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This book argues for the central role played by absorption in the functioning of the human mind. The importance of absorption makes itself felt in different ways; the two studies combined in this book concentrate on two of them. The first study, 'The Symbolic Mind', argues that, largely as a result of language acquisition, humans have two levels of cognition, which in normal circumstances are simultaneously active. Absorption is a (or the) means to circumvent some, perhaps all, of the associations that characterize one of these two levels of cognition, resulting in what is sometimes referred to as mysitcal experience, but which is not confined to mysticism and plays a role in various "religious" phenomena, and elsewhere. In the second st...
Publisher description: As David White explains in the Introduction to Tantra in Practice, Tantra is an Asian body of beliefs and practices that seeks to channel the divine energy that grounds the universe, in creative and liberating ways. The subsequent chapters reflect the wide geographical and temporal scope of Tantra by examining thirty-six texts from China, India, Japan, Nepal, and Tibet, ranging from the seventh century to the present day, and representing the full range of Tantric experience--Buddhist, Hindu, Jain, and even Islamic. Each text has been chosen and translated, often for the first time, by an international expert in the field who also provides detailed background material. Students of Asian religions and general reader...
The human voice is one of the principal conveyers of social and affective communication. Yet relatively little is known about the neural circuitry that supports the recognition of different vocally expressed emotions. We conducted an FMRI study to examine the brain responses to vocal expressions of anger and happiness, and to test whether specific brain regions showed preferential engagement in the processing of one emotion over the other. We also tested the extent to which simultaneously presented facial expressions of the same or different emotions would enhance brain responses, and to what degree such responses depend on attention towards the vocal expression. Forty healthy individuals were scanned while listening to vocal expressions...
Attention to Faces Modulates Early Face Processing during Low but not High Face Discriminability (n.d., Journal Article)
In the present study, we investigated if attention to faces results in sensory gain modulation. Participants were cued to attend to faces or scenes in superimposed face-scene images while face discriminability was parametrically manipulated across images. The face-sensitive N170 event-related potential component was used as a measure of early face processing. Attention to faces modulated N170 amplitude, but only when faces were not highly discriminable. Additionally, directing attention to faces modulated later processing (~230–300 msec) for all discriminability levels. These results demonstrate that attention to faces can modulate perceptual processing of faces at multiple stages of processing, including early sensory levels. Critically, the early attentional benefit is present only when the “face signal” (i.e., the perceptual quality of the face) in the environment is suboptimal.
We investigated the impact of mindfulness training (MT) on working memory capacity (WMC) and affective experience. WMC is used in managing cognitive demands and regulating emotions. Yet, persistent and intensive demands, such as those experienced during high-stress intervals, may deplete WMC and lead to cognitive failures and emotional disturbances. We hypothesized that MT may mitigate these deleterious effects by bolstering WMC. We recruited 2 military cohorts during the high-stress predeployment interval and provided MT to 1 (MT, n = 31) but not the other group (military control group, MC, n = 17). The MT group attended an 8-week MT course and logged the amount of out-of-class time spent practicing formal MT exercises. The operation span task was used to index WMC at 2 testing sessions before and after the MT course. Although WMC remained stable over time in civilians (n = 12), it degraded in the MC group. In the MT group, WMC decreased over time in those with low MT practice time, but increased in those with high practice time. Higher MT practice time also corresponded to lower levels of negative affect and higher levels of positive affect (indexed by the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule). The relationship between practice time and negative, but not positive, affect was mediated by WMC, indicating that MT-related improvements in WMC may support some but not all of MT's salutary effects. Nonetheless, these findings suggest that sufficient MT practice may protect against functional impairments associated with high-stress contexts.
