Mind in the Balance: Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity (Columbia Series in Science and Religion) - Softcover

Wallace, B. Alan

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0231147317 ISBN 13: 9780231147316

Publisher: Columbia University Press, 2014

Synopsis

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.

About this title

Book 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. He begins by exploring the relationship between Christian and Buddhist meditative practices, showing that, though these two faiths differ in their belief systems, their methods of cognitive inquiry provide similar insights into the nature and origins of consciousness. From this convergence Wallace connects the approaches of contemporary cognitive science, quantum mechanics, and the philosophy of the mind, combining a concrete analysis of conceptions of consciousness with a guide to cultivating mindfulness and profound contemplative practice.

About the Author:

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).

About this edition

• Publisher: Columbia University Press
• Publication date: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0231147317
• ISBN 13: 9780231147316
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 264