Research suggesting beneficial effects of yoga on myriad aspects of psychological health has proliferated in recent years, yet there is currently no overarching framework by which to understand yoga’s beneficial effects. In this session, we provide a theoretical framework and systems-based conceptual model of yoga that focuses on self-regulation. We begin by contextualizing yoga in …
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Concurrent Session 1 – Engaged Compassion: Humanizing the Sacred and Secular
How can we advance true compassion in an increasingly pluralistic society? My paper will examine some possibilities in the light of ideas postulated by His Holiness the Dalai Lama in his book Beyond Religion, in which he stated that we are born free of religion but we are not born free of the need for …
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Concurrent Session 1 – Can There Be a Jewish Contemplative Studies?
As neuroscience and contemplative studies “come of age,” researchers are increasingly inquiring into non-Asian traditions, particularly Abrahamic ones. This paper addresses some of the methodological concerns implicated by this westward turn, focusing on Jewish contemplative practice. First, it provides an introduction to the major phenomenological types of Jewish mystical/contemplative practice. Second, it addresses the nature …
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Concurrent Session 1 – The Role of Contemplative Practice in Developing Authentic Leaders
Recent research in the fields of neuroscience and emotional intelligence point to the importance of authenticity, self-awareness, and interpersonal awareness for effective leadership. However, development of these qualities in leaders has been elusive and difficult to achieve through conventional means. Contemplative practices such as meditation, reflective inquiry, mindful dialogue, and various embodiment disciplines offer specific …
Master Lecture – Buddhism, Behaviorism, and the Brain
Buddhism, Behaviorism, and the Brain: Towards a Better Understanding of the Mechanisms and Mitigation of Craving, Grasping, and Addiction The seemingly intractable behavioral cycles and suffering of addiction offer a vivid and painful illustration of the necessity and challenge of behavior change. Decades of tireless research on the nature of, and mechanisms underlying, addiction have …
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Master Lecture – Dreamless Sleep and Consciousness
One of the major debates in classical Indian philosophy concerned whether consciousness is present in dreamless sleep. Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism, and Sankhya-Yoga argued that consciousness is present in dreamless sleep, whereas Nyaya denies this. Consideration of this debate, especially the reasoning Advaita Vedanta used to rebut the Nyaya view, calls into question the standard neuroscience …
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Pre-Conference Workshop – The Awakened Educator: On Contemplative Practice, Applied Research, and Social Transformation in Education
How can we re-envision and reform educational institutions based on our personal and collective aspirations, intentions, and motivations as awakened educators? We will collectively explore issues at the intersection of contemplative practice in education (e.g., mindfulness and compassion), applied research on those practices in school settings, and educational transformation efforts aimed at equity, social justice, …
A Question of Focus
Meditators often feel that their practice aids concentration. But do these subjective reports pan out in daily life?
The Dalai Lama’s Conjecture
A preview of Evan Thompson’s new book, Waking, Dreaming, Being: Self and Consciousness in Neuroscience, Meditation, and Philosophy
Concurrent Session 4 – Teaching Mindfulness-Based Training in High-Stress Contexts
This presentation will present research about Mindfulness-Based Mind FitnessTraining (MMFT®) within the context of modifying mindfulness-based training for environments characterized by extreme or prolonged stress and deployment to combat and others in highstress occupations, it will examine how mindfulness training can be integrated with an understanding of the role of the autonomic nervous system in …
