The relationship between Buddhism and science is a subject of contemporary discussion and debate among Buddhists, scientists and scholars of

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

. Historically, Buddhism encompasses many types of beliefs, traditions and practices, so it is difficult to assert any single "Buddhism" in relation to science. Similarly, the issue of what "science" refers to remains a subject of debate, and there is no single view on this issue. Those who compare science with Buddhism may use "science" to refer to "a method of sober and rational investigation" or may refer to specific scientific theories, methods or technologies. There are many examples throughout the Buddhist world of non-scientific worldviews, such as

dogmatism Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, I ...

fundamentalism Fundamentalism is a tendency among certain groups and individuals that is characterized by the application of a strict literal interpretation to scriptures, dogmas, or ideologies, along with a strong belief in the importance of distinguish ...

clericalism Clericalism is the application of the formal, church-based, leadership or opinion of ordained clergy in matters of either the Church or broader political and sociocultural import. Clericalism is usually, if not always, used in a pejorative sense ...

devotion Devotion or Devotions may refer to: Religion * Faith, confidence or trust in a person, thing, or concept * Anglican devotions, private prayers and practices used by Anglican Christians * Buddhist devotion, commitment to religious observance * Cat ...

supernatural Supernatural refers to phenomena or entities that are beyond the laws of nature. The term is derived from Medieval Latin , from Latin (above, beyond, or outside of) + (nature) Though the corollary term "nature", has had multiple meanings si ...

spirits Spirit or spirits may refer to: Liquor and other volatile liquids * Spirits, a.k.a. liquor, distilled alcoholic drinks * Spirit or tincture, an extract of plant or animal material dissolved in ethanol * Volatile (especially flammable) liquids, ...

and

deities A deity or god is a supernatural being who is considered divine or sacred. The ''Oxford Dictionary of English'' defines deity as a god or goddess, or anything revered as divine. C. Scott Littleton defines a deity as "a being with powers greater ...

. Nevertheless, since the 19th century, numerous modern figures have argued that Buddhism is rational and uniquely compatible with science. Some have even argued that Buddhism is "scientific" (a kind of "science of the mind" or an "inner science"). Those who argue that Buddhism is aligned with science point out certain commonalities between the

scientific method The scientific method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century (with notable practitioners in previous centuries; see the article history of scientifi ...

and Buddhist thought. The

14th Dalai Lama The 14th Dalai Lama (spiritual name Jetsun Jamphel Ngawang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso, known as Tenzin Gyatso (Tibetan: བསྟན་འཛིན་རྒྱ་མཚོ་, Wylie: ''bsTan-'dzin rgya-mtsho''); né Lhamo Thondup), known as ...

, for example, in a speech to the

Society for Neuroscience The Society for Neuroscience (SfN) is a professional society, headquartered in Washington, DC, for basic scientists and physicians around the world whose research is focused on the study of the brain and nervous system. It is especially well kn ...

, listed a "suspicion of absolutes" and a reliance on

causality Causality (also referred to as causation, or cause and effect) is influence by which one event, process, state, or object (''a'' ''cause'') contributes to the production of another event, process, state, or object (an ''effect'') where the cau ...

and

empiricism In philosophy, empiricism is an epistemological theory that holds that knowledge or justification comes only or primarily from sensory experience. It is one of several views within epistemology, along with rationalism and skepticism. Empir ...

as common philosophical principles shared by Buddhism and science. Buddhists also point to various statements in the

Buddhist scriptures Buddhist texts are those religious texts which belong to the Buddhist tradition. The earliest Buddhist texts were not committed to writing until some centuries after the death of Gautama Buddha. The oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts a ...

that promote rational and empirical investigation and invite people to put the teachings of the Buddha to the test before accepting them. Furthermore, Buddhist doctrines such as

impermanence Impermanence, also known as the philosophical problem of change, is a philosophical concept addressed in a variety of religions and philosophies. In Eastern philosophy it is notable for its role in the Buddhist three marks of existence. It ...

and

emptiness Emptiness as a human condition is a sense of generalized boredom, social alienation and apathy. Feelings of emptiness often accompany dysthymia, depression, loneliness, anhedonia, despair, or other mental/emotional disorders, including schizoid ...

have been compared to the scientific understanding of the natural world. However, some scholars have criticized the idea that Buddhism is uniquely rational and science friendly, seeing these ideas as a minor element of traditional Buddhism. Scholars like Donald Lopez Jr. have also argued that this narrative of Buddhism as rationalistic developed recently, as a part of a

Buddhist modernism Buddhist modernism (also referred to as modern Buddhism, modernist Buddhism, and Neo-Buddhism are new movements based on modern era reinterpretations of Buddhism. David McMahan states that modernism in Buddhism is similar to those found in other ...

that arose from the encounter between Buddhism and western thought.Donald S. Lopez Jr.
Buddhism and Science: A Guide for the Perplexed
(University of Chicago Press 2008) Furthermore, while some have compared Buddhist ideas to modern theories of

evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

, quantum theory, and

cosmology Cosmology () is a branch of physics and metaphysics dealing with the nature of the universe. The term ''cosmology'' was first used in English in 1656 in Thomas Blount's ''Glossographia'', and in 1731 taken up in Latin by German philosopher ...

, other figures such as the

have also highlighted the methodological and

metaphysical Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy that studies the fundamental nature of reality, the first principles of being, identity and change, space and time, causality, necessity, and possibility. It includes questions about the nature of conscio ...

differences between these traditions. For the Dalai Lama, Buddhism mainly focuses on studying

consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is sentience and awareness of internal and external existence. However, the lack of definitions has led to millennia of analyses, explanations and debates by philosophers, theologians, linguisticians, and scien ...

from the first-person or phenomenological perspective, while science focuses on studying the objective world.

Pre-modern Buddhism

Rational inquiry in Buddhist texts

Some modern commentators assert that

Buddhist texts Buddhist texts are those religious texts which belong to the Buddhist tradition. The earliest Buddhist texts were not committed to writing until some centuries after the death of Gautama Buddha. The oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts ...

contain ideas which share commonalities with modern scientific methods, such as encouraging an impartial investigation of nature (an activity referred to as ''dhamma-vicaya'' in the

Pali Canon The Pāli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school. During ...

) — the principal object of study being the nature of one's mind or self. Several passages from the

have been seen as indicating the importance of free thinking and empirical inquiry to Buddhism. Perhaps the most popular Buddhist discourse used in this way is the '' Kālāma Sutta'' ( AN 3.65).Verhoeven, Martin J. (2001).
Buddhism and Science: Probing the Boundaries of Faith and Reason.
' Religion East and West, Issue 1, June 2001, pp. 77–97 In this discourse, the Buddha is speaking to a number of villagers that are unsure of which ideas to believe. The key passage which is widely quoted states:

Come, Kālāmas, do not go by oral tradition, by lineage of teaching, by hearsay, by a collection of scriptures, by logical reasoning, by inferential reasoning, by reasoned cogitation, by the acceptance of a view after pondering it, by the seeming competence of a speaker, or because you think: 'The ascetic is our guru.' But when, Kālāmas, you know for yourselves: 'These things are unwholesome; these things are blameworthy; these things are censured by the wise; these things, if accepted and undertaken, lead to harm and suffering,' then you should abandon them.

The exact meaning of this passage has been widely debated and interpreted. Buddhist modernists consider this passage to show that the Buddha promoted a skeptical empirical investigation which rejected

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people ofte ...

dogma Dogma is a belief or set of beliefs that is accepted by the members of a group without being questioned or doubted. It may be in the form of an official system of principles or doctrines of a religion, such as Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Islam ...

, scripture,

Revelation In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities. Background Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...

s and even

rationalistic In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosoph ...

metaphysical speculations. Buddhist philosophers like

K.N. Jayatilleke Kulatissa Nanda Jayatilleke (1 November 1920 – 23 July 1970) was an internationally recognised authority on Buddhist philosophy whose book ''Early Buddhist Theory of Knowledge'' has been described as "an outstanding philosophical interpretatio ...

argue that this and other passages from the Buddhist scriptures indicate that

early Buddhism The term Early Buddhism can refer to at least two distinct periods in the History of Buddhism, mostly in the History of Buddhism in India: * Pre-sectarian Buddhism, which refers to the teachings and monastic organization and structure, founded by G ...

promotes an "honest, impartial search for truth" as well as "critical investigation and personal verification" which is compatible with a scientific outlook. However,

Bhikkhu Bodhi Bhikkhu Bodhi (born December 10, 1944), born Jeffrey Block, is an American Theravada Buddhist monk, ordained in Sri Lanka and currently teaching in the New York and New Jersey area. He was appointed the second president of the Buddhist Publ ...

notes that this sutra does not rule out

as an important component of the path. Another discourse, the '' Vīmaṃsaka Sutta'' (MN 47, with a Chinese parallel at MA 186) has been called "a remarkable advocacy of free inquiry" by

Bhikkhu Analayo Bhikkhu Anālayo is a bhikkhu (Buddhist monk), scholar, and meditation teacher. He was born in Germany in 1962, and went forth in 1995 in Sri Lanka. He is best known for his comparative studies of Early Buddhist Texts as preserved by the various ...

Reason and logic in Buddhist scholasticism

Buddhist texts contain exhortations to examine the teachings of the Buddha through

reason Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, lang ...

and experience.

Śāntarakṣita (Sanskrit; , 725–788),stanford.eduŚāntarakṣita (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)/ref> whose name translates into English as "protected by the One who is at peace" was an important and influential Indian Buddhist philosopher, particul ...

's (725–788 CE) '' Tattvasaṃgraha'' cites a well known scriptural passage that is also cited by the 14th Dalai Lama and other Buddhists:

"O monks, like gold that is heated, cut, and rubbed, my words should be analyzed by the wise and then accepted; they should not do so out of reverence." – ''A Sutra on Pure Realms Spread Out in a Dense Array''

Buddhism also has a long tradition of epistemology and logic. Buddhist philosophers in this tradition, such as Dignāga and

Dharmakīrti Dharmakīrti (fl. c. 6th or 7th century; Tibetan: ཆོས་ཀྱི་གྲགས་པ་; Wylie: ''chos kyi grags pa''), was an influential Indian Buddhist philosopher who worked at Nālandā.Tom Tillemans (2011)Dharmakirti Stanford ...

, developed complex theories of knowledge which held that there were only two "instruments of knowledge" or "epistemic tools" (''

pramana ''Pramana'' (Sanskrit: प्रमाण, ) literally means "proof" and "means of knowledge"."Coseru, Christian. Reason and Experience in Buddhist Epistemology in Steven Emmanuel (ed.), ''A Companion to Buddhist Philosophy''. Wiley-Blackwell (2013) According to Cristian Coseru, Dignāga's theory of knowledge is strongly grounded on perception. Furthermore, unlike other Indian theories of knowledge, Indian Buddhist philosophers like Dharmakīrti (fl. c. 6th or 7th century) generally rejected scripture as a major epistemic instrument. Dharmakīrti held that one should not rely on scripture to decide issues that can be discovered through rational means and that one could reject unreasonable parts of scripture. However, he did argue that when it came to "radically inaccessible things" (such as karma), one could turn to scripture (which was an uncertain and fallible source).

