{"product_id":"meditations-of-a-buddhist-skeptic-a-manifesto-for-the-mind-sciences-and-contemplative-practice-paperback","title":"Meditations of a Buddhist Skeptic: A Manifesto for the Mind Sciences and Contemplative Practice - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eB. Alan Wallace\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA radical approach to studying the mind. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRenowned Buddhist philosopher B. Alan Wallace reasserts the power of shamatha and vipashyana, traditional Buddhist meditations, to clarify the mind's role in the natural world. Raising profound questions about human nature, free will, and experience versus dogma, Wallace challenges the claim that consciousness is nothing more than an emergent property of the brain with little relation to universal events. Rather, he maintains that the observer is essential to measuring quantum systems and that mental phenomena (however conceived) influence brain function and behavior. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eWallace embarks on a two-part mission: to restore human nature and to transcend it. He begins by explaining the value of skepticism in Buddhism and science and the difficulty of merging their experiential methods of inquiry. Yet Wallace also proves that Buddhist views on human nature and the possibility of free will liberate us from the metaphysical constraints of scientific materialism. He then explores the radical empiricism inspired by William James and applies it to Indian Buddhist philosophy's four schools and the Great Perfection school of Tibetan Buddhism. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eSince Buddhism begins with the assertion that ignorance lies at the root of all suffering and that the path to freedom is reached through knowledge, Buddhist practice can be viewed as a progression from agnosticism (not knowing) to gnosticism (knowing), acquired through the maintenance of exceptional mental health, mindfulness, and introspection. Wallace discusses these topics in detail, identifying similarities and differences between scientific and Buddhist understanding, and he concludes with an explanation of shamatha and vipashyana and their potential for realizing the full nature, origins, and potential of consciousness.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eB. Alan Wallace spent fourteen years as a Buddhist monk, ordained by H. H. the Dalai Lama. He then earned his undergraduate degree, summa cum laude, in physics and the philosophy of science at Amherst College, and his doctorate in religious studies from Stanford University. His Columbia University Press books are \u003ci\u003eMind in the Balance: Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eHidden Dimensions: The Unification of Physics and Consciousness\u003c\/i\u003e; \u003ci\u003eContemplative Science: Where Buddhism and Neuroscience Converge\u003c\/i\u003e; and \u003ci\u003eBuddhism and Science: Breaking New Ground\u003c\/i\u003e. A prolific writer and translator of numerous Tibetan Buddhist texts, he is the founder and president of the Santa Barbara Institute for Consciousness Studies (http: \/\/www.sbinstitute.com).\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 304\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.6 x 8.9 x 6 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e December 31, 2013\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":42563577249888,"sku":"9780231158350","price":36.94,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0598\/1922\/9280\/files\/aC8zVHRCSmlid05Jc1ZmbnBWMjNEUT09.webp?v=1770407739","url":"https:\/\/bijoucc.myshopify.com\/products\/meditations-of-a-buddhist-skeptic-a-manifesto-for-the-mind-sciences-and-contemplative-practice-paperback","provider":"CARIBBEAN CONNECT","version":"1.0","type":"link"}