This workshop will involve three methods of engaged contemplation in Islamic Sufism, consisting of silent and vocal forms of “remembrance” (dhikr) and “remembrance in life.” The ultimate purpose of these methods is to retrain the individual’s consciousness to respond — at each moment in one’s daily life — toward one’s consciousness and whatever appears in …
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The implementation of mindfulness-based training programs for school administrators and school leaders, classroom teachers and staff, and Pre-K to grade 12 students has grown rapidly during the past decade and a half. This lecture will present a brief history of the work in education, a summary of the state of the science, and thoughts about …
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This talk will describe attentional, emotional and physiological processes modified over the course of three months of full-time training in, and practice of, meditative quiescence (Shamatha) and beneficial aspirations for self and others (loving kindness, compassion, empathetic joy and equanimity). This multidisciplinary longitudinal, randomized wait-list controlled study is known as The Shamatha Project. Scientific measures …
Professor Magee explores intersecting issues of race, racism and U.S. law using mindfulness- and compassion-based practices. Discussing her work across inter-related sub-fields — transformative education, law practice and community-based work for justice — she highlights ways of enhancing collaborations across categories of real and perceived difference using contemplative techniques for teaching, learning and working together …
I was introduced to the dharma when I was already a rabbi and a student of Jewish prayer and sacred text. From the beginning, when I received instructions or wisdom teachings from the Buddha dharma, I found myself doing a simulcast into the language that I knew so well, Jewish prayer and Torah. Over the …
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Romantic relationship quality declines over time for most couples. In addition, most first marriages end in divorce, and divorce rates have doubled during the past few decades among people over 35. Identifying interventions that improve compassionate love, empathy, and prosocial behavior between romantic partners is thus a critical goal. Our overarching aim is to experimentally …
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Colombia has recently made unprecedented progress towards ending one of the longest armed conflicts in the world, entering a peacebuilding process which includes the reintegration of ex-combatants into society. However, psychosocial support is currently a small though critical component for ex-combatant reintegration. Our project aims to deliver and evaluate a contemplative-practice based psychosocial support program …
Most post-war accounts highlight the vulnerability of females and violence of males; interventions therefore focus on providing relief hand-outs, stripping the populations of any agency. Using Stepping Stones for Peace and Prosperity (StSt4P&P)’s community-based mindfulness techniques grounded in inter-personal neurobiology, this study explores how post-war populations, and males in particular, can develop prosocial and compassionate …
Young children seem to be wired to notice and enjoy the happy experiences of others, but this tendency to experience “empathic happiness” seems to fade in later childhood when it is replaced by self-doubt, envy, and worry. This process of losing the natural inclination for empathic happiness is exacerbated for some children who become dysregulated …
Enabling respectful discussion between rival social viewpoints is currently one of humanity’s most important challenges. Powerful socio-psychological barriers, including negative intergroup perceptions, emotions, beliefs and biases, are known to play a crucial role in fueling social conflicts, by increasing intolerance and blame toward the outgroup. A mindfulness-based compassionate conflict engagement intervention, which combines mindfulness, empathy, …