Natural philosophy and proto-scientific practices

The

early Buddhist texts Early Buddhist texts (EBTs), early Buddhist literature or early Buddhist discourses are parallel texts shared by the early Buddhist schools. The most widely studied EBT material are the first four Pali Nikayas, as well as the corresponding Chines ...

contain various ideas about the nature of the world and the universe. However, they also warn against certain speculative questions regarding about the universe. In various early discourses, the Buddha rejects certain questions about the world as "unfathomable" or "unexplainable" (Skt. ''avyākṛta''). These include questions about the eternity and the infinity of the universe. In the ''Cūḷamālukya Sutta,'' the Buddha uses the parable of a poisoned arrow to explain his approach to these questions, his teaching is focused on how to remove the arrow of suffering, not on the particular details about the arrow and who shot the arrow (and so forth).Gyatso (2005), pp. 77–79. As Paul David Numrich writes, there are thus certain questions about the world that the Buddha sees as "irrelevant to the ultimate religious goal of liberation from the human condition." In spite of this warning found in the Buddhist texts, Indian Buddhists developed complex theories about the

physical world The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the universe. Acco ...

, including atomic theories, theories of sense perception, theories of time and space and

Buddhist cosmology Buddhist cosmology describes the planes and realms in which beings can be reborn. The spatial cosmology consists of a vertical cosmology, the various planes of beings, into which beings are reborn due to their merits and development; and a hori ...

. Apart from teaching Buddhist philosophy, medieval Buddhist universities such as Nālandā (in modern day

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

) were important centers for the study of

natural philosophy Natural philosophy or philosophy of nature (from Latin ''philosophia naturalis'') is the philosophical study of physics, that is, nature and the physical universe. It was dominant before the development of modern science. From the ancien ...

and applied sciences such as

, medicine and

astronomy Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, g ...

. Ancient Buddhist philosophy explored key questions about the natural world such as the nature of space and time, the nature and existence of atoms (and their indivisibility), the origin of the world and the relationship between mind and matter. It explored these questions though philosophical analysis and

Thought experiment A thought experiment is a hypothetical situation in which a hypothesis, theory, or principle is laid out for the purpose of thinking through its consequences. History The ancient Greek ''deiknymi'' (), or thought experiment, "was the most anc ...

s. Medicine was a particularly important concern for ancient Buddhists, and references to it can be in all historical layers of Buddhist literature. Nālandā University was also said to have been the site of the composition of the ''Aṣṭāṅgahṛdaya-saṃhitā'', an influential medical work by the physician Vāgbhaṭa. According to Pierce Salguero "Buddhist texts mentioning various aspects of medicine proliferated across the Buddhist world throughout the first millenium." Because of this, Buddhism was "one of the most important vehicles for the cross-cultural diffusion of Indian Medicine in pre-modern Asia." Closely related with this ancient medicine was the practice of Indian

alchemy Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim wo ...

or rasāyana. Practitioners of rasāyana experimented with various substances and metals. Rasāyana is also an important part of some of the

Buddhist tantras The Buddhist Tantras are a varied group of Indian and Tibetan texts which outline unique views and practices of the Buddhist tantra religious systems. Overview Buddhist Tantric texts began appearing in the Gupta Empire period, though there are ...

. The Buddhist tradition of worldly sciences continued to develop in outside of India and today survives as part of

Tibetan Medicine Traditional Tibetan medicine (), also known as Sowa-Rigpa medicine, is a centuries-old traditional medical system that employs a complex approach to diagnosis, incorporating techniques such as pulse analysis and urinalysis, and utilizes behavior ...

and

Tibetan astrology Tibetan astrology () is a traditional discipline of the Tibetan peoples that has influence from both Chinese astrology and Indian astrology. Tibetan astrology is one of the 'Ten Sciences' (Wylie: rig-pa'i gnas bcu; Sanskrit: daśavidyā) in the e ...

(which includes

astronomical Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galaxi ...

and

astrological Astrology is a range of divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that claim to discern information about human affairs and terrestrial events by studying the apparent positions of celestial objects. Dif ...

elements). Traditional Buddhist cosmology taught that there were multiple world systems and that the universe goes through cycles of formation, endurance and destruction. It also holds that the universe has no absolute beginning (and thus rejects

creationism Creationism is the religious belief that nature, and aspects such as the universe, Earth, life, and humans, originated with supernatural acts of divine creation. Gunn 2004, p. 9, "The ''Concise Oxford Dictionary'' says that creationism is 't ...

and

theism Theism is broadly defined as the belief in the existence of a supreme being or deities. In common parlance, or when contrasted with '' deism'', the term often describes the classical conception of God that is found in monotheism (also referr ...

, but also the idea that the universe arose without a cause).

Buddhism as scientific or as compatible with science

History of the Buddhist modernist discourse

19th century modernism

A commonly held modern view is that Buddhism is exceptionally compatible with science and reason, or even that it is a kind of science (perhaps a "science of the mind" or a "scientific religion"). This view arose in the modern era, as part of what has been called "

," and was defended by figures such as Migettuwatte Gunananda,

Anagarika Dharmapala Anagārika Dharmapāla (Pali: ''Anagārika'', ; Sinhala: Anagārika, lit., si, අනගාරික ධර්මපාල; 17 September 1864 – 29 April 1933) was a Sri Lankan Buddhist revivalist and a writer. Anagarika Dharmapāla is not ...

Paul Carus Paul Carus (; 18 July 1852 – 11 February 1919) was a German-American author, editor, a student of comparative religion

, Shaku Sōen,

D.T. Suzuki , self-rendered in 1894 as "Daisetz", was a Japanese-American Buddhist monk, essayist, philosopher, religious scholar, translator, and writer. He was a scholar and author of books and essays on Buddhism, Zen and Shin that were instrumental in s ...

, Henry Olcott, and

Edwin Arnold Sir Edwin Arnold KCIE CSI (10 June 183224 March 1904) was an English poet and journalist, who is most known for his work ''The Light of Asia''.Verhoeven, Martin J. (2013).
Science through Buddhist Eyes, On the imperfect harmonizing of Buddhism with science.
' The New Atlantis, 39. These modernists accepted and promoted modern scientific theories such as

and held that they were consistent with the Buddhist understanding of

Dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

(sometimes interpreted as a "

natural law Natural law ( la, ius naturale, ''lex naturalis'') is a system of law based on a close observation of human nature, and based on values intrinsic to human nature that can be deduced and applied independently of positive law (the express enacte ...

"). They also held that Buddhism was a rationalist religion that did not require

revelation In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities. Background Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...

, a God,

superstition A superstition is any belief or practice considered by non-practitioners to be irrational or supernatural, attributed to fate or magic, perceived supernatural influence, or fear of that which is unknown. It is commonly applied to beliefs ...

and religious

ritual A ritual is a sequence of activities involving gestures, words, actions, or objects, performed according to a set sequence. Rituals may be prescribed by the traditions of a community, including a religious community. Rituals are characterized ...

but was based on an understanding of

and

. According to

Geoffrey Samuel Geoffrey Samuel (born 22 Nov, 1946) is an emeritus professor of religious studies at Cardiff University. He is known for his ethnographic studies of Tibetan and other Indic religions, investigating topics such as yoga, tantra, and the subtle body. ...

, some of these modernists even "suggested that Buddhism was barely a religion at all in the Western sense, but a scientifically-based philosophy in its own right." Some of these figures also dismissed the "irrational" elements of Buddhism as folk

. According to Martin J. Verhoeven, Buddhist modernists downplay mythic and religious elements such as traditional Indic cosmology, belief in

Miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

s and rituals in favor of the rational and psychological aspects of Buddhism. Paul Carus for example, wrote that Buddha was "the first positivist, the first humanitarian, the first radical freethinker," while D.T. Suzuki held that the Buddhist view of karma can be seen as "an application in our ethical realm of the theory of the

conservation of energy In physics and chemistry, the law of conservation of energy states that the total energy of an isolated system remains constant; it is said to be ''conserved'' over time. This law, first proposed and tested by Émilie du Châtelet, means tha ...

". Similarly, both Anagarika Dharmapala's and Shaku Sōen's presentations at the

World's Parliament of Religions There have been several meetings referred to as a Parliament of the World's Religions, the first being the World's Parliament of Religions of 1893, which was an attempt to create a global dialogue of faiths. The event was celebrated by another c ...

in 1893 presented Buddhism as being founded on the law of

cause and effect Causality (also referred to as causation, or cause and effect) is influence by which one event, process, state, or object (''a'' ''cause'') contributes to the production of another event, process, state, or object (an ''effect'') where the cau ...

(associating scientific ideas of causality with the Buddhist doctrine of dependent origination). Carus and other Buddhist modernists saw Buddhism as having certain advantages over Christianity. They held that Buddhism accepted the scientific ideal of a universe ordered by natural laws and did not require belief in a God or any being that could alter natural laws. For many Asian Buddhists, the narrative of Buddhism as rational and scientific was a useful strategy used to counter Christian and colonial attacks on Buddhism as backward. Others like Shaku Sōen, sought to create a more rational westernized Buddhism, or as he put it, to "wed the Great Vehicle nowiki/>

nowiki/>Mahayana_Buddhism">Mahayana.html"_;"title="nowiki/>Mahayana">nowiki/>Mahayana_Buddhismto_Western_thought." The_idea_that_the_Buddhist_worldview_was_rational_and_scientific_is_also_seen_in_the_popular_''Buddhist_Catechism'',_written_by__Henry_Olcott._This_book_contained_a_chapter_on_Buddhism_and_science_that_rejected_miracles_as_an_explanation_for_the_Buddha's_supposedly_supernatural_feats_and_instead_offered_natural_explanations_for_them_(such_as_ nowiki/>Mahayana_Buddhism">Mahayana.html"_;"title="nowiki/>Mahayana">nowiki/>Mahayana_Buddhismto_Western_thought." The_idea_that_the_Buddhist_worldview_was_rational_and_scientific_is_also_seen_in_the_popular_''Buddhist_Catechism'',_written_by__Henry_Olcott._This_book_contained_a_chapter_on_Buddhism_and_science_that_rejected_miracles_as_an_explanation_for_the_Buddha's_supposedly_supernatural_feats_and_instead_offered_natural_explanations_for_them_(such_as_Hypnosis">hypnotism_ Hypnosis_is_a_human_condition_involving_focused__attention_(the_selective_attention/selective_inattention_hypothesis,_SASI),_reduced_peripheral_awareness,_and_an_enhanced_capacity_to_respond_to__suggestion.In_2015,_the_American_Psychologi_...

_and_Theosophy.html" ;"title="Hypnosis.html" "title="Mahayana_Buddhism.html" ;"title="Mahayana.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Mahayana">nowiki/>Mahayana Buddhism">Mahayana.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Mahayana">nowiki/>Mahayana Buddhismto Western thought." The idea that the Buddhist worldview was rational and scientific is also seen in the popular ''Buddhist Catechism'', written by Henry Olcott. This book contained a chapter on Buddhism and science that rejected miracles as an explanation for the Buddha's supposedly supernatural feats and instead offered natural explanations for them (such as Hypnosis">hypnotism Hypnosis is a human condition involving focused attention (the selective attention/selective inattention hypothesis, SASI), reduced peripheral awareness, and an enhanced capacity to respond to suggestion.In 2015, the American Psychologi ...

and Theosophy">theosophical occult science). This modernist view was also promoted by early Buddhist societies in the West, such as Karl Seidenstücker and George Grimm's Society for the Buddhist Mission in Leipzig and the British Buddhist Society.Prebish, Charles S.; Baumann, Martin (2002). ''Westward Dharma: Buddhism Beyond Asia'', p. 88. University of California Press. . Georg Grimm's (1868–1945) ''The teaching of the Buddha, the Religion of Reason'' (''Die Lehre des Buddho, die Religion der Vernunft'') is an important exposition of this rationalistic Buddhism. According to McMahan, western commentators on this topic were responding to "the Victorian crisis of faith and the emergence of the immense symbolic capital of scientific discourse." José Ignacio Cabezón notes that there were different opinions among American Buddhist modernists during the late 19th century. Some were happy to note the similarities between science and Buddhism and believed Buddhism was more compatible with science than Christianity (which was more likely to die out due to scientific findings). Other Buddhist modernists like Carus saw Buddhism as the "Religion of Science," which would make scientific truth "the last guide of a religious conception of mankind."

