The Healing Power of Meditation: Leading Experts on Buddhism, Psychology, and Medicine Explore the Health Benefits of Contemplative Practice

by Andy Fraser, Daniel Goleman (Foreword by), Jon Kabat-Zinn (Contribution by), Sogyal Rinpoche (Contribution by), Clifford Saron (Contribution by)

Overview

Regular meditation practice has a powerful impact on the mind and body, rewiring the brain and bringing us all kinds of benefits: contentment and well-being, resilience and focus, better mental and physical health, and greater empathy and compassion. This wide-ranging anthology brings together pioneering Tibetan Buddhist teachers, scientific researchers, and health professionals to offer fascinating perspectives on the mind and emotions, new studies, and firsthand accounts of how meditation is being applied to great effect in health and social care today.

   • Sogyal Rinpoche and Jetsün Khandro Rinpoche on how meditation unlocks the mind’s healing power
   • Jon Kabat-Zinn on the benefits of mindfulness in mainstream health care
   • Clifford Saron on the Shamatha Project, the most comprehensive study of the effects of meditation ever conducted
   • Sara Lazar on what happens to our brain when we meditate
   • Erika Rosenberg on how meditation helps us relate better to our emotions
   • Dr. Lucio Bizzini, MD, on how Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy is used to treat depression
   • Ursula Bates on how mindfulness supports terminally ill patients as they approach the end of their lives

Plus chapters from other innovators who apply meditation in health care and social work: Dr. Edel Maex, MD, Dr. Cathy Blanc, MD, Rosamund Oliver, and Dr. Frédéric Rosenfeld, MD.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781611800593
Publisher:	Shambhala Publications, Inc.
Publication date:	07/09/2013
Pages:	192
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Andy Fraser is a London-based writer and editor with a special interest in meditation and Buddhism. Fraser is also the editor of View: The Rigpa Journal, an annual magazine on meditation and Tibetan Buddhism.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Foreword Daniel Goleman ix

Introduction xi

Part 1 Buddhist Perspectives on Meditation and Health

1 Understanding the Mind and Meditation: A Buddhist Approach to Well-Being Sogyal Rinpoche 3

2 Meditation Methods In The Buddhist Tradition Jetsün Khandro Rinpoche 18

Part 2 The Science of Meditation

3 The Benefits of Meditation: A Scientific Reality Dr. Frédéric Rosenfeld 35

4 Training the Mind: The Shamatha Project Clifford Sawn 45

5 Meditation and Emotion Erika Rosenberg 66

6 Meditation and Neuroscience Sara Lazar 79

Part 3 Mindfulness in Health Care

7 Mindfulness-Based Interventions in Medicine and Psychiatry: What Does it Mean to Be "Mindfulness-Based"? Jon Kabat-Zinn 93

8 Therapeutic Applications of Meditation: Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Dr. Edel Maex 120

9 Mindfulness in the Treatment of Depression: Observations of a "Decentered" Clinician Dr. Lucio Bizzini 128

10 Mindfulness in a Palliative-Care Setting Ursula Bates 140

Part 4 Meditation and Spiritual Care

11 Using Meditation to Improve Standards of Care and "Well-Treatment" Dr. Cathy Blanc 161

12 Being Present When we Care Rosamund Oliver 176

Notes 193

About the Contributors 209

About the Editor 217

Index 219