THE SNOW LION NEWSLETTER

Mind & Life Conference in Washington

The Mind and Life Institute has announced the latest public meeting between modern science and Buddhist contemplative practice. Investigating the Mind 2005: The Science and Clinical Applications of Meditation will take place at the DAR Constitutional Hall, Washington, DC, November 8-10, 2005.

This is the thirteenth meeting since 1987 between scientists and His Holiness the XIV Dalai Lama and other Buddhist scholars. The Dalai Lama has long been a proponent of science. He has said that if he were not a monk, he would be an engineer.

"With the ever growing impact of science on our lives," says the Dalai Lama, "religion and spirituality have a greater role to play reminding us of our humanity. There is no contradiction between the two. Each gives us valuable insight into the other. Both science and the teachings of the Buddha tell us of the fundamental unity of all things."

The Dalai Lama will also give a public address on November 13 at the MCI Center, in Washington, DC.

The meeting builds on the growing interest in meditation within modern medicine and biomedical science that has arisen over the past thirty years. Various applications of meditation have made their way into mainstream medicine and psychiatry in the treatment of stress, pain, and a large range of chronic diseases.

The meeting is broken into five sessions spanning three days. The first session discusses developing a clinical science of contemplative practice, and the second session discusses the basics of biology and psychology. The third and fourth sessions detail clinical research regarding meditation and mental health and meditation and physical health. The fifth session integrates and reflects on the previous sessions.

The Dalai Lama will be joined by author, teacher and Catholic monk Father Thomas Keating. At 81 years, he works to foster understanding among world religions and continues to be a prominent voice in the Christian Centering Prayer movement which he initiated.

Other contemplative theologians include Ajahn Amaro, a Theravadan Buddhist monk; B. Alan Wallace, a Buddhist scholar; Thupten Jinpa, a Buddhist scholar; Jan Chozen Bays, a pediatrician and practicing Zen Buddhist; Matthieu Ricard, a Buddhist monk; and Jack Kornfield, a Buddhist monk and clinical psychologist, psychotherapist, author and meditation teacher.

Scientists participating in the meeting include Jon Kabat-Zinn, Richard J. Davidson, Daniel Kahneman, Helen Mayberg, Robert Sapolsky, Zindel Segal, Wolf Singer, David Sheps, John Sheridan, and Ralph Snyderman, among others.

For more information see www.mindandlife.org/ml.itm05.conf.html. To get regular updates of the meeting as they are developed, sign up on the Mind & Life website at www.mindandlife.org.