Working-memory-triggered dynamic adjustments in cognitive control (n.d., Journal Article)
Dynamic adjustments in cognitive control are well documented in conflict tasks, wherein competition from irrelevant stimulus attributes intensifies selection demands and leads to subsequent performance benefits. The current study investigated whether mnemonic demands, in a working memory (WM) task, can drive similar online control modifications. Demand levels (high vs. low) of WM maintenance (memory load of 2 items vs. 1 item) and delay-spanning distractor interference (confusable vs. not confusable with memoranda) were manipulated using a factorial design during a WM delayed-recognition task. Performance was best subsequent to trials in which both maintenance and distractor interference demands were high, followed by trials with high demand in either of these 2 control domains, and worst following trials with low demand in both domains. These results suggest that dynamic adjustments in cognitive control are not triggered exclusively by conflict-specific contexts but are also triggered by WM demands, revealing a putative mechanism by which this system configures itself for successful task performance.
Current military deployments have resulted in many psychological and physical health issues and created interest in protective measures to mitigate effects of prolonged and repetitive stress. Mindfulness training has been successfully used for stress reduction in other contexts. The following case report presents a detachment of U.S. Marines who received Mindfulness-Based Mind Fitness Training (MMFT) prior to deployment. Self-report measures of mindfulness, perceptions of stress, predictors of compliance with mindfulness practice, and time spent engaging in practice were indexed. More time spent engaging in practice corresponded with greater self-reported mindfulness; increases in mindfulness were associated with decreases in perceived stress.
Working memory templates are maintained as feature-specific perceptual codes (n.d., Journal Article)
Working memory (WM) representations serve as templates that guide behavior, but the neural basis of these templates remains elusive. We tested the hypothesis that WM templates are maintained by biasing activity in sensoriperceptual neurons that code for features of items being held in memory. Neural activity was recorded using event-related potentials (ERPs) as participants viewed a series of faces and responded when a face matched a target face held in WM. Our prediction was that if activity in neurons coding for the features of the target is preferentially weighted during maintenance of the target, then ERP activity evoked by a nontarget probe face should be commensurate with the visual similarity between target and probe. Visual similarity was operationalized as the degree of overlap in visual features between target and probe. A face-sensitive ERP response was modulated by target-probe similarity. Amplitude was largest for probes that were similar to the target, and decreased monotonically as a function of decreasing target-probe similarity. These results indicate that neural activity is weighted in favor of visual features that comprise an actively held memory representation. As such, our findings support the notion that WM templates rely on neural populations involved in forming percepts of memory items.
We investigated whether mindfulness training (MT) influences information processing in a working memory task with complex visual stimuli. Participants were tested before (T1) and after (T2) participation in an intensive one-month MT retreat, and their performance was compared with that of an age- and education-matched control group. Accuracy did not differ across groups at either time point. Response times were faster and significantly less variable in the MT versus the control group at T2. Since these results could be due to changes in mnemonic processes, speed-accuracy trade-off, or nondecisional factors (e.g., motor execution), we used a mathematical modeling approach to disentangle these factors. The EZ-diffusion model (Wagenmakers, van der Maas, & Grasman, Psychonomic Bulletin & Review 14:(1), 3-22, 2007) suggested that MT leads to improved information quality and reduced response conservativeness, with no changes in nondecisional factors. The noisy exemplar model further suggested that the increase in information quality reflected a decrease in encoding noise and not an increase in forgetting. Thus, mathematical modeling may help clarify the mechanisms by which MT produces salutary effects on performance.
Contemplative Practices and Mental Training: Prospects for American Education (n.d., Journal Article)
This article draws on research in neuroscience, cognitive science, developmental psychology, and education, as well as scholarship from contemplative traditions concerning the cultivation of positive development, to highlight a set of mental skills and socioemotional dispositions that are central to the aims of education in the 21st century. These include self-regulatory skills associated with emotion and attention, self-representations, and prosocial dispositions such as empathy and compassion. It should be possible to strengthen these positive qualities and dispositions through systematic contemplative practices, which induce plastic changes in brain function and structure, supporting prosocial behavior and academic success in young people. These putative beneficial consequences call for focused programmatic research to better characterize which forms and frequencies of practice are most effective for which types of children and adolescents. Results from such research may help refine training programs to maximize their effectiveness at different ages and to document the changes in neural function and structure that might be induced.