20th and 21st centuries

As noted by David McMahan, the modernist idea of Buddhism as being compatible with science continued into the 20th century and remains strong today, having become "not only more voluminous but far more sophisticated throughout the late twentieth century and is now at its productive and creative zenith." The Buddhist modernist view has also been expounded by a variety of western intellectuals, including Nobel Prize–winning philosopher

Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, a ...

, who described Buddhism as "a speculative and scientific philosophy." In the late 20th century and the early 21st, numerous publications discussing Buddhist ideas and science were released (such as James H. Austin's '' Zen and the Brain'' and works by

Francisco Varela Francisco Javier Varela García (September 7, 1946 – May 28, 2001) was a Chilean biologist, philosopher, cybernetician, and neuroscientist who, together with his mentor Humberto Maturana, is best known for introducing the concept of autopoiesi ...

and

Daniel Goleman Daniel Goleman (born March 7, 1946) is an author, psychologist, and science journalist. For twelve years, he wrote for ''The New York Times'', reporting on the brain and behavioral sciences. His 1995 book ''Emotional Intelligence'' was on ''Th ...

). Furthermore, according to McMahan "the compatibility of Buddhism and modern science has not only become a staple of popular Buddhist literature, it has also become a hypothesis in a large number of quite sophisticated experimental studies." The

Mind and Life Institute The Mind & Life Institute is a US-registered, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1991 to establish the field of contemplative sciences. Based in Charlottesville, Va., the institute “brings science and contemplative wisdom togeth ...

is at the forefront of such studies. The Institute hosts conferences on Buddhism and science and sponsors research on Buddhist meditation. McMahan also argues that "perhaps no major tradition has attempted to adopt scientific discourse more vigorously than Buddhism." Geoffrey Samuel remarks that these dialogues point to the fact that westerners (including scientists) have come to take Buddhist ideas much more seriously as a valuable system of knowledge. The Mind and Life Institute has also influenced how

Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...

is presented to western audiences, and it is also closely connected to the 14th Dalai Lama's promotion of scientific education among Tibetan Buddhist monks. José Ignacio Cabezón argues that modern Buddhists have at times discussed the relationship between Buddhism and science in three main ways: conflict/ambivalence, identity/similarity, and complementarity. Cabezón outlines various kinds of views regarding complementarity. One of these ideas is that there is a "similarity in method, and difference in the object of study". This sees Buddhism as mainly a science of the subjective world, while science is mainly concerned with the external and material world. In this view, both disciplines can learn from each other regarding these fields. Another view "stresses difference in method and similarity in content." This view sees Buddhism as using "nonconceptual modes of intuitive understanding that emerge as the result of the practice of meditation" which is different from the objective and conceptual scientific method and leads to self transformation. The discourse of complementarity often seeks to unify these different disciplines, which focus on different aspects (the exterior and interior worlds, the quantitative and the qualitative, reason and intuition, etc.). This discourse generally argues that there should be a balance and harmony between these elements. Cabezon singles out

Fritjof Capra Fritjof Capra (born February 1, 1939) is an Austrian-born American physicist, systems theorist and deep ecologist. In 1995, he became a founding director of the Center for Ecoliteracy in Berkeley, California. He is on the faculty of Schumacher ...

's ''

The Tao of Physics ''The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels Between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism'' is a 1975 book by physicist Fritjof Capra. A bestseller in the United States, it has been translated into 23 languages. Capra summarized his mot ...

'' as one of the most influential examples of the discourse of complementarity. According to Capra, none other than the great physicist

Werner Heisenberg Werner Karl Heisenberg () (5 December 1901 – 1 February 1976) was a German theoretical physicist and one of the main pioneers of the theory of quantum mechanics. He published his work in 1925 in a Über quantentheoretische Umdeutung kinematis ...

said that he was in "complete agreement" with the main idea of the book, mainly that the "two basic themes" found in modern physics ("the fundamental interrelatedness and interdependence of all phenomena and the intrinsically dynamic nature of reality") are also found in eastern thought. The discourse of complementary can also be found in the work of

, who writes regarding Buddhism and

psychotherapy Psychotherapy (also psychological therapy, talk therapy, or talking therapy) is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior, increase happiness, and overcome pro ...

that "when you put the two psychologies together, you get a more complete spectrum of human development." Another publication which argues for the complementarity of science and Buddhist thought is ''The Embodied Mind'' (1991, Varela, Thompson & Rosch). This book argues that Buddhism can provide a sophisticated phenomenology of embodied experience.

Views of Theravada Buddhists

Since the Buddhist modernist revival in Southeast Asia,

Theravada ''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school ...

Buddhist intellectuals (such as Anagarika Dharmapala) have generally embraced science and have seen Buddhism as compatible with its findings. For example,

(1920–1970), a Sinhalese Buddhist philosopher, writes that the

, "emphasizes the importance of the scientific outlook in dealing with the problems of morality and religion. Its specific 'dogmas' are said to be capable of verification. And its general account of the nature of man and the universe is one that accords with the findings of science rather than being at variance with them." Jayatilleke points to the early Buddhist idea that there are many worlds, suns and "world systems" (''lokadhatu'') as an example. He also argues that the Buddhist idea that humans and nature are constantly changing according to causal laws is easily compatible with biological evolution and therefore, modern findings do not threaten the Buddhist worldview. Furthermore, Jayatilleke points out that Buddhism holds that the law of cause and effect applies even when it comes to moral and religious phenomena. Because of this, Jayatilleke writes that "Buddhism is not likely to be at variance with science so long as scientists confine themselves to their methodology and their respective fields without making a dogma of

materialism Materialism is a form of philosophical monism which holds matter to be the fundamental substance in nature, and all things, including mental states and consciousness, are results of material interactions. According to philosophical materialis ...

." In a similar fashion, Buddhadasa P. Kirthisinghe, a Theravada Buddhist and a

microbiologist A microbiologist (from Greek ) is a scientist who studies microscopic life forms and processes. This includes study of the growth, interactions and characteristics of microscopic organisms such as bacteria, algae, fungi, and some types of para ...

, argues that Buddhism and science are compatible because Buddhism is based on a similar method of empirical inquiry, observation and careful analysis which is "in conformity with and in the spirit of science." Bhikkhu Ñanajivako, citing

's ''An Outline of Philosophy,'' writes that modern science's rejection of

substance theory Substance theory, or substance–attribute theory, is an ontological theory positing that objects are constituted each by a ''substance'' and properties borne by the substance but distinct from it. In this role, a substance can be referred to as ...

in favor of processes or events is commensurate with the Buddhist impermanence (''anicca'') doctrine, which sees the world made up of transient dhammas.

Views of East Asians

Erik J. Hammerstrom has written a study of the reception of modern science in 19th and 20th century

Chinese Buddhism Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism which has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, ...

. According to Hammerstrom, during the 1920s and 30s, "dozens of articles and monographs devoted to the topic of science and Buddhism appeared in the rapidly growing Buddhist press of China."Hammerstrom (2015), Introduction Chinese Buddhists like

Taixu Taixu (Tai Hsu) (), (January 8, 1890 – March 17, 1947) was a Buddhist modernist, activist and thinker who advocated for a reformation and revival of Chinese Buddhism by drawing upon eclectic domestic and foreign sources and ideologies. Biogra ...

Yang Wenhui Yang Wenhui (; 1837-1911) was a Chinese lay Buddhist reformer who has been called "The Father of the Modern Buddhist Renaissance". His courtesy name was Rénshān (). He was a native of Shídài () county (modern Shítái 石台 county) in Anhui p ...

, Wang Hui and Wang Xiaoxu (an electrical engineer and lay Buddhist) were some of the leading figures in this discourse. According to Hammerstrom, 20th century Chinese Buddhists championed the scientific method and its findings such as

heliocentrism Heliocentrism (also known as the Heliocentric model) is the astronomical model in which the Earth and planets revolve around the Sun at the center of the universe. Historically, heliocentrism was opposed to geocentrism, which placed the Earth ...

and evolution and generally did not question the findings of science. However, Chinese Buddhists also rejected certain ideas associated with science at the time, such as

scientism Scientism is the opinion that science and the scientific method are the best or only way to render truth about the world and reality. While the term was defined originally to mean "methods and attitudes typical of or attributed to natural scientis ...

and

Social Darwinism Social Darwinism refers to various theories and societal practices that purport to apply biological concepts of natural selection and survival of the fittest to sociology, economics and politics, and which were largely defined by scholars in We ...

(and they participated in public debates about such ideas). They also sought to carve out a space for Buddhism as a "philosophy of life" (人生觀, ''renshengguan'') which they saw as a separate field of inquiry. Not all Buddhist modernists thought that Buddhism could stand on a rationalist scientific framework alone. D.T. Suzuki initially accepted the idea that Buddhism could be founded on scientific principles, writing that karma "may be regarded as an application in our ethical realm of the theory of the

(''Outlines of Mahayana Buddhism'', 1907). However, Suzuki later changed his mind about this, writing in 1959 that "a religion based solely on science is not enough." Similarly, the Chinese Buddhist modernist

(1890–1947) held that while scientific study might help prove Buddhist doctrines, "it cannot ascertain the realities" of Buddhism and therefore it "does not go far enough into the mysteries of nature, and that if she went further the Buddhist doctrine would be even more evident." Thus, while for Taixu, "the Buddhist scholar is aided in his research" by the use of scientific methods, they must ultimately go beyond such methods to understand the true nature of reality. Taixu wrote that "the reality of the Buddhist doctrine is only to be grasped by those who are in the sphere of supreme and universal perception, in which they can behold the true nature of the Universe, but for this they must have attained the wisdom of Buddha himself, and it is not by the use of science or logic that we can expect to acquire such wisdom. Science therefore is only a stepping stone in such matters" Trịnh Xuân Thuận, a Vietnamese-American astrophysicist, has also written about Buddhism and science, which he sees as "two complementary modes of knowledge."Numrich (2008), pp. 22, 31 Thuận disagrees with

Stephen Jay Gould Stephen Jay Gould (; September 10, 1941 – May 20, 2002) was an American paleontologist, evolutionary biologist, and historian of science. He was one of the most influential and widely read authors of popular science of his generation. Goul ...

, who held the view that science and religion examine two "

non-overlapping magisteria Non-overlapping magisteria (NOMA) is the view, advocated by evolutionary biologist Stephen Jay Gould, that science and religion each represent different areas of inquiry, fact vs. values, so there is a difference between the "nets" over which t ...

." Instead, Thuận thinks they do overlap (since Buddhism is a kind of contemplative science) and as such, there can be "a fruitful and illuminating dialogue" between them.

Views of Tibetan Buddhists

Similar views of the complementarity of science and Buddhism remain popular in modern

. Gendun Chopel was the first Tibetan Buddhist to write about science and he urged his countrymen to accept the methods of science, which were based on empirical observation and was therefore seen by him as compatible with the epistemic methods of Buddhism (i.e. the pramana of direct perception or ''pratyakṣa''). Chopel writes that science even confirms central Buddhist doctrines such as impermanence and dependent origination, though it can also disprove certain Buddhist views, such as the insentience of plants (and therefore, Buddhists should not stubbornly cling to their doctrine). Chopel argued that Buddhism can only survive as an ally of science and prayed that science and the teachings of the Buddha "may abide together for tens of thousands of years." More recently, contemporary Tibetan Buddhists like the

B. Alan Wallace Bruce Alan Wallace (born 1950) is an American author and expert on Tibetan Buddhism. His books discuss Eastern and Western scientific, philosophical, and contemplative modes of inquiry, often focusing on the relationships between science and Buddh ...

