Converging and diverging views on the mind, the self, consciousness, the unconscious, free will, perception, meditation, and other topics.
Buddhism shares with science the task of examining the mind empirically; it has pursued, for two millennia, direct investigation of the mind through penetrating introspection. Neuroscience, on the other hand, relies on third-person knowledge in the form of scientific observation. In this book, Matthieu Ricard, a Buddhist monk trained as a molecular biologist, and Wolf Singer, a distinguished neuroscientist―close friends, continuing an ongoing dialogue―offer their perspectives on the mind, the self, consciousness, the unconscious, free will, epistemology, meditation, and neuroplasticity. 
Ricard and Singer's wide-ranging conversation stages an enlightening and engaging encounter between Buddhism's wealth of experiential findings and neuroscience's abundance of experimental results. They discuss, among many other things, the difference between rumination and meditation (rumination is the scourge of meditation, but psychotherapy depends on it); the distinction between pure awareness and its contents; the Buddhist idea (or lack of one) of the unconscious and neuroscience's precise criteria for conscious and unconscious processes; and the commonalities between cognitive behavioral therapy and meditation. Their views diverge (Ricard asserts that the third-person approach will never encounter consciousness as a primary experience) and converge (Singer points out that the neuroscientific understanding of perception as reconstruction is very like the Buddhist all-discriminating wisdom) but both keep their vision trained on understanding fundamental aspects of human life.

Beyond the Self: Conversations between Buddhism and Neuroscience

Politics & Social Sciences

RICARD, Matthieu

Singer, Wolf

Philosophy

The MIT Press

The memoirs of renowned Buddhist monk Matthieu Ricard and his extraordinary journey toward&nbsp;inner freedom and compassion in action. Matthieu Ricard began his spiritual transformation at the age of twenty-one, in Darjeeling, India, when he met Tibetan teacher Kangyur Rinpoche, who deeply impressed the young man with his extraordinary quality of being. In Notebooks of a Wandering Monk, Ricard tells the simple yet extraordinary story of his journey and the remarkable men and women who&nbsp;inspired&nbsp;him along the way, including Kangyur Rinpoche, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, and the fourteenth Dalai Lama, as well as great luminaries such as Desmond Tutu, Jane Goodall, and a number of leading scientists. Growing up, Ricard, the son of philosopher Jean-François Revel and artist Yahne Le Toumelin, regularly found himself in the company of intellectuals and artists such as Luis Buñuel, Henri Cartier-Bresson, and Igor Stravinsky. Young Ricard loved nature, classical music, and science and dreamed of unlocking the mysteries of molecular biology. But, six years after meeting Kangyur Rinpoche, Ricard gave up a promising career in genetics to pursue a meditative life in the remote Himalayas. While spending half a century in India, Bhutan, and Nepal, he visited Tibet more than twenty times and spent years publishing rare Tibetan texts and photographing his spiritual teachers and the world in which they lived.&nbsp; Elegantly translated by Jesse Browner&nbsp;and accompanied by more than fifty full-color photographs, some of which are Ricard's own, Notebooks of a Wandering Monk charts Ricard's lifelong path to wisdom and compassion. This candid and reflective memoir will inspire all readers, wherever they may be on their own journey to a meaningful and well-lived life.

Notebooks of a Wandering Monk

Religion & Spirituality

Beyond the Self: Conversations between Buddhism and Neuroscience (Mit Press)

The author of the international bestseller Happiness makes a passionate case for altruism -- and why we need it now more than ever. In Happiness, Matthieu Ricard demonstrated that true happiness is not tied to fleeting moments or sensations, but is an enduring state of soul rooted in mindfulness and compassion for others. Now he turns his lens from the personal to the global, with a rousing argument that altruism -- genuine concern for the well-being of others -- could be the saving grace of the 21st century. It is, he believes, the vital thread that can answer the main challenges of our time: the economy in the short term, life satisfaction in the mid-term, and environment in the long term. Ricard's message has been taken up by major economists and thinkers, including Dennis Snower, Amartya Sen, Joseph Stiglitz, and George Soros. Matthieu Ricard makes a robust and passionate case for cultivating altruistic love and compassion as the best means for simultaneously benefitting ourselves and our society. It's a fresh outlook on an ardent struggle -- and one that just might make the world a better place.

Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World

Self-Help

Happiness

Back Bay Books

Little. Brown and Company

<div>In this groundbreaking book, Matthieu Ricard makes a passionate case for happiness as a goal that deserves as least as much energy as any other in our lives. Wealth? Fitness? Career success? How can we possibly place these above true and lasting well-being? Drawing from works of fiction and poetry, Western philosophy, Buddhist beliefs, scientific research, and personal experience, Ricard weaves an inspirational and forward-looking account of how we can begin to rethink our realities in a fast-moving modern world. With its revelatory lessons and exercises, Happiness is an eloquent and stimulating guide to a happier life.</div>

Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Alternative Medicine

“A unique combination of intimate close-ups, awe-inspiring landscapes, and ancient religious rituals. Unbelievably colorful.”―San Francisco Chronicle
“Tibet is the Roof of the World, a place where you feel that you arein the sky just as much as you are on the earth. The intense blueness of space contrasts sharply with the deep green of eastern Tibet’s rolling grasslands and the mineral colors of the west with its expanses of barren rock. For over a thousand years, Buddhist culture has been at the heart of Tibetan society, and anyone who has traveled across the high plateaux will understand how this contemplative civilization flourished in a landscape of such vastness.”―Matthieu Ricard, from the Introduction
Here Ricard seeks to bear witness to all that survives of that ancient world―a world capable of making a valuable contribution to contemporary life. He provides a glimpse of a unique culture that is desperately trying to preserve its authenticity, despite the major upheavals that have shaken the land of its birth. 191 color illustrations

Tibet: An Inner Journey

Reference

Thames&Hudson

“Color-drenched images . . . capture the vibrant rainbow palette of intricate Bhutanese weavings, ceremonial garb, painted pottery, and the ubiquitous wind-whipped prayer flags.” ―Passport Magazine Tucked away between China and India in the heart of the Himalayas, Bhutan remains a uniquely distinct country. Few photographers have been granted permission to reside in this long-inaccessible kingdom, now a democracy, where life quietly unfolds to the rhythm of traditions amid the magnificent, unspoiled landscape. Matthieu Ricard, a monk and photographer, spent eight years in Bhutan with Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, a revered Tibetan Buddhist master, and has continued to return to the “land of the thunder dragon” throughout his life, discovering on each occasion another of its invaluable treasures. His experiences are recorded here in this exceptionally beautiful book, a voyage to the heart of Bhutan, a land where spirituality and daily life are intimately linked. 184 color illustrations

Bhutan: The Land of Serenity

Tucked away between China and India in the heart of the Himalayas, Bhutan remains a relatively little-known country. Few photographers have been granted permission to enter this remote kingdom, where life quietly unfolds to the rhythm of tradition amid the magnificent, unspoiled landscape. Nearly twenty-five years ago, Matthieu Ricard went to Bhutan to study with Dilgo Khyenste Rinpoche, a highly revered Tibetan Buddhist master and teacher. During this time, he also came to know the royal family. He has continued to return to Bhutan throughout his life, discovering on each occasion more of its treasures. 184 color photographs

History

Asia

A moving journey into the heart of Buddhist spirituality and into the daily life and festivals of people in the Tibetan interior. "Matthieu's spiritual life and his camera are one and the same, and it is from this unity that these fleeting yet eternal images spring."—Henri Cartier-Bresson Matthieu Ricard has lived in Nepal for over thirty years. During this time he has forged close ties with some of Buddhism's greatest spiritual masters, from Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, for whom he is the official French interpreter. Ricard's status as a monk and his knowledge of the Tibetan people and culture have opened many doors to him: he has been able to follow pilgrimages made by the great lamas of eastern Tibet; to bear witness to the artistry of wood-engravers at the gigantic, mysterious Dege printing press; and to meet hermit monks in extremely remote regions of Kham. These experiences and many others are recorded here in 191 sublime color photographs.

Arts & Photography

Photography & Video

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by RICARD, Matthieu. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Books by RICARD, Matthieu

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by RICARD, Matthieu. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Beyond the Self: Conversations between Buddhism and Neuroscience

Notebooks of a Wandering Monk

Beyond the Self: Conversations between Buddhism and Neuroscience (Mit Press)

Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World

Altruism: The Power of Compassion to Change Yourself and the World

Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill

Tibet: An Inner Journey

Bhutan: The Land of Serenity

Bhutan: The Land of Serenity

Tibet: An Inner Journey