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Mind Science: Meditation Training for Practical People
Rich with lucid instructions and practical insights, Mind Science dispels the metaphysical haze that all too often surrounds the subject of meditation. Based on a lively workshop with fellow scientists, this book shows how the pragmatic and scientifically-inclined among us can bring mindfulness into everyday life without religious baggage, while clearly explaining its many spiritual and health benefits.
236 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2000
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About the author
Charles T. Tart
50 books85 followersCharles T. Tart was an American psychologist and parapsychologist known for his psychological work on the nature of consciousness (particularly altered states of consciousness), as one of the founders of the field of transpersonal psychology, and for his research in parapsychology.
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March 7, 2015
Mind Science is a completely Western approach to meditation- created by Charles T. Tart in an effort to develop a science of consciousness. This book is essentially a written record of a live conference presentation that he gave at the University of Arizona in 1998. I wish that I had been present for that conference as he seems like a dynamic speaker from his words, but the full experience falls rather flat as written word rather than spoken.
Tart was trained in a Buddhist tradition and applied his background as a scientist to the study of his own mind. He says that in order to scientifically approach your consciousness, you first need to perform data collection on yourself. Observing your mind is the way that you "collect" this data. The trouble is that, our minds are always spinning, lost in illusion, the past, or the future. So, Tart gives the reader meditative practices to first, focus the concentration, then create a "blank space" using a vipassana type meditation so that you can observe and then create a hypothesis about your own consciousness. Test your hypothesis, observe, create hypothesis, and then test again. In this manner, Tart believes that the Western world can begin to develop a consciousness knowledge base and practices that are geared for our culture. It is certainly an interesting premise.
If you enjoy Mind Science, I'd suggest that you read The Art of Stillness by Pico Iyer or listen to the audio program- Seeking Heaven by Eben Alexander. Both of these books/audiobooks are about meditation written by western men for a western audience. Alexander based his meditations on his own near death experiences. I think that they are both practicing the methods of consciousness development that Tart is putting forth in this book.
Tart was trained in a Buddhist tradition and applied his background as a scientist to the study of his own mind. He says that in order to scientifically approach your consciousness, you first need to perform data collection on yourself. Observing your mind is the way that you "collect" this data. The trouble is that, our minds are always spinning, lost in illusion, the past, or the future. So, Tart gives the reader meditative practices to first, focus the concentration, then create a "blank space" using a vipassana type meditation so that you can observe and then create a hypothesis about your own consciousness. Test your hypothesis, observe, create hypothesis, and then test again. In this manner, Tart believes that the Western world can begin to develop a consciousness knowledge base and practices that are geared for our culture. It is certainly an interesting premise.
If you enjoy Mind Science, I'd suggest that you read The Art of Stillness by Pico Iyer or listen to the audio program- Seeking Heaven by Eben Alexander. Both of these books/audiobooks are about meditation written by western men for a western audience. Alexander based his meditations on his own near death experiences. I think that they are both practicing the methods of consciousness development that Tart is putting forth in this book.
Displaying 1 of 1 review