, and

Robert Thurman Robert Alexander Farrar Thurman (born August 3, 1941) is an American Buddhist author and academic who has written, edited, and translated several books on Tibetan Buddhism. He was the Je Tsongkhapa Professor of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies at ...

have also argued for the compatibility of Buddhism and science. According to Lopez, "the Fourteenth Dalai Lama of Tibet has been the most visible and influential Buddhist teacher to embrace the discourse of Buddhism and Science." The Dalai Lama is known for his interest in science and has written a book on the relationship between science and Buddhism, '' The Universe in a Single Atom'' (2005), where he discusses various topics, including physics and evolution. The Dalai Lama argues that science and Buddhism share the same commitment "to keep searching for reality by empirical means and to be willing to discard accepted or long-held positions if our search finds that the truth is different." B. Alan Wallace (who has studied physics and Buddhism formally in Western institutions) sees Buddhism as an "organized, systematic enterprise aimed at understanding reality, and it presents a wide range of testable laws and principles," as well as a "time-tested discipline of rational and empirical inquiry."Wallace, B. Alan. ''Buddhism and Science'', in Clayton (2006), pp. 24–40. Wallace argues that Buddhism is a mainly pragmatic enterprise aimed at "the pursuit of eudaimonic

well-being Well-being, or wellbeing, also known as wellness, prudential value or quality of life, refers to what is intrinsically valuable relative ''to'' someone. So the well-being of a person is what is ultimately good ''for'' this person, what is in th ...

", and as such, it focuses on the subjective and on qualitative states of consciousness (unlike science, which focuses on the quantifiable and the objective), discussing issues such as mental training and ethics. Wallace also argues that Buddhist insights are roughly empirical, since they are based on direct experiences (of a subjective, first-person character) which are also replicable. However, the Dalai Lama, Thurman and Wallace all note that Buddhism rejects a materialistic (or physicalist) interpretation of science which sees consciousness as something that arises from physical causes alone.Numrich (2008), pp. 51–52. For Wallace, scientific materialism is a

assumption, a

which goes beyond the domain of empirical science and "presents formidable obstacles to any meaningful collaboration between Buddhism and science." Similarly, Robert Thurman criticizes the physicalist interpretation of neuroscience and sees Buddhist meditation as a kind of "inner science" with "a vast array of mental technologies". Thurman also thinks that the materialist worldview has led to an imbalance in the world where "our powers to effect the outer reality have outstripped our powers over ourselves," and sees Buddhist practice as a corrective to this. The 14th Dalai Lama has explicitly rejected any kind of

which would argue that only science can discover truths about the world (and that those truths ultimately reduce to the physical world alone) and thus that anything which is not proven by science is false or insignificant. However, he also argues that "

spirituality The meaning of ''spirituality'' has developed and expanded over time, and various meanings can be found alongside each other. Traditionally, spirituality referred to a religious process of re-formation which "aims to recover the original shape ...

must be tempered by the insights and discoveries of science. If as spiritual practitioners we ignore the discoveries of science, our practice is also impoverished, as this mind-set can lead to fundamentalism." For the 14th Dalai Lama, science is concerned with conventional truth and understanding the nature of the mundane world, while Buddhism offers "a real under-standing of the true nature of the mind," and the ultimate truth of liberation. Lopez compares this view with the view of Gould's "non-overlapping magisteria."

Views of scholars of Buddhism

According to one scholar of Buddhism, John Dunne, "Buddhism endorses the notion that if we want to prove something, we need to use empirical evidence." Dunne argues that this principle trumps what the Buddhist scriptures say, since the Buddhist tradition considers direct experience (Sanskrit: ''pratyakṣa'') as a higher source of knowledge than scripture (which is secondary). However, Dunne also notes that Buddhist theories do not undergo constant revision throughout the centuries (as a result of new observations) as they have done in science, though he notes that more recently the 14th Dalai Lama has been interested in learning from science in this regard. David McMahan has written about the modernist scientific Buddhism discourse. According to McMahan, this discourse should not be dismissed entirely, since modern Buddhist traditions have gone through "a concrete and highly significant transformation", which includes adapting to the scientific worldview and creating new forms of Buddhism. McMahan writes that this:

is not just a western orientalist representation of the eastern Other, nor is it just a native strategy of legitimation for Asian Buddhists, though it does involve both. It is rather a part of the ongoing hybridization of certain forms of Buddhism with distinctively modern cultural formations and intellectual practices. The historical question regarding contemporary Buddhism, then, is not "Is Buddhism scientific?" but "How is Buddhism transforming itself through its engagement with science?" Rather than telling us "what Buddhism is," this discourse is itself constitutive of novel forms of Buddhism with shifting epistemic structures and criteria for authority and legitimacy.

However, McMahan also thinks that there is also the danger of Buddhism losing "a great deal of its diversity" if the adaptation process is taken too far and that "too much adaptation and accommodation may in fact blur the distinctions between the epistemic claims of Buddhism and those of current Western traditions." This could lead to the loss of Buddhist distinctiveness and to the making of Buddhism into an impotent tradition that has nothing to offer to modernity. According to Geoffrey Samuel, while the dialogue between Buddhism and science has generally focused on ways in which Buddhism can adapt to science or how science can study the efficacy of Buddhist practices, "the more significant developments are arguably elsewhere, in the potential of Buddhist thought to provoke genuine rethinking and transformation within science itself." Similarly, Martin J. Verhoeven thinks that "we might better advance the discussion not by highlighting where Buddhism and science see eye-to-eye, but precisely where they do not, perhaps forcing each to confront its own contradictions and shortcomings." Verhoeven argues that Buddhism and science see reality in different ways. The central focus of Buddhism is on one's conscious experience and its conditioned nature. This includes the external world, which seems separate, but is actually "inescapably conditioned by and of a piece with oneself" and "depends on our position, our interpretations, our intentions, and our desires." José Ignacio Cabezón writes that there has been an increasing sophistication in the dialogue between science and Buddhism, which he sees as due to the advances in both science and

Buddhist studies Buddhist studies, also known as Buddhology, is the academic study of Buddhism. The term ''Buddhology'' was coined in the early 20th century by the Unitarian minister Joseph Estlin Carpenter to mean the "study of Buddhahood, the nature of the Budd ...

as well as due to the "increased accessibility of information about these two traditions." Regarding the discourse on complementarity, Cabezón thinks that it may be useful if understood "as a fluid metaphor". However, if understood as a literal and strict binary opposition, it could lead to a stunted dialogue, since both traditions discuss numerous elements that are of interest to the other (for example, Buddhism often discusses physical events and science has much to say about the mind).Wallace (2003), p. 58 As such, the "segregationist metaphors" which are often used in the complementarity discourse are ultimately artificial "because scientific claims impinge, and sometimes impinge negatively, upon Buddhist ones, and vice versa." Because of this, Cabezón argues that Buddhism and science are "complete systems that resist dichotomizing: systems that can both support and challenge each other at a variety of different levels."

Criticism of the Buddhist modernist discourse

Several contemporary scholars of Buddhism have argued against the idea that Buddhism is a science or "scientific". According to Donald S. Lopez Jr., the traditional Buddhist worldview understands the Buddha's ancient understanding of reality as complete, and thus "nothing beyond that reality has been discovered since." Lopez argues that attempts to make Buddhism compatible with science severely restrict Buddhism, "eliminating much of what has been deemed essential, whatever that might be, to the exalted monks and ordinary lay-people who have gone for refuge to the Buddha over the course of more than two thousand years." Lopez argues that in traditional Buddhism, the truth is something that the Buddha has already discovered, making Buddhism a deeply conservative tradition which is weary of innovation and deviation. This is different from the scientific worldview, in which the complete truth of the universe has not been fully discovered yet. Lopez has also described the historical development which led to the idea that Buddhism was compatible with science, which began in the Victorian era, with the European study of Buddhist literature in Indian languages (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural diffusion ...

and

Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Theravāda'' Buddh ...

). Western scholars often saw the historical Buddha as a rational humanist, critical of

Brahmanical The historical Vedic religion (also known as Vedicism, Vedism or ancient Hinduism and subsequently Brahmanism (also spelled as Brahminism)), constituted the religious ideas and practices among some Indo-Aryan peoples of northwest Indian Subco ...

. This idea was then taken up by Asians and

theosophists Theosophy is a religion established in the United States during the late 19th century. It was founded primarily by the Russian Helena Blavatsky and draws its teachings predominantly from Blavatsky's writings. Categorized by scholars of religion ...

and widely promoted as a counter to missionary Christianity. Lopez thinks that the "scientific" Buddhism discourse is outdated, especially since the colonial and missionary threats to Buddhism in Asia have subsided. Lopez argues it is best to see Buddhism as radically incompatible with science, as seeking to transcend all biological life, to go totally beyond the world and thus as being at odds with the world and with science. However, Lopez also notes that disputes between Buddhists and scientists over the bare facts of science "have occurred only rarely in the history of Buddhism and science."

Evan Thompson Evan Thompson (born 1962) is a professor of philosophy at the University of British Columbia. He writes about cognitive science, phenomenology, philosophy of mind, and cross-cultural philosophy, especially Buddhist philosophy in dialogue with We ...

has also criticized the narrative of Buddhism as being uniquely scientific in his ''Why I am Not a Buddhist'' (2020).

Buddhism and specific scientific fields

Biology

Modern Buddhists have generally accepted and embraced modern theories of

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...

, such as

, as being compatible with Buddhist thought. According to a 2009 survey by the

Pew Research Center The Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan American think tank (referring to itself as a "fact tank") based in Washington, D.C. It provides information on social issues, public opinion, and demographic trends shaping the United States and th ...

, eighty one percent of Buddhists accept the theory of evolution as the "best explanation for the origins of human life on earth" (the highest among all religions surveyed). Robin Cooper's ''The Evolving Mind'' (1996) is one publication which discusses Buddhism and the field of biology. Cooper argues that Buddhism is compatible with evolutionary thought, but he also argues that the Buddhist view also sees a role for the mind in the evolution of living beings. Cooper writes that mind-led adaptations also play a role in evolution, along with random genetic mutation. He attempts to harmonize biological theories of evolution with Buddhist views of the transformation of the mind. William S. Waldron cites the '' Agañña sutta'' as a text which affirms that sentient beings, including humans, change over time. However this discourse describes a process in which heavenly beings (devas) devolve into a lower form of life on earth as a result of mental afflictions or kleshas (such as greed and desire) and the actions fueled by these afflictions. As such, Buddhism sees our physical existence as being caused by past actions (done in our previous lives). Waldron thinks that this view is roughly compatible (but clearly not the same as) the theory of evolution, which holds that our current physical form is based on the past actions of our ancestors. According to Waldron, "the Buddhists and biologists thus largely concur that the very forms and structures of human life result from the accumulative actions of innumerable beings over countless generations."

David P. Barash David P. Barash (born 1946) is professor of psychology emeritus at the University of Washington. He has written, edited or co-authored 40 books, including ones on human aggression, peace studies, and the sexual behavior of animals and people. He r ...

(who describes himself as a Buddhist atheist) has written a book about Buddhism and

, which according to him, "complement each other like a pair of powerful searchlights illuminating the same thing from different angles". Barash argues that modern biology is commensurate with the Buddhist view of impermanence and not-self, since both see sentient beings (individuals or groups) as a product of constantly changing and interrelated processes, and thus sees them as being without a fixed and separate identity.

Key differences

134_Temple_des_mille_Bouddhas_La_roue_du_Samsara

Donald Lopez argues that the naturalistic theory of evolution is at odds with the traditional Buddhist view of

karma Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively ...

