Adopt a ‘cosmopolitan’ mindset by recognizing humanity as one family and fostering empathetic, critical dialogue across diverse traditions (religious, philosophical, scientific). This approach aims to sharpen understanding, improve mutual knowledge, and create richer forms of human flourishing, rather than seeking conversion or one-upmanship.
Deeply value and practice good-natured skepticism by challenging your own ideas and others’ ideas, rather than nihilistic cynicism. This makes life better by preventing dogmatism and opens your mind to new input from other people.
Actively seek out and engage with challenging ideas and people who hold them, even if they contradict your long-held beliefs. This process forces you to critically examine and fully think through your own convictions.
When engaging with practices like meditation, be aware that the concepts used to frame your experience are normative and value-laden, not neutral observations. Understand that you are being guided to look in a certain way, informed by specific values, rather than simply observing objective reality.
Resist the idea that Buddhism is uniquely rational, scientific, or superior to other religions, or that it isn’t a religion at all. Recognize it as a historically evolving religious tradition to avoid distorting its nature and to foster a more accurate understanding.
Be wary of claims that spiritual practices are ‘validated by science’ in a way that legitimizes them as superior or purely objective. Science describes, but does not validate value systems, and such claims can be a philosophical confusion used to proselytize.
Develop a deeper historical consciousness when evaluating philosophical or religious traditions. This helps understand why certain traditions or interpretations become attractive at specific times and avoids a narrow perspective.
Adopt a ‘maximalist’ approach to human flourishing, utilizing a diverse toolkit of practices including psychotherapy, medication, access to nature, friendship, meaningful work, exercise, and healthy diet, in addition to meditation. This holistic approach aims to improve overall well-being and address suffering.
Incorporate ‘Brahma Viharas’ or loving kindness (metta) practices into your routine to boost your capacity for warmth towards yourself and others. This can counteract individualism and potentially lead to greater engagement in the world and helping other people.
Prioritize self-care to cultivate the personal resources needed to address larger societal injustices. Taking care of yourself equips you to be more resilient and effective in engaging with and working towards systemic change.
Be aware of the ‘McMindfulness’ phenomenon, where meditation practices are commodified and used to address systemic issues at an individual level. This vigilance helps avoid papering over larger political, systemic, and structural problems that require collective action.
Understand ‘dukkha’ in Buddhism as ‘pain’ or ‘suffering’ rather than merely ‘dissatisfaction.’ This avoids watering down the core message and helps grasp the unsettling, transformative nature of the Buddha’s original teachings, which emphasize impermanence and inherent unsatisfactoriness.
Consider exploring secularized mindfulness programs like Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) or Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT). These can be beneficial for dealing with chronic pain or illness without requiring explicit religious belief.
Approach claims about meditation’s effects on the brain with critical awareness, recognizing that any activity changes the brain and many studies have methodological limitations. Distinguish cultural hype from scientific rigor, noting that most studies are underpowered and under-controlled.
Continuously ask ethical questions about knowledge: what is truly important, valuable, and actionable to know, given our finite nature. This guides the pursuit of knowledge towards genuine human well-being and ethical action.
Read stories and scriptures about Buddhist philosophy, or other philosophies and religions. This provides exposure and understanding of diverse worldviews and historical contexts.