Fractionating the role of executive control in control over worry: a preliminary investigation (n.d., Journal Article)
Uncontrollable anxious thought characterizes a number of emotional disorders. Little is known, however, about the cognitive mechanisms that underlie the ability to control these thoughts. The present study investigated the extent to which two well-characterized executive control processes--working memory and inhibition--are engaged when an individual attempts to control worry. Participants completed a concurrent assessment of these processes while attempting to control personally-relevant worried and neutral thoughts. To examine the specificity of these effects to attempts to control worry, versus a residual "depletion" effect of having previously engaged in worry, a subset of participants completed the assessment without instructions to control their worried or neutral thoughts. Attempts to control worry engaged working memory and inhibition to a greater extent than did attempts to control neutral thought. This increased engagement was not explained solely by anxious affect, nor was it significantly associated with trait worry. Engagement did not differ by group, suggesting that executive control depletion by worry cannot be dismissed as an alternative explanation of these findings. These results highlight working memory and inhibition as potentially valuable constructs for deepening our understanding of the nature and treatment of worry and its control.
Taming a wandering attention: short-form mindfulness training in student cohorts (n.d., Journal Article)
Mindfulness training (MT) is a form of mental training in which individuals engage in exercises to cultivate an attentive, present centered, and non-reactive mental mode. The present study examines the putative benefits of MT in University students for whom mind wandering can interfere with learning and academic success. We tested the hypothesis that short-form MT (7 h over 7 weeks) contextualized for the challenges and concerns of University students may reduce mind wandering and improve working memory. Performance on the sustained attention to response task (SART) and two working memory tasks (operation span, delayed-recognition with distracters) was indexed in participants assigned to a waitlist control group or the MT course. Results demonstrated MT-related benefits in SART performance. Relative to the control group, MT participants had higher task accuracy and self-reported being more "on-task" after the 7-week training period. MT did not significantly benefit the operation span task or accuracy on the delayed-recognition task. Together these results suggest that while short-form MT did not bolster working memory task performance, it may help curb mind wandering and should, therefore, be further investigated for its use in academic contexts.
Maps Descriptive of London Poverty (n.d., Map)
The dancing column : on order of architecture / (n.d., Book)
Yoga, Change and Embodied Enlightenment (n.d., Journal Article)
Peter Singer, on Altruism and Emotion (n.d., Newspaper Article)
A letter to the Editor
Press Release: Only 25 Minutes of Mindfulness Meditation Alleviates Stress, According to Carnegie Mellon Researchers
Pema Chödrön: Tonglen Meditation (n.d., Audiovisual)
A leading exponent of teachings on meditation and how they apply to everyday life, Pema Chödrön is widely known for her insightful, down-to-earth interpretation of Tibetan Buddhism for Western audiences. Here she shares the practice of Tonglen Meditation. Explore more from Pema Chödrön: https://www.eomega.org/workshops/teac...
This dissertation uses a Zen koan as a foundation for discussing teacher training and development. It suggests that teacher training attends to issues of theory, pedagogy, and technology, and it contends that teacher training and development does not adequately attend to the intrapersonal aspect of teaching. In spite of the use of reflective techniques in teacher education, teachers are not trained in a significant way to navigate, negotiate, or manage the issues of identity, the issues of self-belief, the patterns of thought, and/or the emotional patterns, which affect their teaching and their classrooms. This work looks at research regarding the importance of the intrapersonal aspect of teaching in relation to teacher effectiveness and classroom climate; it considers current practices in pre-service and in-service teacher training; and it reviews research related to the efficacy of mindfulness and contemplative practices, such as meditation. It argues that the intrapersonal aspect of teaching is relevant to teacher effectiveness and classroom climate; that contemplative and mindfulness practices may offer systems that support and sustain teachers as they navigate, negotiate, and manage the intrapersonal aspect of teaching; and that pre-service and in-service professional development may provide vehicles to deliver this training.
