title: Waking, Dreaming, Being: Self and Consciousness in Neuroscience, Meditation, and Philosophy
author:  Evan Thompson 
description: In a game-changing book that is both an intellectual tour de force and the courageous statement of a life's ideal, Thompson brilliantly demonstrates how Indian philosophical thought can join forces with the neurosciences to create a new science of the conscious mind. A must-read for anyone who believes that the future of philosophy is crosscultural. (Jonardon Ganeri, University of Sussex and the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London)<br /><br />Evan Thompson, a philosopher with a deep knowledge of Indo-Tibetan contemplative traditions and modern neuroscience, has written a brilliant and comprehensive book on the nature of awareness and the self. <i>Waking, Dreaming, Being</i> is a dazzling synthesis. Thompson takes on some of the most fundamental questions about the nature of mind and addresses them with remarkable creativity and clarity. This volume is a must read for any serious student of the mind and consciousness. (Richard J. Davidson, New York Times-bestselling coauthor of <i>The Emotional Life of Your Brain</i>)<br /><br />Drawing on multiple sources of knowledge, all tested by first-person experience and critical analysis, Thompson presents an illuminating neurophenomenological account of what it's like to be a conscious human being. (Stephen LaBerge, author of <i>Exploring the World of Lucid Dreaming</i>)<br /><br /><i>Waking, Dreaming, Being</i> powerfully demonstrates how bringing cognitive science, philosophy, and Buddhism into a critical engagement can open innovative ways of exploring the 'hard problem' of consciousness. The blending of philosophical rigor and scientific knowledge with meditative insights, with the author's own remarkable life as the larger background, makes the book a real joy to read. This book will be an invaluable help to anyone who is interested in knowing how the fundamental questions of self, consciousness, and human existence can be explored in a way that combines the best of both East and West. (Thupten Jinpa, author of <i>Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy</i>)<br /><br />With extensive training in Buddhism, brain science, and phenomenology, Evan Thompson is uniquely positioned to reveal how different perspectives on the mind can be mutually illuminating. He begins with the Buddhist insight that there are many forms of consciousness--far more than traditionally recognized in the West--and he shows that these can be associated with deferent brain processes. The result is a richly original and integrated account of human mental life. Whether you are a curious newcomer or a seasoned expert, you have much to learn from this stunning synthesis of ancient wisdom and cutting-edge science. (Jesse Prinz, author of <i>The Conscious Brain </i>and<i> Beyond Human Nature</i>)<br /><br />[An] excellent book. (<i>New York Times Book Review</i>)<br /><br />Extraordinary and exciting claims... beautiful ideas. (<i>Cosmos and Culture</i>)<br /><br />Contemplative and groundbreaking, <i>Waking, Dreaming, Being</i> is a welcome addition to college library philosophy shelves. (<i>Midwest Book Review</i>)<br /><br /><i>Waking, Dreaming, Being</i> is an exceptional and intriguing contribution to the exploration of consciousness as a multidimensional self and makes a convincing argument for the usefulness of philosophical, experiential, and scientific approaches to understanding consciousness. (Marissa Krimsky <i>Buddhadharma</i>)<br /><br />A rich, thought-provoking and poetic tour of a wide variety of phenomena of consciousness... (<i>Constructivist Foundations</i>)
zlib_text: self and consciousness in neuroscience,  
  meditation, and philosophy
  WAKING, 
  DREAMING, 
   BEING
  EVAN THOMPSON
  FOREWORD BY STEPHEN BATCHELOR
  
  WAKING, 
  DREAMING, 
  BEING
  
   WAKING,
  DREAMING,
  BEING 
   self and consciousness in neuroscience,
  meditation, and philosophy 
   EVAN THOMPSON 
   C O LU M B I A  U N I V E R S I T Y  P R E S S 
   NEW YORK 
  
  Columbia University Press
  Publishers Since 1893
  New York Chichester, West Sussex
  cup.columbia.edu
  Copyright © 2015 Evan Thompson
  All rights reserved
  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
    Thompson, Evan.
   Waking, dreaming, being : new light on the self and consciousness  
  from neuroscience, meditation, and philosophy / Evan Thompson.
    pages cm
   Includes bibliographical references and index.
   ISBN 978-0-231-13709-6 (cloth : alk. paper) — 
   ISBN 978-0-231-53831-2 (electronic)
   1. Consciousness. 2. Self. I. Title.
   B808.9T456 2015
   128'.2—dc23
  2014004887
  Columbia University Press books are printed on permanent  
  and durable acid-free paper.