1st Edition
Mindfulness Through Science and Verse Finger Pointing at the Moon
Chapter 1: Mindfulness and Mind-Body Therapies: Integrating Ancient Wisdom with Contemporary Science
Chapter 2: Mindfulness and the Brain: A Scientific Exploration
Chapter 3: Rethinking Mindfulness
Chapter 4: The Dharma in Verse - Buddhist Roots of Mindful Poetry
Chapter 5: Sacred Stillness — Christian Poetry as a Pathway to Mindfulness
Chapter 6: Mystic Echoes: Meditative Poetry from the World’s Spiritual Traditions
Chapter 7: Poetic Breath: Secular Mindfulness and the Power of Verse
Chapter 8: The Poetic Path: Discovering the Self Through Poetry
Biography
Dr. Heather Kempton (poet name Rowan Taw) is an Associate Professor of Psychology at Massey University and a volunteer Buddhist Chaplain. Her work bridges mindfulness, cognition, contemplative science, and poetic insight.
‘I am convinced that mindfulness meditation and the reading and writing of poems are equally powerful technologies for redirecting, changing, and better understanding the qualities of our attention. At last, Heather Kempton brings us a scientific and aesthetic guide to why and how poetry can become a full partner in the pedagogy of mindfulness-based programs. Mindfulness teachers and researchers deserve this freedom—every moment is the right moment for a poem, and any poem of power is ready to open us up, like a blossom, or a door.’
Donald McCown, PhD, Director, West Chester University, Center for Contemplative Studies
‘When a psychologist trained in hard-nosed cognitive science is also a poet and a practitioner of Zen meditation you can expect a spirited work on mindfulness of extraordinary originality and effervescence. And this is indeed one such book. It is full of practical suggestions, deftly intermingled with some fascinating spiritual history. But the genius comes from the exoskeleton of poetic expression. Kempton’s nom de plume is Rowan Taw. The Taw is a river, which she loves, and the rowan tree, as every Celt knows, is magical, as is this book.’
Ian M. Evans, Emeritus Professor of Psychology, Massey University
‘Mindfulness Through Science and Verse explores mindfulness, bringing three aspects together. Sharing her close knowledge of Buddhism, neuroscience, and poetry, Heather Kempton offers specific ways to practice mindfulness, both as a meditator and as a writer. Every chapter broadens the reader’s knowledge—there is no “McMindfulness” problem about this book.’
John Whalen-Bridge, Associate Professor of English Literature at the National University of Singapore