Gesar’s Therapeutic Geographies (n.d., Book)
Civilized Shamans: Buddhism in Tibetan Societies (n.d., Book)
Introduction: The Bon Medical Tradition of Tibet (n.d., Book Chapter)
On the practice of Tibetan ayurvedic system of medicine in the Ladakh, India.
This thesis examines Tibetan perspectives on the causation, management and treatment of mental illness (Tib.: sems nad) within a Tibetan exile community in Darjeeling, northeast India. Based on two six-month periods of ethnographic fieldwork conducted in 2011 and 2012, it examines common cultural understandings of mental illness and healing, and how these are reflected in health-seeking behaviour. To date, research on lay Tibetan perspectives of mental illness and their impact on health-seeking behaviour has been limited, especially in relation to the concept of smyo nad (‘madness’). Following on from work by Jacobson (2000, 2002, 2007) and Millard (2007), the thesis investigates lay Tibetan perceptions of the causation and treatment of various kinds of mental disorders through the use of indepth semi-structured interviews and participant observation, comparing and contrasting Tibetan approaches to those of biomedical psychology and psychiatry and their accompanying classification systems, the American Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) and European International Classification of Disease (ICD). Four case studies of individuals labelled with different Tibetan and biomedical diagnoses related to mental health conditions are described in order to illustrate a number of key concepts in Tibetan approaches to mental illness and its healing. The research found that that a number of informants successfully combined different – sometimes opposing – explanatory frameworks and treatment approaches in response to an episode of mental illness. However, the thesis concludes that the Tibetan and biomedical categories remain difficult to correlate, due in part to their culturally-specific nature, based on significantly different underlying assumptions regarding individuals and their relationship to the environment.
This chapter concerns a ritual for the consecration of medicines in Ladakh, a region in north-western Himalayan India. It describes not only the sequence and significance of the actions performed by the participants, but also the place of the ritual in the social landscape of twenty-first century Ladakh. While the empowerment of medicine is an age-old practice, this ritual incorporates very contemporary elements. The smandrup (sman sgrub) ritual offers the opportunity to examine and analyse the social encounters between the amchi, social welfare organizations, and the donors involved in the development of the 'science of healing', Sowa rigpa. The field of the ritual associates the forces of the Buddhas with those of foreign donors, thus not only empowering and consecrating the medicines, but also contributing to the revitalization of the medical system as a whole.
Tibetan medicine cards (n.d., Book)
Tibetan medicine. (n.d., Film)
Portrays Ama Lopsang Dolma, the first female doctor of Tibet, who with her family treats patients with herbal and mineral medicines, acupuncture and moxabustion.
Dharmapala Thangka Centre. (n.d., Book)
Dharmapala Thangka Centre in Kathmandu, Nepal is an Institute for this traditional style of Tibetan painting under the guidance of Karsang Lama. The site offers information on the Centre, photos of painters in action, a listing of the Centre's exhibitions, information on the differences between amateaur and professionally made thankas including side-by-side photographs of different thankas and a gallery of 291 thankas of various subjects and themes. The site also has extensive information and articles on Tibetan iconography in the areas such as mudras, background colors, explanation of a thanka's meaning, etc. The site also offers information and articles on Tibetan medicine and a summary with photos of all 77 medical thankas. Also available is a photo journal of a thanka being created (which is updated every few weeks), information on the steps taken in the creation of a thanka, information on Sherpa paintings and on other Tibetan ritual objects with photos. There is also information available for ordering thankas.
Cordyceps sinensis has been described as a medicine in old Chinese medical books and Tibetan medicine. It is a rare combination of a caterpillar and a fungus and found at altitudes above 4500m in Sikkim. Traditional healers and local people of North Sikkim recommend the mushroom, i.e., Yarsa gumba, Keera jhar (C. sinensis) for all diseases either as a single drug or combined with other herbs. The present study was undertaken to collect information regarding the traditional uses of cordyceps in Sikkim. It was found that most local folk healers/traditional healers use cordyceps for the treatment of 21 ailments. A modern literature search was carried out to assess whether the curative effects are valid or just blind faith of local people. Chemical constituents of cordyceps are given and pharmacological and biological studies reviewed. More mechanism-based and disease-oriented clinical studies are recommended.
