Since 2004, when studies confirmed that expert meditators could consciously induce gamma brain waves that demonstrated increased learning, contemplative training has been linked to neural plasticity, one of the great paradigm shifts in modern neuroscience. News of this linkage launched an industry. Today, the mindfulness movement manifests in ways both serious and downright silly.
Nonetheless, scientific research on meditation remains in its infancy. Meditation as a subject of scientific inquiry traces its historical roots back to the 1930s, with the first published study appearing in 1966. However, much of the research to date has been conducted in the vacuum of laboratories and consequently has neglected the environments, social-relational fields, and cultures in which meditation is practiced. The contexts of a meditator in a particular place and time, including her worldview, metaphysics, and ethics, have not meaningfully informed research on meditation.
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