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41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Now we're getting somewhere!!, February 26, 2009
This review is from: Mind in the Balance: Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity (Columbia Series in Science and Religion) (Hardcover)
Mr. Wallace does a Yeoman's job of condensing, polishing, explaining and reviewing ancient contemplative theories & practices; from both Buddhist and Christian perspectives and then uses modern science (quantum physics and neuroscience) to elucidate and flesh out the nature of the archaic but extremely relevant wisdom. Between rigorously researched historical accounts and postulations of meditative principles, we are treated to exercises with which to practice and integrate those principles. This was quite a boon for me as my next step on the path is to learn and practice some form of meditation, and this book went a considerable distance in whetting my appetite. The author articulates some very excellent, wise and cogent rationale as to why materialist/reductionist philosophy is just as stagnating, dogmatic and possibly harmful as the medieval R.C. Church and their insistence on the Ostrich maneuver. I think Mr. Wallace would agree fanaticism - any fanaticism - is at least counterproductive and at most, deadly. A Mind that is in balance will serve the world, its people and its master far more productively and joyfully than one in an impulsive, fanatical frenzy. My only nit-picky complaints are: 1.) Alan, in most cases painted with a pretty broad brush, I wish he would have added some more detail; 2.) That said, the book could have been a bit longer - expanding on the exercises and maybe some more historical context; 3.) Alan is obviously a very practiced mediator and the language, analogies, metaphors and similes he used were to me; a bit too esoteric. I am at best a nascent practitioner, thus some of the concepts as explained were somewhat daunting. Great work - 5 stars on the board, but I'm going with a real 4 ½ today. UPDATE! After reading, rereading and reading again - the last 4 or 5 chapters in this book, I have come to the following two conclusions: 1.) My nit-picks as stated above should be completely ignored; 2.) This work is replete with lucid argument and wonderful, (nearly breathtaking) detailed explanation as to the congruencies and parallels between Eastern & Western contemplative traditions and modern, that is to say: quantum physics. "Mind in Balance" is now in my top three favorites of all time, easily a must read 5 plus star effort.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The perfect book, April 16, 2009
This review is from: Mind in the Balance: Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity (Columbia Series in Science and Religion) (Hardcover)
This book was exactly what I wanted and needed. I had always wanted to know the origins of meditation and contemplation. There are so many new age gurus teaching new age techniques, and what I wanted was the authentic techniques, that had been tried and tested. I wanted to get as close to the origins as possible, and that's exactly what this book offered me. Raised as a Christian I wanted to know how it all tied into Christianity, and Mind In The Balance so nicely brought it all together for me, and really helped create an even less dualistic view for me. I was also interested in what the latest research and studies science had on the subject, and this too was included in the book. I always thought that meditation was just about sitting on my cushion and not thinking about anything. Mind In The Balance opened my uneducated view, and offered many different types of meditation that I find exciting "exploration of the mind" as Alan Wallace calls it, is so much better then my previous attempts at spacing out. And one of the greatest gifts this book gave me was a genuine and lasting motivation to explore my mind, and reach my inner depths of perfection. Thank you!!!!
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Extraordinary, June 13, 2009
This review is from: Mind in the Balance: Meditation in Science, Buddhism, and Christianity (Columbia Series in Science and Religion) (Hardcover)
The book deals a devastating blow to the cognitive sciences as practiced today. Wallace argues that cognitive scientists and neuroscientists hold materialism -- the view that consciousness can be explained on a physical level -- as dogma. These fields tend to dismiss what may be learned from direct contemplation of the mind. In a simple and brilliant stroke, Wallace shows materialism to be a faith-based view. Why? The physical basis of consciousness has not been established. Wallace quotes Christoph Koch, a leading neuroscientist at CalTech, who says that the relationship between consciousness and the physical brain remains a mystery. Another deft move in the book is Wallace's revival of introspection as a means of understanding the mind. He revisits the early history of modern psychology when William James viewed introspection as a research method. Later, during the rise of behaviorism and the cognitive revolution, introspection was pooh-poohed as "unscientific." Behaviorists believed anything that could not be observed and measured empirically was not real. Wallace exposes this as nonsense. He suggests that meditation, being a direct experience of the mind, is akin to James' introspection, and has yielded profound insights into consciousness which can inform the cognitive sciences. A third line of inquiry explores whether nature has an absolute reality outside of human perceptions, or instead, nature can only be understood through the language and tools we bring to bear on it (a Phenomenalist view). Wallace highlights the work of distinguished contemporary scholars and scientists who have arrived at the latter view. He ties this view back to the Buddhist teaching that the entire world emerges from the "substrate" and returns to it. It is striking that certain strands of Western science and philosophy have ended up in the same territory as Buddhist contemplative wisdom. Throughout the book, Wallace fishes out prominent and obscure figures from history: Pythagoras, Nicholas of Cusa, Franklin Merrell-Wolff, Richard Feynman, and Düdjom Lingpa, to name just a few. Wallace nimbly traverses the fields of history, philosophy, science, and religion. The author's voice is lucid, even-keeled, and confident. But taken as a whole, the book deals a withering blow to certain received truths of Western science. The contrast between the calm lucidity of the prose and the force of its argument is quite pleasing! But the book is much more than a critique of science as we know it; it offers a vision for how a contemplative perspective can enrich scientific inquiry. Wallace's ideas should be considered carefully by cognitive scientists of all stripes, philosophers of science, and anyone interested in the encounter between Western and Buddhist worldviews. I also give it the highest recommendation to any inquiring person who is willing to let his curiosity lead him into new territory.
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