. This is because the basic Buddhist understanding of how sentient beings undergo change is based on the rebirth of their consciousness, which could be into any form of existence (animal, human, god realms etc.), while the

Darwinian Darwinism is a theory of biological evolution developed by the English naturalist Charles Darwin (1809–1882) and others, stating that all species of organisms arise and develop through the natural selection of small, inherited variations that ...

view is strictly based on

genetic mutation In biology, a mutation is an alteration in the nucleic acid sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extrachromosomal DNA. Viral genomes contain either DNA or RNA. Mutations result from errors during DNA or viral replication, ...

and

natural selection Natural selection is the differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in phenotype. It is a key mechanism of evolution, the change in the heritable traits characteristic of a population over generations. Cha ...

which are physical phenomena. According to Lopez, the main reason these views are at odds is that Buddhism reserves a central place for consciousness and volition in the production of all sentient life, while this is not the case with modern biology. In ''The Universe in a Single Atom'' (2005), the 14th Dalai Lama similarly points outs that while biological theories generally attempts to explain things solely from the perspective of physical causes (and are often reductive), Buddhist thought focuses on the role of

. As such, the Dalai Lama finds theories which focus only on physical causes "deeply unsatisfying", since it seems difficult to explain how conscious beings can arise from an unconscious basis (i.e.

emergentism In philosophy, emergentism is the belief in emergence, particularly as it involves consciousness and the philosophy of mind. A property of a system is said to be emergent if it is a new outcome of some other properties of the system and their in ...

). He also points out that this difference might be due to the different methods and goals of Buddhism and science. Therefore, while the Dalai Lama thinks that evolution "gives us a fairly coherent account of the evolution of human life on earth," he also holds that karma and consciousness have central roles in nature and therefore biology cannot explain all aspects of life (such as

religious experience A religious experience (sometimes known as a spiritual experience, sacred experience, or mystical experience) is a subjective experience which is interpreted within a religious framework. The concept originated in the 19th century, as a defense ...

morality Morality () is the differentiation of intentions, decisions and actions between those that are distinguished as proper (right) and those that are improper (wrong). Morality can be a body of standards or principles derived from a code of co ...

Physics

According to

Matthieu Ricard Matthieu Ricard (; ne, माथ्यु रिका, born 15 February 1946) is a French writer, photographer, translator and Buddhist monk who resides at Shechen Tennyi Dargyeling Monastery in Nepal. Matthieu Ricard grew up among the perso ...

, Buddhist thought asks some of the same questions that physicists ask about reality, time, matter and space, and uses rational analysis and thought experiments (which are also used by physicists). However, unlike physics which focuses on measuring the physical world to better understand it, the Buddhist tradition focuses on inner contemplation and its goal is mainly therapeutic. Some of the metaphysical doctrines of Buddhism have sometimes been compared favorably with the insights of

modern physics Modern physics is a branch of physics that developed in the early 20th century and onward or branches greatly influenced by early 20th century physics. Notable branches of modern physics include quantum mechanics, special relativity and general ...

. The 14th Dalai Lama writes in ''The Universe in a Single Atom'' (2005) that "there is an unmistakable resonance between the notion of emptiness and the new physics. If on the

quantum In physics, a quantum (plural quanta) is the minimum amount of any physical entity ( physical property) involved in an interaction. The fundamental notion that a physical property can be "quantized" is referred to as "the hypothesis of quantizat ...

level, matter is revealed as less solid and definable than it appears, then it seems to me that science is coming closer to the Buddhist contemplative insights of

and interdependence pratītyasamputpāda''.html" ;"title="Pratītyasamutpāda">pratītyasamputpāda''">Pratītyasamutpāda">pratītyasamputpāda''" The Dalai Lama cites his conversations with

David Bohm David Joseph Bohm (; 20 December 1917 – 27 October 1992) was an American-Brazilian-British scientist who has been described as one of the most significant theoretical physicists of the 20th centuryPeat 1997, pp. 316-317 and who contributed ...

and

Anton Zeilinger Anton Zeilinger (; born 20 May 1945) is an Austrian quantum physicist and Nobel laureate in physics of 2022. Zeilinger is professor of physics emeritus at the University of Vienna and senior scientist at the Institute for Quantum Optics and Qu ...

, both physicists who supported the idea that the Buddhist view of emptiness (the lack of any independent and fixed essence) was consistent with the insights of modern

quantum physics Quantum mechanics is a fundamental theory in physics that provides a description of the physical properties of nature at the scale of atoms and subatomic particles. It is the foundation of all quantum physics including quantum chemistry, qua ...

. The Dalai Lama has also been part of various dialogues with physicists such as

Arthur Zajonc Arthur Guy Zajonc ( ; born 11 October 1949, Boston, Massachusetts) is a physicist and the author of several books related to science, mind, and spirit; one of these is based on dialogues about quantum mechanics with the Dalai Lama. Zajonc, professo ...

(who was also president of the Mind and Life Institute) and Anton Zeilinger. Some of these discussions on the nature of physics have been published.

Comparisons by physicists

Astrophysicist Trịnh Xuân Thuận argues that the Buddhist idea of "subtle impermanence", which refers to the idea that everything is constantly changing extremely rapidly is consistent with "our modern scientific conception of the universe" which holds that everything is in constant motion. He also compares the Buddhist doctrine of emptiness (the idea that nothing has an intrinsic nature) with the findings of

, which understands that sub-atomic particles cannot be understood as being real solid entities with fixed properties such as momentum and position (this is one understanding of the

Heisenberg uncertainty principle In quantum mechanics, the uncertainty principle (also known as Heisenberg's uncertainty principle) is any of a variety of mathematical inequalities asserting a fundamental limit to the accuracy with which the values for certain pairs of physic ...

). Thuận cites

Erwin Schrödinger Erwin Rudolf Josef Alexander Schrödinger (, ; ; 12 August 1887 – 4 January 1961), sometimes written as or , was a Nobel Prize-winning Austrian physicist with Irish citizenship who developed a number of fundamental results in quantum theo ...

who said that "it is better not to view a particle as a permanent entity, but rather as an instantaneous event. Sometimes these events link together to create the illusion of permanent entities." Thuận sees this understanding of sub-atomic particles as similar to the understanding of reality in Buddhist metaphysics. Thuận and Matthieu Ricard also discuss the similarities between Buddhist views of interdependence and phenomena such as quantum nonlocality and

Mach's principle In theoretical physics, particularly in discussions of gravitation theories, Mach's principle (or Mach's conjecture) is the name given by Einstein to an imprecise hypothesis often credited to the physicist and philosopher Ernst Mach. The hypothe ...

in ''The quantum and the lotus.'' According to Thuận, the views of

Bohr Niels Henrik David Bohr (; 7 October 1885 – 18 November 1962) was a Danish physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922. B ...

and Heisenberg seem to support the Buddhist view that physical particles do not exist as independent phenomena, but can only be said to exist in dependence on our conceptual designations and the process of observation. This view of the quantum world is sometimes called the

Copenhagen interpretation The Copenhagen interpretation is a collection of views about the meaning of quantum mechanics, principally attributed to Niels Bohr and Werner Heisenberg. It is one of the oldest of numerous proposed interpretations of quantum mechanics, as feat ...

. The Italian theoretical physicist

Carlo Rovelli Carlo Rovelli (born May 3, 1956) is an Italian theoretical physicist and writer who has worked in Italy, the United States and, since 2000, in France. He is also currently a Distinguished Visiting Research Chair at the Perimeter Institute, and ...

cites

Nagarjuna Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...

in his book ''Helgoland'', a defense of the relational interpretation of quantum mechanics, which understands quantum properties as arising from the relations between quantum phenomena. According to Rovelli, "properties of an object are the way in which it acts upon other objects; reality is this web of interactions." Rovelli thinks that the

Madhyamaka Mādhyamaka ("middle way" or "centrism"; ; Tibetan: དབུ་མ་པ ; ''dbu ma pa''), otherwise known as Śūnyavāda ("the emptiness doctrine") and Niḥsvabhāvavāda ("the no ''svabhāva'' doctrine"), refers to a tradition of Buddhis ...

philosophy of

Nāgārjuna Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...

resonates with the relational view of Quantum Mechanics and provides a conceptual understanding of reality that does not need a metaphysical foundation. Rovelli writes that "Nāgārjuna has given us a formidable conceptual tool for thinking about the relationality of quanta: we can think of interdependence without autonomous essence entering the equation." Oxford physicist

Vlatko Vedral Vlatko Vedral is a Serbian-born (and naturalised British citizen) physicist and Professor in the Department of Physics at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Wolfson College, Oxford. Until the summer of 2022 he also held a joint appoin ...

, in his '' Decoding Reality'', mentions the Buddhist theory of emptiness as an ancient example of the philosophy of "

relationalism Relationalism is any theoretical position that gives importance to the relational nature of things. For relationalism, things exist and function only as relational entities. Relationalism may be contrasted with relationism, which tends to emphasize ...

." Vedral, who argues for an interpretation of quantum physics based on information theory, states that "Quantum physics is indeed very much in agreement with Buddhistic emptiness." He states that "we will never arrive at ' the thing in itself' by any kind of means. Everything that exists, exists by convention and labelling and is therefore dependent on other things."Vedral, Vlatko (2010). ''Decoding Reality: The Universe as Quantum Information,'' pp. 199–200. OUP Oxford. This is similar to some forms of Buddhist philosophy (such as Madhyamaka) which hold that everything is merely conceptual. Physics professor Vic Mansfield has also written on the similarities between the modern understanding of time and

special relativity In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory regarding the relationship between space and time. In Albert Einstein's original treatment, the theory is based on two postulates: # The law ...

and Madhyamaka thought. According to Mansfield, an appreciation of how these two traditions understand time as a relative phenomenon can aid a deeper understanding of both and that "a nontrivial synergy between these two very different disciplines is possible."Mansfield, Vic. ''Time and Impermanence in Middle Way Buddhism and Modern Physics.'' Holos: Forum for a New Worldview. Vol. 6, No. 1 (2010) Mansfield also argues that this kind of dialogue is important for Buddhism because "if Buddhism is to come to the West, in the best and fullest sense of the term, then interaction with science is both inevitable and necessary for a real transplant to take place."

Cosmology

In his discussion of

, the 14th Dalai Lama notes that "Buddhism and science share a fundamental reluctance to postulate a transcendent being as the origin of all things." Furthermore, Buddhists like the Dalai Lama have no problem accepting the

Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...

theory (since ancient Buddhist views about the cosmos accept that there are periods of expansion). However, Trịnh Xuân Thuận and the Dalai Lama both argue that from the Buddhist point of view, there is no ''absolute'' beginning to the universe. This would be more compatible with certain cosmogonic theories of the universe, such as those that posit a

Cyclic model A cyclic model (or oscillating model) is any of several cosmological models in which the universe follows infinite, or indefinite, self-sustaining cycles. For example, the oscillating universe theory briefly considered by Albert Einstein in 1930 t ...

of the universe or those that argue for a

multiverse The multiverse is a hypothetical group of multiple universes. Together, these universes comprise everything that exists: the entirety of space, time, matter, energy, information, and the physical laws and constants that describe them. The dif ...

. There are different Buddhist cosmologies. The cosmology of the

Kalachakra ''Kālacakra'' () is a polysemic term in Vajrayana Buddhism that means " wheel of time" or "time cycles". "''Kālacakra''" is also the name of a series of Buddhist texts and a major practice lineage in Indian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism. The ...

system popular in Tibetan Buddhism holds that the material world arises out of the supportive element of space, which is made up of "space particles", the other four elements arise from this medium. The Dalai Lama believes this is compatible with the idea that the universe arose from a

quantum vacuum state In quantum field theory, the quantum vacuum state (also called the quantum vacuum or vacuum state) is the quantum state with the lowest possible energy. Generally, it contains no physical particles. The word zero-point field is sometimes used ...

