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Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama

About the Book

Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama

Acts of rage, cruelty, and violence mar the landscape of humanity around the world. What drives these destructive impulses? Is such behavior a product of environment, neurochemistry, or other forces altogether? And, perhaps more importantly, what can be done to tame destructive emotions and nurture peaceful ones in their place? Bringing an unprecedented level of depth, insight, and discovery to the topic, Destructive Emotions reports on a recent collaboration between the Dalai Lama and an extraordinary panel of Buddhist scholars, Western psychologists, neuroscientists, and philosophers to grapple with these crucial questions.

For five days in 2000, this distinguished group gathered in the Dalai Lama's private meeting room in India for fascinating discussions about the very nature of rage and related emotions such as fear and anxiety. Bestselling author and behavioral-science pioneer Daniel Goleman carefully recorded the revelations and lively debates taking place that week, offering all readers access to the compelling findings shared by these remarkable leaders in their disciplines. Destructive Emotions presents antidotes drawn from Buddhist tenets and confirmed by the astonishing technology that allows scientists to peer inside the brain centers where emotional storms are calmed. It's a book sure to spark discussion among educators, religious and political leaders, parents --- and all who seek peace for themselves and the world.

The questions, discussion topics, and author biography that follow are intended to enhance your reading of Destructive Emotions. We hope they will enrich your experience of this illuminating work.

The Mind and Life Institute sponsors cross-cultural dialogues that bring together the Dalai Lama and other Buddhist scholars with Western scientists and philosophers. This book was based on Mind and Life VIII.

Destructive Emotions: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama
by Daniel Goleman

  • Publication Date: March 30, 2004
  • Paperback: 448 pages
  • Publisher: Bantam
  • ISBN-10: 0553381059
  • ISBN-13: 9780553381054