Contemplative neuroscience and the philosophy of mind

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06/07/2009 21:44

Contemplative neuroscience and the philosophy of mind

http://www.examiner.com/x-14195-Boulder-Science--Spirituality-Exami...

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Boulder Science & Spirituality Examiner

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Contemplative neuroscience and the philosophy of mind

June 19, 5:39 PM 4 comments ShareThis RSS Email Print

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What, exactly, is contemplative neuroscience and what relevance, if any, does it have to the study of brain and behavior? Contemplative neuroscience is primarily the study of how contemplative practices like meditation affect the brain and nervous system. However, contemplative neuroscience can sometimes take on a second but equally valid definition: The contemplative philosophical view of neuroscience and the mind. Id therefore like to offer a short but concise philosophical foundation for this emerging science and thereby highlight precisely why such a philosophical interpretation has the capacity for revolutionizing both what we understand about the mind-body connection and how we use that understanding to profoundly change our brains, our behavior, and our way of being. Over the last 20 years, science has discovered how deeply the human brain is impacted by both human experience and the environment, and not only early in life but throughout the lifespan as well. This new understanding of the brains capacity to change and develop, often referred to as neuroplasticity, offers new inroads to personal development that once seemed impossible. According to Sharon Begley (2007), by making the best possible use of brain plasticity through attentional training, the goal is not merely the absence of mental illness, which seems to be all that psychiatric and psychological therapies strive for these days, but the enduring presence of robust mental and emotional health (p. 221, emphasis mine). The research on neuroplasticity clearly shows that specific kinds of mental training can influence how our brains operate, which strongly implies that our emotional and mental well-being can indeed be cultivated through mental discipline. The evidence seems clear: Our individual emotional set-points can be shifted toward higher levels of well-being. Conventional psychiatry, on the other hand, typically approaches treatment by treating the symptoms of mental and emotional discomfort through psychopharmacology, without necessarily addressing the deeper causal issues behind such discomfort. The conventional emphasis, as such, seems to be on the manipulation of neurotransmitters to alleviate symptoms, relegating the people who are suffering from such discomfort to the role of victims of brain chemistry and physiology, sentenced as it were to rely for the rest of their lives solely upon psychopharmacology for any hope of future relief. Furthermore, such medication often requires additional medication simply to counteract its own distressing side effects. Before I go any further, allow me to be very clear: Im not against psychopharmacology, psychiatry, or the use of medication. The development and use of such medication has greatly contributed to the world in which we live. While the use of psychopharmacology is often necessary

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06/07/2009 21:44

Contemplative neuroscience and the philosophy of mind

http://www.examiner.com/x-14195-Boulder-Science--Spirituality-Exami...

3 of 3

06/07/2009 21:44