August 29, 2010

BUDDHISM. If the spiritual concepts of emptiness and selflessness have attracted you, baffled you, or made you feel somehow ill at ease, this program can shed light on these and other gifts of Buddhism. Carole Hallundbaek interviews Dr. John D. Dunne, associate professor in the Department of Religion at Emory University. He was educated at Amherst College and Harvard University, where he received his Ph.D. from the Committee on the Study of Religion. Dr. Dunne is a co-director of Emory's Collaborative for Contemplative Studies, a Fellow of the Mind and Life Institute, and an advisor to the federally funded Center for Investigating Healthy Minds. Before joining the Emory community, he conducted research at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland and Central Institute of Higher Tibetan Studies in India. The author of “Foundations of the Dharmakirti's Philosophy,” his work focuses on Buddhist philosophy and contemplative practice, especially on the concept of "mindfulness" in both theoretical and practical contexts, as well as the metaphysics of “emptiness” and "selflessness." Topics in this lively hour include: the origins and development of Buddhism; the Four Noble Truths; the cultural quest for happiness; identifying our dissatisfaction as misunderstanding of our own identity and that of the world; the Path for finding happiness; unhappiness as a result of clinging to a notion of personal identity that does not exist; unhappiness as a result of thinking of the past or the future, which do not presently exist; the importance of slowing down our busyness; meditation; mindfulness; selflessness; emptiness; and much more. For more information, please visit Dr. Dunne: http://religion.emory.edu/faculty/dunne.html Emory's Collaborative for Contemplative Studies: http://www.emory.edu/religions&humanspirit/Religion%20pages/Contemplative%20Studies.htm Center for Investigating Healthy Minds: http://www.investigatinghealthyminds.org/