{"product_id":"siddharthas-brain-the-science-of-meditation-mindfulness-and-enlightenment","title":"Siddhartha's Brain: The Science of Meditation, Mindfulness and Enlightenment","description":"About the Author\n\nJAMES KINGSLAND is a science and medical journalist with twenty-five years' experience working for publications including New Scientist, Nature and most recently the Guardian, where he was a commissioning editor and contributor for its Notes \u0026amp; Theories blog. On his own blog, Plastic Brain, he writes about neuroscience and Buddhist psychology.\n\nProduct Description\n\nWINNER OF THE GOLD PRIZE FOR RELIGION \/ SPIRITUALITY OF EASTERN THOUGHT AT THE 2016 NAUTILUS BOOK AWARDS.\n\nCan meditation and mindfulness really reconfigure our brains to make us sharper, smarter, healthier, happier?\nIn Siddhartha's Brain, James Kingsland reveals that a complete scientific theory of how these practices work is now within our grasp and may be the key that unlocks a wide range of afflictions of the human mind.\nSome 25 centuries ago an Indian sage called Siddhartha Gautama - the man who would become known as the Buddha - developed a programme for improving mental wellbeing that has been passed down to us by generations of monks and nuns. Far from being a New Age fad, secular mindfulness courses are remarkably consistent with these ancient teachings and are proving their worth for tackling many of the problems associated with the demands of our frenetic, technology-driven modern world.\nResearch by psychologists and clinicians has shown that mindfulness can be used to treat stress, anxiety, depression, chronic pain, hypertension and drug addiction, as well as improving concentration, empathy, emotion regulation and the quality of interpersonal relationships. There have even been hints that it could enhance immune function, slow cellular ageing and help keep dementia at bay.\nTaking us on a journey back to the time of the Buddha to record changes in his brain as he travels the path leading to enlightenment, Siddhartha's Brain is the first book to explain not only how meditation and mindfulness work but also why. It proposes that by fine-tuning the neural circuits that allowed our hominid ancestors to band together in ever larger social groups, these practices can help us find lasting peace and contentment.\n\nBook Description\n\nThe first popular science book to explain how mindfulness meditation changes the brain and why it is an effective antidote for a wide range of mental afflictions\n\nFrom the Back Cover\n\nCan meditation and mindfulness exercises make us sharper, smarter, healthier and happier?\nIn Siddhartha's Brain, James Kingsland reveals that a complete scientific theory of how these practices work is now within our grasp and may be the key that unlocks a wide range of afflictions of the human mind.\nSome 25 centuries ago an Indian sage called Siddhartha Gautama - the man who would become known as the Buddha - developed a programme for improving mental wellbeing that has been passed down to us by generations of monks and nuns. Today, secular mindfulness courses are proving their worth for tackling many of the problems associated with the demands of our frenetic, technology-driven modern world.\nResearch has shown that mindfulness can be used to treat stress, anxiety, depression, chronic pain, hypertension and drug addiction, as well as improving concentration, empathy, emotion regulation and the quality of interpersonal relationships. There have even been hints that it could enhance immune function, slow cellular ageing and help keep dementia at bay.\nTaking us on a journey back to the time of the Buddha to track changes in his brain as he travels the path leading to enlightenment, Siddhartha's Brain explains how meditation and mindfulness transform the human mind.\nJAMES KINGSLAND is a science and medical journalist with 25 years' experience working for publications including New Scientist, Nature and most recently the Guardian, where he was a commissioning editor and contributor for its Notes \u0026amp; Theories blog. On his own blog, Plastic Brain, he writes about neuroscience and Buddhist psychology.","brand":"smeikalbooks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39730318213205,"sku":"9781472136367N","price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/2481\/5790\/products\/81c945c1-348f-45e8-a35e-d76d18f53375.jpg?v=1644260672","url":"https:\/\/smeikalbooks.co.uk\/en-us\/products\/siddharthas-brain-the-science-of-meditation-mindfulness-and-enlightenment","provider":"smeikalbooks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}