This paper presentation presents a Buddhist point of view on suffering, illness, health, and their interrelationship. The author outlines what suffering means in Buddhism, shows how this concept can be used to promote both physical and spiritual wellbeing, how meditation is used as the process for this positive actualization, and finally outlines some practical applications, such as Tibetan medicine, as useful to this discussion on suffering and wellbeing. The author shows how, in Buddhism, physical and psychological health are interconnected, and how this may be applied progressively to Western medicine. Copyright belongs to the author. Permission to reproduce this paper was granted.
Traditional herbal preparations (THPs) used in Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Traditional Tibetan Medicine (TTM) and other Asian traditional medicine systems may contain significant amounts of mercury, arsenic or lead. Though deliberately incorporated in Asian THPs for therapeutic purposes, these constituents have caused intoxications worldwide. The aim of this study was therefore to determine mercury, arsenic and lead levels in Asian THPs on the Dutch market. 292 THPs used in Ayurveda, TCM and TTM were sampled between 2004 and 2007. Samples were mostly multi ingredient THPs containing herbs and minerals. The labeling of less than 20% of the THPs suggested the presence of mercury, arsenic or lead. These elements were shown by ICP-MS in 186 (64%) of 292 THPs. Estimated weekly mercury, arsenic and lead intake levels were calculated for each THP from the analytically determined concentrations and the recommended dose. 59 THPs (20%) were likely to result in intakes of these elements significantly exceeding safety limits. Of these 59 THPs, intake estimates for 50 THPs significantly exceeded the safety limit for mercury (range 1.4 - 1747 mg/wk); intake estimates for 26 THPs significantly exceeded the safety limit for arsenic (range 0.53 - 427 mg/wk) and intake estimates for 8 THPs were significantly above the safety limit for lead (range 2.6 - 192 mg/wk). It is concluded that the mercury, arsenic and lead contents of THPs used in Ayurveda, TCM and TTM remain a cause for concern and require strict control.
Foundations of Tibetan medicine (n.d., Book)
Mysteries of Tibetan Medicine. (n.d., Book)
Presents "Mysteries of Tibetan Medicine," an article written by Victor Vostokov for the monthly electronic magazine "World Around Baikal." Discusses the Tibetan belief that there is no such notion as disease and that the whole organism is considered sick and is looked upon as one unit. Examines the principles of Tibetan medicine and treatments.
Tibetan medicine of the snowy region (n.d., Miscellaneous)
The ancient art of Tibetan medicine is a veritable treasure in the world annals of medical science. Tibetan medicine evolved over ages, as the tibeta people accumulated experience struggling against the conditions of the snow plateau, emerging as a unique realm of medicine with a distinct understanding of physiology and pathology and its own methods of diagnosis, treatment and medication. The abundant medicinal herbs that grow on the plateau are the active ingredients in the special medicines Tibetans use to treat patients, which in turn is a precious cultural legacy that is now being passed on to the world. Known for its traditional therapies, Tibetan medicine is remarkably effective and beneficial, and has made great contributions to the overall health of humankind.
Yuthog Foundation for Tibetan Medicine. (n.d., Book)
Yuthog Foundation for Tibetan Medicine was founded by German botanist Andreas Neugebauer to train young Ladakhi people in Tibetan medicine. The site offers information on plants used in Tibetan medicine including photos and articles on Tibetan medicine by a Tibetan doctor. There is also a Frequently Asked Questions section on Tibetan medicine.
