGION / Religion & Science
    MEDICAL / Neuroscience
Anyone interested in understanding more about the mind and consciousness would enjoy reading this book.
– Marcia Howton, Inquiring Mind
Thought-provoking and at times insightful, this volume raises many interesting philosophical issues and presents many useful references.
– Choice
Wallace is a master, guiding our inquiry into consciousness in exciting new directions.
– Shift
B. Alan Wallace spent fourteen years as a Buddhist monk, ordained by H. H. the Dalai Lama. His Columbia University Press books are Meditations of a Buddhist Skeptic: A Manifesto for the Mind Sciences and Contemplative Practice; Hidden Dimensions: The Unification of Physics and Consciousness; Contemplative Science: Where Buddhism and Neuroscience Converge; and Buddhism and Science: Breaking New Ground (editor). A prolific writer who has translated numerous Tibetan Buddhist texts, he is also the founder and president of the Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness Studies (http://www.sbinstitute.com).

Preface
Part I: Meditation: Where It Started and How It Got Here
1. Who Am I?
2. The Origins of Contemplation
3. The Scientific Externalization of Meditation
4. Scientific Studies of Meditation
Part II: Meditation in Theory and Practice
5. Practice: Attending to the Breath of Life
6. Theory: Coming to Our Senses
7. Practice: The Union of Stillness and Motion
8. Theory: Knowing and Healing the Mind
9. Practice: Behold the Light of Consciousness
10. Theory: Exploring the Nature of Consciousness
11. Practice: Probing the Nature of the Observer
12. Theory: The Ground State of Consciousness
13. Practice: Oscillating Awareness
14. Theory: Consciousness Without Beginning or End
15. Practice: Resting in the Stillness of Awareness
16. Theory: Worlds of Skepticism
17. Practice: The Emptiness of Mind
18. Theory: The Participatory Worlds of Buddhism
19. Practice: The Emptiness of Matter
20. Theory: The Participatory Worlds of Philosophy and Science
21. Practice: Resting in Timeless Consciousness
22. Theory: The Luminous Space of Pristine Awareness
23. Practice: Meditation in Action
24. The Universe as a Whole
25. What Shall We Become?
Notes
Bibliography
Index