. The Dalai Lama also notes that in Buddhist cosmology, there is a role for consciousness and karma, since Buddhist systems hold that the nature of a world system is connected with the karmic propensities of sentient beings. However, the Dalai Lama points out that this does not mean everything is due to karma, since many things merely arise due to the works of natural laws. As such, the Dalai Lama argues that "the entire process of the unfolding of a universe system is a matter of the natural law of causality" but that karma also influences its very beginning and that when a universe is able to support life "its fate becomes entangled with the karma of the beings who will inhabit it." Because Buddhist thought sees consciousness as being interconnected with the physical world, Buddhists like the Dalai Lama hold that "even the laws of physics are entangled with the karma of the sentient beings that will arise in that universe." Bhutanese_thanka_of_Mt

Traditional cosmography

Certain traditional Buddhist ideas about the world are also incompatible with modern science, and have been abandoned by numerous modern Buddhists. Perhaps one of the most well known of these ideas is the view of the world found in various classic Buddhist texts which holds there is a giant mountain at the center of the world called

Mount Meru Mount Meru (Sanskrit/Pali: मेरु), also known as Sumeru, Sineru or Mahāmeru, is the sacred five-peaked mountain of Hindu, Jain, and Buddhist cosmology and is considered to be the centre of all the physical, metaphysical and spiritu ...

(or ''Sumeru''). According to Lopez, "the human realm that Buddhist texts describe is a flat earth, or perhaps more accurately a flat ocean, its waters contained by a ring of iron mountains. In that ocean is a great central mountain, surrounded in the four cardinal directions by island continents." As Lopez notes, as early as the 18th century, Buddhist scholars like

Tominaga Nakamoto was a Japanese philosopher. He was educated at the Kaitokudō academy founded by members of the mercantile class of Osaka, but was ostracised shortly after the age of 15. Tominaga belonged to a Japanese rationalist school of thought and advocate ...

(1715–1746) began to question this classical Buddhist cosmography, holding that they were adopted by the Buddha from Indian theories, but that they were incidental and thus not at the heart of Buddha's teaching. While some traditional Buddhists did defend the traditional cosmology, others like Shimaji Mokurai (1838–1911) argued that it was not foundational to Buddhism and was merely an element of Indian mythology. Others like Kimura Taiken (1881–1930), went further and argued that this traditional cosmography was not part of original Buddhism. The issue of Mount Meru was also discussed by modern Buddhist intellectuals like Gendun Chopel and the 14th Dalai Lama. According to Choepel, the Meru cosmology is a provisional teaching taught in accord with the ideas of ancient India, but not appropriate for the modern era. Similarly, the 14th Dalai Lama writes that "my own view is that Buddhism must abandon many aspects of the Abhidharma cosmology". The Dalai Lama sees the falsehood of this traditional cosmology as not affecting the core of Buddhism (the teaching of the four noble truths and liberation) since it is "secondary to the account of the nature and origins of sentient beings".

Psychology

In the 20th century, Buddhism has been in close contact with the field of

psychology Psychology is the science, scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immens ...

and has often been interpreted as a kind of psychology in its own right. In America,

William James William James (January 11, 1842 – August 26, 1910) was an American philosopher, historian, and psychologist, and the first educator to offer a psychology course in the United States. James is considered to be a leading thinker of the lat ...

often drew on Buddhist ideas (which he saw as the psychology of the future). Influenced by Buddhism, James promoted meditation and coined the term "

stream of consciousness In literary criticism, stream of consciousness is a narrative mode or method that attempts "to depict the multitudinous thoughts and feelings which pass through the mind" of a narrator. The term was coined by Daniel Oliver in 1840 in ''First L ...

". Another 20th century defender of Buddhism was Gerald Du Pre, who saw Buddhism as a "scientific psychology". Various modern therapists have written on the relationship between Buddhism and

. These include

Mark Epstein Mark Epstein (born 1953) is an American author and psychotherapist who integrates Shakyamuni Buddha's teachings with Sigmund Freud's approaches to trauma. He often writes about the interface of Buddhism and psychotherapy.Mark Epstein''Freud and B ...

(''Thoughts Without a Thinker'' 1995, ''Psychotherapy Without the Self'', 2008), Jeffrey B. Rubin, Andrew Olendzki and Nina Coltart (1927–1997). Various authors such as William S. Waldron and David Galin have also written about the Buddhist theory of not-self (''anatman'') and how it can provide insights to the development of a more dynamic, conditional and constructivist views of personality,

personal identity Personal identity is the unique numerical identity of a person over time. Discussions regarding personal identity typically aim to determine the necessary and sufficient conditions under which a person at one time and a person at another time ca ...

and the self.

has argued that the Buddhist view of the emptiness of the self "may turn out to fit the data far better than the notions that have dominated Psychological thinking for the last century." Robert Wright has argued (in his 2017 '' Why Buddhism Is True'') that the Buddhist analysis of human suffering and delusion is fundamentally correct and that this is backed up by

evolutionary psychology Evolutionary psychology is a theoretical approach in psychology that examines cognition and behavior from a modern evolutionary perspective. It seeks to identify human psychological adaptations with regards to the ancestral problems they evo ...

, which helps explain how natural selection hardwired humans with powerful but distorted cognitions and emotions which are effective at getting us to survive and pass on our genes in a pre-historic environment. These cognitive modules do not depict reality as it is, and do not often lead to well being. Wright also thinks that the Buddhist view of not-self (''anatta'') is compatible with modern psychological understandings of the mind. He cites various modern studies and psychological theories (such as the modular view of the mind defended by

Michael Gazzaniga Michael S. Gazzaniga (born December 12, 1939) is a professor of psychology at the University of California, Santa Barbara in the USA, where he heads the new SAGE Center for the Study of the Mind. He is one of the leading researchers in cognitiv ...

) to back up the idea that there is no "CEO" in control of the mind. Wright argues that Buddhist mindfulness meditation can provide a way to gain personal insights into these delusions and may help weaken their hold on us. The field of

Transpersonal psychology Transpersonal psychology, or spiritual psychology, is a sub-field or school of psychology that integrates the spiritual and transcendent aspects of the human experience with the framework of modern psychology. The '' transpersonal'' is defined ...

has also been influenced by Buddhist ideas and various figures in this field see Buddhism and western psychology as complementary, since each provides a structure of human development that is not found in other (

contemplative In a religious context, the practice of contemplation seeks a direct awareness of the divine which transcends the intellect, often in accordance with prayer or meditation. Etymology The word ''contemplation'' is derived from the Latin word '' ...

development and

developmental psychology Developmental psychology is the scientific study of how and why humans grow, change, and adapt across the course of their lives. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to include adolescence, adult developme ...

respectively). According to José Ignacio Cabezón, this idea "has been put forward most clearly and forcefully" in ''Transformations of Consciousness'' (Wilber, Engler, and Brown 1986), a collection of essays from t''he Journal of Transpersonal Psychology''. However, Cabezón is unconvinced by the attempts of these figures to present a single and unified structure of meditative development (which they source from various traditions, including Buddhism).

Mindfulness and meditation research

Buddhist spiritual practices like

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...

have also been compared to

cognitive behavioral therapy Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) is a psycho-social intervention that aims to reduce symptoms of various mental health conditions, primarily depression and anxiety disorders. CBT focuses on challenging and changing cognitive distortions (suc ...

techniques. During the late 20th century, numerous studies were conducted on the psychological effects of certain

Buddhist meditation Buddhist meditation is the practice of meditation in Buddhism. The closest words for meditation in the classical languages of Buddhism are ''bhāvanā'' ("mental development") and '' jhāna/dhyāna'' (mental training resulting in a calm and ...

practices (such as

vipassana ''Samatha'' ( Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' ( Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of ...

and

zazen ''Zazen'' (literally " seated meditation"; ja, 座禅; , pronounced ) is a meditative discipline that is typically the primary practice of the Zen Buddhist tradition. However, the term is a general one not unique to Zen, and thus technical ...

). Furthermore, Buddhist

mindfulness Mindfulness is the practice of purposely bringing one's attention to the present-moment experience without evaluation, a skill one develops through meditation or other training. Mindfulness derives from ''sati'', a significant element of Hind ...

practices influenced the development of new forms of cognitive therapies, which are known as mindfulness-based cognitive therapies. One of the most influential of these therapies is Jon Kabat-Zinn's

Mindfulness-based stress reduction Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is an eight-week evidence-based program that offers secular, intensive mindfulness training to assist people with stress, anxiety, depression and pain. Developed at the University of Massachusetts Medica ...

(MBSR). The growing popularity of

and Buddhist influenced

mindfulness meditation Mindfulness is the practice of purposely bringing one's attention to the present-moment experience without evaluation, a skill one develops through meditation or other training. Mindfulness derives from ''sati'', a significant element of Hind ...

has also led to research on the physiological and

neurological Neurology (from el, νεῦρον (neûron), "string, nerve" and the suffix -logia, "study of") is the branch of medicine dealing with the diagnosis and treatment of all categories of conditions and disease involving the brain, the spinal c ...

effects of meditation practices (carried out by figures such as

Richard Davidson Richard J. Davidson (born December 12, 1951) is professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison as well as founder and chair of the Center for Healthy Minds and the affiliated non-profit Healthy Minds Innovations. ...

) as well as to dialogues on the nature of the human

mind The mind is the set of faculties responsible for all mental phenomena. Often the term is also identified with the phenomena themselves. These faculties include thought, imagination, memory, will, and sensation. They are responsible for various m ...

, which have been enthusiastically encouraged by the present

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current D ...

, Tenzin Gyatso. One of the first westerners to study the neurology of meditation was James H. Austin, the author of '' Zen and the Brain'' (1998). A more recent overview of related research findings can be found in Davidson and Goleman's ''

Altered Traits ''Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain, and Body'', published in Great Britain as 'The Science of Meditation: How to Change Your Brain, Mind and Body', is a 2017 book by science journalist Daniel Goleman and ne ...

,'' which discusses studies done with the aid of Buddhist monks like

and

Mingyur Rinpoche Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche (Tibet: ཡོངས་དགེ་མི་འགྱུར་རིན་པོ་ཆེ། Wylie: yongs dge mi 'gyur rin po che) is a Tibetan teacher and master of the Karma Kagyu and Nyingma lineages of Tibetan Buddhis ...

. The number of studies on Buddhist and Buddhist-derived meditation techniques skyrocketed in the 21st century (in 2015, there were 674 such studies) and their results were widely reported in the popular press. This also led to a cottage industry of popular books on Buddhist and mindfulness meditation and the adoption of secularized meditation in major corporations. William Edelglass has argued that the modern study of meditation and happiness is implicitly founded on a Western notion of happiness as positive affect or

pleasure Pleasure refers to experience that feels good, that involves the enjoyment of something. It contrasts with pain or suffering, which are forms of feeling bad. It is closely related to value, desire and action: humans and other conscious animals ...

(which are most often measured through experience sampling and self-reporting). Edelglass contrasts this notion of happiness with the Buddhist view found in the work of Śāntideva and other ancient Buddhist sources that sees meditation (and other virtues, such as the

six perfections 6 is a number, numeral, and glyph. 6 or six may also refer to: * AD 6, the sixth year of the AD era * 6 BC, the sixth year before the AD era * The month of June Science * Carbon, the element with atomic number 6 * 6 Hebe, an asteroid Peop ...

