When science meets religion, the result can be explosive--or insightful. His Holiness the Dalai Lama poses many questions about secular approaches to mindfulness, the brain biology of meditation, and meditation's relationship to mental and physical health, which are then answered by the preeminent meditation scholars, academics, and researchers in each specialty. 240 pp.

About the Author

Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, is internationally known for his work as a scientist, writer, and meditation teacher engaged in bringing mindfulness into the mainstream of medicine and society. He is professor of medicine emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School and author of numerous books, including Full Catastrophe Living, Arriving at Your Own Door, and Coming to Our Senses. Richard J. Davidson, PhD, is director of the Laboratory for Affective Neuroscience, the Waisman Laboratory for Brain Imaging and Behavior, and the Center for Investigating Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He has coauthored or edited over thirteen books, including Visions of Compassion and The Handbook of Affective Science.

Prizes

The science behind how mindfulness meditation can heal the human mind.

Reviews

""The Mind's Own Physician" is a journey of understanding, in which an integrative dialogue unfolds between the spiritual leaders of contemplative meditation and scientists at the forefront of mind-body medicine. This transformative conversation provides valuable insight into how meditative practices can balance the mind with effects on the body, as well as, potential benefits for human health. This blending of contemplative traditions with Western science opens a mindful awareness that has the empowering capacity to fully engage people in their health, and more broadly, in the well-being of our societies."
--Michael R. Irwin, MD, Cousins Professor of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles

""The Mind's Own Physician" brings you straight into the heart of a remarkable interchange between His Holiness the Dalai Lama, renowned contemplative teachers from Buddhist and Christian traditions, and world leaders in neuroscience, psychiatry, stress physiology, and clinical medicine. Jon Kabat-Zinn and Richard Davidson guide the reader through an authentic chronicle of a landmark meeting of extraordinary minds as it unfolds through a series of crystalline presentations and probing dialogues about the nature of mind, meditation, and brain function. These dialogues provide the foundation for discussion on the biological effects of chronic stress, treatment and relapse prevention in depression, and the historical and evolutionary roots of Western medicine's struggle to understand and care for the whole person. The highly accessible and rich treatment of each of these areas is fascinating to read. The constant presence of His Holiness the Dalai Lama's deeply engaged attention, teaching, and critical ear reverberates throughout. The participants' common commitment to fostering the conditions necessary for human flourishing through intercultural and interdisciplinary inquiry is truly inspiring. In captur