High on a mountain carved by winding paths, the Himalayas opened before us. It was an image so startlingly beautiful it almost felt like hands had reached out to shake me awake—an invitation to pause in wonder, to breathe, to remember the stillness we carry within but so often lose in the rush of our …
Perspective Type Archives:
Mind & Life Institute Appoints Sona Dimidjian as Incoming Board Chair and Honors Thupten Jinpa’s Visionary Leadership
The Mind & Life Institute Board of Directors is pleased to announce that Sona Dimidjian, PhD, will become Board Chair effective January 1, 2026. A valued member of the Board for the past eight years, Sona will succeed Thupten Jinpa, PhD, whose visionary leadership and deep dedication have guided the Institute since 2011. Under Jinpa’s …
Faith and Ecology: Connecting Islamic Spiritual Practices and Nature Awareness
Mind & Life periodically invites guest writers to contribute to the blog. Below, Sevim Kalyoncu, Executive Director of Green Muslims, a Washington, DC-based nonprofit, shares work her organization is doing to connect Islamic spiritual practices to the environment with the support of a Mind & Life Contemplative Changemaking grant. Growing up Muslim in Alabama, surrounded …
Continue reading “Faith and Ecology: Connecting Islamic Spiritual Practices and Nature Awareness”
Reading and Repair: Tackling Social Division Through Contemplative Research
In 2024, booksellers in the United States saw the first annual increase of print book sales in three years. It was a reminder that even in our increasingly digital age, books remain a powerful, and popular, force—not just for entertainment, but for personal growth. Social psychologist Rémi Thériault of New York University isn’t surprised by …
Continue reading “Reading and Repair: Tackling Social Division Through Contemplative Research”
Connecting with Nature’s Healing: Forest Therapy for Cancer Patients in Chile
Mind & Life periodically invites guest writers to contribute to the blog. In this post, a Mind & Life Contemplative Changemaking grantee shares her experiences and insights gleaned through the grant. In 2018, I was diagnosed with cancer. From then on, I chose to complement my medical treatments with a deep connection to nature and …
Continue reading “Connecting with Nature’s Healing: Forest Therapy for Cancer Patients in Chile”
Why We Need Contemplative Education More Than Ever: An Unfolding at Mind & Life’s 2025 Summer Research Institute
Mind & Life periodically invites guest writers to contribute to the blog as a way of deepening dialogue and understanding around key themes related to our mission. In this post, a participant at our 2025 Summer Research Institute reflects on her experience. I have performance anxiety. I thrive in groups of two—me and one other …
Celebrating His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 90th Birthday
Today, it is with great joy that we celebrate His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 90th birthday. This milestone invites us to reflect on an extraordinary life of compassion, wisdom, and enduring curiosity in exploring profound questions about what it means to be human and our responsibility to the planet and all lifeforms that share this …
Continue reading “Celebrating His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s 90th Birthday”
A Bold New Chapter for the Mind & Life Institute
For nearly four decades, the Mind & Life Institute has illuminated the dazzling potential of the human mind to foster inner transformation and catalyze lasting, positive change in the world. Inspired by the vision of our co-founders—His Holiness the Dalai Lama, neuroscientist Francisco Varela, and social entrepreneur Adam Engle—we forged the now-thriving field of contemplative …
Continue reading “A Bold New Chapter for the Mind & Life Institute”
In Chile, What One Contemplative Researcher Hopes to Learn about Strengthening our Connection to Nature
In the face of mounting climate crises, a growing number of contemplative researchers are exploring the connection between mindfulness practices and our relationship with the natural world. While writers, mystics, and sages have long described moments of profound connection with nature, less is known about how to cultivate such experiences and their impact, not only …
What is Contemplative Research?
Contemplative research is a field bridging academic inquiry with contemplative wisdom traditions to explore the nature of the mind, human flourishing, and the potential for personal and societal transformation. Rooted in disciplines across the sciences, social sciences, humanities, and arts, contemplative research investigates the roots and contexts of contemplative traditions, and examines the effects of …