) as ways to develop wisdom and transform oneself in a radical, highly ethical fashion by letting go of all attachments. The Buddhist perspective also rejects sensual pleasures as worthless and is opposed to the maximization of

positive affect Positive affectivity (PA) is a human characteristic that describes how much people experience positive affects (sensations, emotions, sentiments); and as a consequence how they interact with others and with their surroundings. People with high po ...

for its own sake (indeed, it sees this as counterproductive).

Cognitive science

Barry Kerzin meditating with EEG for neuroscience research

Various studies have shown that Buddhist and mindfulness meditators experience long term transformations in cognitive function and neural activity. However, as Jay L. Garfield notes, this should not be surprising (to scientists or to Buddhists), since meditation is one kind of cognitive expertise and it is therefore normal that it should have neural correlates. Similarly, for Buddhists, the interdependence of mind and body is an ancient view.Jay Garfield, "Ask not what Buddhism can do for cognitive science; ask what cognitive science can do for Buddhism," ''Bulletin of Tibetology'', 47 (2011), p.17 Garfield also argues that cognitive science might have much to contribute to the development of Buddhist philosophy, since ancient Buddhist thinkers do not discuss important issues related to

attention Attention is the behavioral and cognitive process of selectively concentrating on a discrete aspect of information, whether considered subjective or objective, while ignoring other perceivable information. William James (1890) wrote that "Att ...

memory Memory is the faculty of the mind by which data or information is encoded, stored, and retrieved when needed. It is the retention of information over time for the purpose of influencing future action. If past events could not be remember ...

and

perception Perception () is the organization, identification, and interpretation of sensory information in order to represent and understand the presented information or environment. All perception involves signals that go through the nervous syste ...

(such as

inattentional blindness Inattentional blindness or perceptual blindness (rarely called ''inattentive blindness'') occurs when an individual fails to perceive an unexpected stimulus in plain sight, purely as a result of a lack of attention rather than any vision defects o ...

). Furthermore, the Buddhist epistemic focus on an empirical understanding of causal processes "commits Buddhists theorists of mind to attend to contemporary scientific results concerning the mind." Garfield thinks that the greatest contribution that Buddhism can make lies in the field of

moral psychology Moral psychology is a field of study in both philosophy and psychology. Historically, the term "moral psychology" was used relatively narrowly to refer to the study of moral development. Moral psychology eventually came to refer more broadly to va ...

and

positive psychology Positive psychology is the scientific study of what makes life most worth living, focusing on both individual and societal well-being. It studies "positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions...it aims t ...

, which is highly sophisticated in Buddhist thought.

writes that the neuroscientific study of mindfulness tends to view mindfulness a private inner observation (or meta-awareness) which is then conceptualized as neural networks that are studied in brain imaging tools. Thompson thinks this confuses the biological markers for mindfulness (such as decreased

amygdala The amygdala (; plural: amygdalae or amygdalas; also '; Latin from Greek, , ', 'almond', 'tonsil') is one of two almond-shaped clusters of nuclei located deep and medially within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum in complex ver ...

reactivity, relative deactivation of the default-mode network, and slower baseline respiration rate) for mindfulness itself, which is actually "a host of cognitive, affective, and bodily skills" which are situated in an ethical way of life and in a particular socio-cultural setting.McMahan and Braun (2017), pp. 16, 47–61. Thompson thinks that applying insights from

embodied cognition Embodied cognition is the theory that many features of cognition, whether human or otherwise, are shaped by aspects of an organism's entire body. Sensory and motor systems are seen as fundamentally integrated with cognitive processing. The cognit ...

, such as the "enactive approach to cognition", can help Buddhist scholars understand better how mindfulness functions as an aspect of the entire embodied person and how it relates to the study of mediation, which would more effectively be done through the perspective of cognitive ecology. Similarly, David McMahan thinks that Buddhist meditation practices are situated in specific religious, conceptual and socio-cultural contexts, that is, ways of

being-in-the-world Martin Heidegger, the 20th-century German philosopher, produced a large body of work that intended a profound change of direction for philosophy. Such was the depth of change that he found it necessary to introduce many neologisms, often connected ...

(referring to " Lifeworlds" and " social imaginaries"). These ways of being are altered, secularized, modernized and abstracted out when Buddhist meditation is studied in a clinical setting and viewed in terms of an individual's internal states that are caused by the meditation technique. According to McMahan, the general assumption of those who study meditation is that meditation techniques can be studied in isolation, but this is likely to be mistaken since "meditation "works" as a systemic part of the ecology of a sociocultural system." A similar contextual critique has been put forth by Robert H. Sharf.

The problem of scientific materialism

Buddhism rejects all materialistic theories which attempt to reduce consciousness to the functions of physical properties. The 14th Dalai Lama states that "from the Buddhist perspective, the mental realm cannot be reduced to the world of matter, though it may depend upon that world to function." Because of this, while Buddhists like the Dalai Lama embrace the findings and methods of neuroscience, they do not accept the assumptions of some neuroscientists that consciousness can be fully explained as a function of the brain (which is a metaphysical assumption). He further argues that "there is as yet no scientific basis for such a categorical claim," since neuroscience mainly studies correlations between brain states and first person pare "grounded in the phenomenology of experience" and "include the contemplative techniques of meditation" could assist in the development of a more holistic cognitive science that makes use of introspection. The Dalai Lama sees these methods as first person empirical processes. This idea is also supported by B. Alan Wallace, who argues that modern cognitive science is held back by materialist assumptions and its desire to study consciousness (which is subjective and qualitative) through quantitative measuring of its physical correlates. However, since Wallace argues that the correlates of consciousness are not equivalent to ''consciousness itself'', this method creates a blind spot in cognitive science (which also ignores the

hard problem of consciousness The hard problem of consciousness is the problem of explaining why and how humans have qualia or phenomenal experiences. This is in contrast to the "easy problems" of explaining the physical systems that give us and other animals the ability to ...

). Wallace argues that the contemplative skills found in traditions like Buddhism can aid in the development of a rigorous form of

introspection Introspection is the examination of one's own conscious thoughts and feelings. In psychology, the process of introspection relies on the observation of one's mental state, while in a spiritual context it may refer to the examination of one's sou ...

which could be used in cognitive science to deliver a better understanding of the mind. Geoffrey Samuel notes how the Buddhist point of view has often clashed with the reductionist and materialistic assumptions of many modern neuroscientists. He suggests that the question of personal identity and the self "might provide an important starting point" for a critical revision of the assumptions of modern science which focuses on the study of individual brains. He points to the 'enactive' and 'ecological' approach to consciousness by figures like

and

Gregory Bateson Gregory Bateson (9 May 1904 – 4 July 1980) was an English anthropologist, social scientist, linguist, visual anthropologist, semiotician, and cyberneticist whose work intersected that of many other fields. His writings include ''Steps to ...

as a more fruitful ground for the dialogue between Buddhism and science, since these theories "see cognition, and consciousness in general, as part of an ongoing process in which both 'world' and 'mind' are constituted through mutual interaction". According to Samuel, Varela "argued that the upwards causation of conventional neuroscience, in which consciousness is seen as derivative of the body, needs to be complemented by a downwards causation from the emergent structures of the self, which develop within the neural system as part of the process of maturation of each human being".

Buddhism and other related fields

History of science

José Ignacio Cabezón has discussed how

historians of science The history of science covers the development of science from ancient times to the present. It encompasses all three major branches of science: natural, social, and formal. Science's earliest roots can be traced to Ancient Egypt and Mesop ...

seek to understand the origins of science and why its rise was much more successful in Europe. Some of these figures such as Stanley Jaki have argued that it is because Europe was dominated by the Christian worldview (with its linear view of time and de- animized view of nature) that it gave rise to modern science, while this could not have happened in Buddhist Asia (which generally held a cyclic view of time and accepted polytheism/animism). However, Cabezón notes that India and China "did give rise to forms of empirically derived sciences that can be recognized as such even in Western terms." He points to the work of

Joseph Needham Noel Joseph Terence Montgomery Needham (; 9 December 1900 – 24 March 1995) was a British biochemist, historian of science and sinologist known for his scientific research and writing on the history of Chinese science and technology, i ...

(author of the long running series of books called ''

Science and Civilisation in China ''Science and Civilisation in China'' (1954–present) is an ongoing series of books about the history of science and technology in China published by Cambridge University Press. It was initiated and edited by British historian Joseph Needham (1 ...

'') as an example. Furthermore, Cabezón also notes that neither

animism Animism (from Latin: ' meaning ' breath, spirit, life') is the belief that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence. Potentially, animism perceives all things— animals, plants, rocks, rivers, weather syst ...

nor a cyclic theory of time "acted as deterrents to the acceptance of science in these various cultures since its movement east, something that would be expected were Jaki's thesis true." On the contrary, these religious cultures embraced science rapidly.

Philosophy of science

B. Alan Wallace's ''Choosing Reality'' (1996) is one work which discusses Buddhism in regards to the

philosophy of science Philosophy of science is a branch of philosophy concerned with the foundations, methods, and implications of science. The central questions of this study concern what qualifies as science, the reliability of scientific theories, and the ultim ...

. Wallace argues that science is not metaphysically neutral, and that the two main metaphysical views in the philosophy of science have been

scientific realism Scientific realism is the view that the universe described by science is real regardless of how it may be interpreted. Within philosophy of science, this view is often an answer to the question "how is the success of science to be explained?" T ...

and

instrumentalism In philosophy of science and in epistemology, instrumentalism is a methodological view that ideas are useful instruments, and that the worth of an idea is based on how effective it is in explaining and predicting phenomena. According to instrumenta ...

. Wallace thinks these two theories fail to provide a proper philosophical foundation for science and instead argues in favor of the Buddhism

philosophy.Wallace (2003), p. 55. Wallace also argues that Buddhism can complement science by providing a spirit of responsibility and service for others, a spirit that has been lost as science became separated from religion and philosophy. In ''Hidden Dimensions'' (2007), Wallace also cites the ideas of some modern physicists which have argued for alternative

ontologies In computer science and information science, an ontology encompasses a representation, formal naming, and definition of the categories, properties, and relations between the concepts, data, and entities that substantiate one, many, or all domains ...

to materialism or physicalism. These figures include Bohm (and his "

implicate order Implicate order and explicate order are ontological concepts for quantum theory coined by theoretical physicist David Bohm during the early 1980s. They are used to describe two different frameworks for understanding the same phenomenon or aspect of ...

"),

Wolfgang Pauli Wolfgang Ernst Pauli (; ; 25 April 1900 – 15 December 1958) was an Austrian theoretical physicist and one of the pioneers of quantum physics. In 1945, after having been nominated by Albert Einstein, Pauli received the Nobel Prize in Physics ...

's idea (developed along with Jung) of the

unus mundus ''Unus mundus'' (Latin for "One world") is an underlying concept of Western philosophy, theology, and alchemy, of a primordial unified reality from which everything derives. The term can be traced back to medieval Scholasticism though the notion it ...

, George Ellis' fourfold model of reality (matter and forces, consciousness, physical and biological possibilities, and mathematical reality) as well as the views of

Eugene Wigner Eugene Paul "E. P." Wigner ( hu, Wigner Jenő Pál, ; November 17, 1902 – January 1, 1995) was a Hungarian-American theoretical physicist who also contributed to mathematical physics. He received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1963 "for his co ...

and

Bernard d'Espagnat Bernard d'Espagnat (22 August 1921 – 1 August 2015) was a French theoretical physicist, philosopher of science, and author, best known for his work on the nature of reality. Wigner-d'Espagnat inequality is partially named after him. ''Quote'': ...

. Wallace has also compared

John Archibald Wheeler John Archibald Wheeler (July 9, 1911April 13, 2008) was an American theoretical physicist. He was largely responsible for reviving interest in general relativity in the United States after World War II. Wheeler also worked with Niels Bohr in ...