Traditional Tibetan medicine. (n.d., Journal Article)
Tibetan Medicine Resources. (n.d., Book)
Tibetan Medicine Resources is a subsection of a site called Dharma Haven. There are nine internal links on the site: Ancient Healing Wisdom for the Modern World, Tibetan Medical Clinics and Pharmacies, Herbal Sources of Tibetan Medicines, Resources for Research on Tibetan Medicine, Books on Tibetan Medicine, Tibetan Self Care, Medicine Buddha Resources, Spiritual Healing in Buddhist Tibet, and The Art of Healing: A Tibetan Buddhist Perspective. Each of these pages has information and/or articles on the subject. The site also offers news on upcoming teachings or conferences on Tibetan Medicine, a list of internet resources for studying Tibetan Medicine and a list of institutions where one can learn about the subject.
Abstract Introduction Surmang, Qinghai Province is a rural nomadic Tibetan region in western China recently devastated by the 2010 Yushu earthquake; little information is available on access and coverage of maternal and child health services. Methods A cross-sectional household survey was conducted in August 2004. 402 women of reproductive age (15-50) were interviewed regarding their pregnancy history, access to and utilization of health care, and infant and child health care practices. Results Women's access to education was low at 15% for any formal schooling; adult female literacy was
The Tibet Foundation. (n.d., Book)
The Tibet Foundation is an organization seeking to preserve Tibetan culture and assist Tibetan people. The site has information about the foundation and its projects and events. Some of the information on their projects is of general interest, such as the section on Tibetan cultural promotion and calls for help relating to a flood in Tibet with information on the event and the inhabitants of the affected region. The site has information on Tibetan medicine and Tibetan CD's available for purchase as well.
Ligmincha Texas Institute for Meditative & Healing Arts claims to be a center for Tibetan medicine and East-West psychology. The founder and director is a Tibetan lama named Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche. The site has information about the group and their practice schedule and events calendar and a section for general information, including a biography of the institute's founder, a glossary of words in the Dzogchen Tibetan Buddhist tradition, 25 photos from Tibet primarily of people, photos of statues, lamas and Dharma centers of the Bon tradition, articles on Bon history and practice and links.
There is a prevailing conviction that if traditional medicine (TRM) or complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) are integrated into healthcare systems, modern scientific medicine (MSM) should retain its principal status. This paper contends that this position is misguided in medical contexts where TRM is established and remains vibrant. By reflecting on the Chinese policy on three entrenched forms of TRM (Tibetan, Mongolian and Uighur medicines) in western regions of China, the paper challenges the ideology of science that lies behind the demand that all traditional forms of medicine be evaluated and reformed according to MSM standards. Tibetan medicine is used as a case study to indicate the falsity of a major premise of the scientific ideology. The conclusion is that the proper integrative system for TRM and MSM is a dual standard based system in which both TRM and MSM are free to operate according to their own medical standards.
Tibetan Cultural Directory. (n.d., Book)
The Tibetan Cultural Directory has a list of websites related to Tibet, as well as sections for websites related to Bhutan and Nepal. The sites are listed under headings such as Arts & Crafts, Astrology, Cultural, Education, Literature, People, Politics, Religion, Tibetan Medicine, and Women. Each category has 10-25 links, all with detailed descriptions of the site's content or the nature of the organization hosting the site.
The Art of Healing A Tibetan Buddhist Perspective. (n.d., Book)
The Art of Healing: A Tibetan Buddhist Perspective is the title of an article written by Bonnie Pasqualoni. It gives an overview of Tibetan medicine, focusing on its Buddhist elements. The site also offers information on Medicine Buddha meditation practices including several images of Medicine Buddha, his mantras and books on the subject. Links to other sites on Tibetan medicine are also available.
Introduction: The Indian Face of Sowa Rigpa (n.d., Book Chapter)
Tibetan medicine highlights compassion in modern health care (n.d., Newspaper Article)
IFS and Mindfulness Meditation (n.d., Miscellaneous)
Brain Facts (n.d., Website)
Parasympathetic Nervous System (n.d., Website)
Autonomic Nervous System - Overview (n.d., Web Article)
Somatic symptom disorder (n.d., Website)
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