Nirbhay N. Singh (ed): Psychology of Meditation

Excerpt

In the preface of the book, Psychology of Meditation, the editor states, “This book should be of interest to academics, clinicians, practitioners, and students”. This is very true and Psychology of Meditation will likely be of interest to many more groups of those committed to the understanding and practice of meditation. Even if one is interested in learning how to develop a meditation practice, they can also learn about how meditation influences the brain, how meditation is influenced by cultural worldviews, and the positive outcomes of meditation for various groups such as children, individuals with developmental disabilities, or individuals in the business world. Interest in mindfulness meditation is flourishing and meditation is making its way into popular culture—which raises a number of questions and concerns. Thus, this book is very timely because it can provide readers with an opportunity to pause and reflect on what is currently known about meditation, as well as new ideas that warrant further investigation. In addition, there is increased interest in creating new meditation and mindfulness-based intervention programs and applying these programs and practices to various fields (e.g., occupational therapy, school, business). The growing number of studies investigating mindfulness meditation can lead to multiple interpretations and definitions of meditation—an important and pressing issue that is highlighted in multiple chapters throughout the book. …