's participatory anthropic principle (which sees scientific concepts like matter, mass and so on as "creations of the human mind, not discovered in the pre-existing, objective world of nature") to the Madhyamaka view which sees a deep interdependence between subjects and objects. Wallace thinks that "such parallels suggest that meaningful theoretical collaboration could take place between physicists and Buddhist philosophers and contemplatives." Mark T. Unno sees the ontology of David Bohm as being similar to the Mahayana Buddhist philosophy of the twofold truth (of form and emptiness). According to Unno,

"suggests that mind and matter, thought and thing, are mutually implicit, as are all other phenomena, such that there is a wholeness to the universe in which all distinctions ultimately dissolve."Unno, Mark T. ''Buddhism, Christianity, and Physics: An Epistemological Turn'', in Numrich (2008) pp. 80–104. Since, for Bohm, "there is no definable divide between mind and matter," there is a kind of wholeness to the universe which cannot be understood conceptually or discursively, but "can only be ultimately realized in the present moment, inseparable from the subject." According to Unno, the same is true for the Buddhist view of emptiness. This is not surprising, since according to Unno, Bohm was "influenced by Indian philosopher

Jiddu Krishnamurti Jiddu Krishnamurti (; 11 May 1895 – 17 February 1986) was a philosopher, speaker and writer. In his early life, he was groomed to be the new World Teacher, an advanced spiritual position in the theosophical tradition, but later rejected th ...

and Buddhist thinkers such as the

Philosophy of physics

Michel Bitbol has argued that Buddhist

philosophy can help provide a useful philosophical framework for quantum mechanics.Bitbol, Michel. ''Two aspects of Śūnyatā in quantum physics : relativity of properties and quantum non-separabilit''y. In : Siddheshwar Rameshwar Bhatt (ed.), ''Quantum Reality and Theory of Śūnya'', Springer, 2019. According to Bitbol, there is

a thorough and detailed structural analogy between
quantum contextuality Quantum contextuality is a feature of the phenomenology of quantum mechanics whereby measurements of quantum observables cannot simply be thought of as revealing pre-existing values. Any attempt to do so in a realistic hidden-variable theory leads ...
and Buddhist
Śūnyatā ''Śūnyatā'' ( sa, शून्यता, śūnyatā; pi, suññatā) pronounced in English as (shoon-ya-ta), translated most often as ''emptiness'', ''vacuity'', and sometimes ''voidness'', is a Buddhist concept which has multiple meani ...
(emptiness of own-being); and between
quantum entanglement Quantum entanglement is the phenomenon that occurs when a group of particles are generated, interact, or share spatial proximity in a way such that the quantum state of each particle of the group cannot be described independently of the state of ...
and Buddhist Pratîtyasamutpâda (dependent origination). But this twofold analogy does not show that there is a single essence of reality which can be disclosed by our reason irrespective of whether we rely on an experimental approach or a contemplative approach. The analogy rather shows that, at a sufficiently accurate level of analysis and careful attention, the negative conclusions of experimental physicists and contemplative Buddhists are bound to be similar: both realize the approximative status of the reified entities of everyday life, and both must cope with the high amount of instability and lack of self-sufficient existence (Śūnyatā) of phenomena. Then, if thoroughly applied, the critical concept of Śūnyatā can be seen to underpin the anti-metaphysical stances of both Buddhism and certain trends in the contemporary philosophy of science.

The American physicist David Ritz Finkelstein developed a theory of "universal relativity," influenced by Madhyamaka philosophy and his discussions at the Mind and Life dialogues. Finkelstein believes that "a philosophical argument for a universal relativity could be a useful guide for future physics," since "the major changes in physics in this century have been extensions of relativity at one level or another, and I think a further extension is due."Wallace (2003), p.Finkelstein, David Ritz. Emptiness and relativity. Georgia Institute of Technology in ''Meeting at the Roots: Essays on Tibetan'' ''Buddhism and the Natural Sciences'' B. Alan Wallace (ed.) Berkeley, CA: University of California Press (2001) 2000.08.16 rev 2003.12.15 Finkelstein's theory is based on the view that all laws of nature are ultimately relative and non-absolute. In this theory, doing (change) and knowing (attempting to fix a process in place) are relative elements.

Anthropic principle

Matthieu Ricard, commenting on the question of the

anthropic principle The anthropic principle, also known as the "observation selection effect", is the hypothesis, first proposed in 1957 by Robert Dicke, that there is a restrictive lower bound on how statistically probable our observations of the universe are, bec ...

and

fine-tuning In theoretical physics, fine-tuning is the process in which parameters of a model must be adjusted very precisely in order to fit with certain observations. This had led to the discovery that the fundamental constants and quantities fall into suc ...

(which states that life is dependent on certain fundamental physical constants whose exact values are improbable), states that:

As far as Buddhism is concerned, the idea that there is some principle of organization that is supposed to have tuned the universe perfectly so that the conscious mind could evolve is fundamentally misguided. The apparently amazing fine-tuning is explained simply by the fact that the physical constants and consciousness have always coexisted in a universe that has no beginning and no end.... The universe has not been adjusted by a great watchmaker so that consciousness can exist. The universe and consciousness have always coexisted and so cannot exclude each other. To coexist, phenomena must be mutually suitable. The problem with the anthropic principle, or any other teleological theory, is that it puts the constants before consciousness and thus claims that the constants exist only so that they can create consciousness.

Modern reception

Modern scientists on Buddhism

Niels Bohr Niels Henrik David Bohr (; 7 October 1885 – 18 November 1962) was a Danish physicist who made foundational contributions to understanding atomic structure and quantum theory, for which he received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1922 ...

, who developed the

Bohr Model In atomic physics, the Bohr model or Rutherford–Bohr model, presented by Niels Bohr and Ernest Rutherford in 1913, is a system consisting of a small, dense nucleus surrounded by orbiting electrons—similar to the structure of the Solar Syst ...

of the atom, said, The American physicist

J. Robert Oppenheimer J. Robert Oppenheimer (; April 22, 1904 – February 18, 1967) was an American theoretical physicist. A professor of physics at the University of California, Berkeley, Oppenheimer was the wartime head of the Los Alamos Laboratory and is oft ...

made an analogy to Buddhism when describing the

: Nobel Prize–winning physicist

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein ( ; ; 14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time. Einstein is best known for developing the theor ...

, who developed the

general theory of relativity General relativity, also known as the general theory of relativity and Einstein's theory of gravity, is the differential geometry, geometric scientific theory, theory of gravitation published by Albert Einstein in 1915 and is the current descr ...

and the

special theory of relativity In physics, the special theory of relativity, or special relativity for short, is a scientific theory regarding the relationship between space and time. In Albert Einstein's original treatment, the theory is based on two postulates: # The law ...

, also known for his

mass–energy equivalence In physics, mass–energy equivalence is the relationship between mass and energy in a system's rest frame, where the two quantities differ only by a multiplicative constant and the units of measurement. The principle is described by the physicis ...

, described Buddhism as containing a strong cosmic element:

Modern Buddhists on science

The

is known for his interest in science and has gone on record to say that Buddhism must conform to proven scientific findings:

My confidence in venturing into science lies in my basic belief that as in science so in Buddhism, understanding the nature of reality is pursued by means of critical investigation: if scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims.

The Dalai Lama argues that science and spirituality are related, though they work on different levels:

The great benefit of science is that it can contribute tremendously to the alleviation of suffering at the physical level, but it is only through the cultivation of the qualities of the human heart and the transformation of our attitudes that we can begin to address and overcome mental suffering. In other words, the enhancement of fundamental human values is indispensable to our basic quest for happiness. Therefore, from the perspective of human well-being, science and spirituality are not unrelated. We need both, since the alleviation of suffering must take place at both the physical and psychological levels.Gyatso (2005), p. 4.

Notes

References

Sources

* De Silva, Padmasiri (2005) ''An Introduction to Buddhist Psychology'', 4th edition, Palgrave Macmillan. * Clayton, Philip (editor) (2006). ''The Oxford Handbook of Religion and Science.'' Oxford University Press. * Goleman, Daniel (in collaboration with The Dalai Lama), ''Destructive Emotions,'' Bloomsbury (London UK 2003) * Gyatso, Tenzin (The 14th Dalai Lama) (2005). ''The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality.'' Morgan Road Books. * Hammerstrom, Erik J. (2015). ''The Science of Chinese Buddhism: Early Twentieth-Century Engagements.'' Columbia University Press. * Kirthisinghe, Buddhadasa P. (editor) (1993) ''Buddhism and Science.'' Motilal Banarsidass. * McMahan, David, "Modernity and the Discourse of Scientific Buddhism." Journal of the American Academy of Religion, Vol. 72, No. 4 (2004), 897–933. * McMahan, David L.; Braun, Erik (2017). ''Meditation, Buddhism, and Science.'' Oxford University Press. * Numrich, Paul David. (2008). ''The Boundaries of Knowledge in Buddhism, Christianity, and Science.'' Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht. * Lopez Jr., Donald S. (2009). ''Buddhism and Science: A Guide for the Perplexed''. University of Chicago Press. * Lopez Jr., Donald S. (2012). ''The Scientific Buddha: His Short and Happy Life.'' Yale University Press. * Rapgay L, Rinpoche VL, Jessum R, ''Exploring the nature and functions of the mind: a Tibetan Buddhist meditative perspective,'' Prog. Brain Res. 2000 vol 122 pp 507–15 * Ricard, Matthieu; Trinh Xuan Thuan (2009). ''The Quantum and the Lotus: A Journey to the Frontiers Where Science and Buddhism Meet,'' Crown Publishers, New York. * Robin Cooper, ''The Evolving Mind: Buddhism, Biology and Consciousness,'' Windhorse (Birmingham UK 1996) * Sarunya Prasopchingchana & Dana Sugu, '''Distinctiveness of the Unseen Buddhist Identity''' (International Journal of Humanistic Ideology, Cluj-Napoca, Romania, vol. 4, 2010) * Sharf, Robert H. "Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience." ''

Numen Numen (plural numina) is a Latin term for " divinity", "divine presence", or "divine will." The Latin authors defined it as follows:For a more extensive account, refer to Cicero writes of a "divine mind" (''divina mens''), a god "whose numen ev ...

'' 42, no. 3 (1995a): 228–83. *

Wallace Wallace may refer to: People * Clan Wallace in Scotland * Wallace (given name) * Wallace (surname) * Wallace (footballer, born 1986), full name Wallace Fernando Pereira, Brazilian football left-back * Wallace (footballer, born 1987), full name ...

, B. Alan (2007). ''Hidden Dimensions: The Unification of Physics and Consciousness'' (Columbia Univ Press) * Wallace, B. Alan (2003) (ed), ''Buddhism and Science: breaking new ground'' (Columbia University Press) * Wallace, B. Alan (1996), ''Choosing Reality: A Buddhist Perspective of Physics and the Mind,'' (Snow Lion 1996) * Wright, Robert (2017). ''Why Buddhism is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment.'' Simon and Schuster. * Zajonc, Arthur (editor) (2004). ''The New Physics and Cosmology: Dialogues with the Dalai Lama.'' Oxford University Press

External links

Full text of 2004 paper examining effects of long-term meditation on brain function

Full text of 2003 paper examining the effect of mindfulness meditation on brain and immune function

The Mind and Life Conferences

* [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wtgl3__oEv4 Dalai Lama joining discussions on "Robotics, Telepresence and Artificial Intelligence" and "Sickness, Aging and Health" at De Nieuwe Kerk in Amsterdam, Netherlands] {{DEFAULTSORT:Buddhism And Science Buddhism and science,