Thoughts Without A Thinker

Psychotherapy from a Buddhist Perspective

Contributors

By Mark Epstein

Formats and Prices

On Sale
Jul 30, 2013
Page Count
272 pages
Publisher
Basic Books
ISBN-13
9780465063925

Format

Blending the lessons of psychotherapy with Buddhist teachings, Mark Epstein offers a revolutionary understanding of what constitutes a healthy emotional life

The line between psychology and spirituality has blurred, as clinicians, their patients, and religious seekers explore new perspectives on the self. A landmark contribution to the field of psychoanalysis, Thoughts Without a Thinker describes the unique psychological contributions offered by the teachings of Buddhism. Drawing upon his own experiences as a psychotherapist and meditator, New York-based psychiatrist Mark Epstein lays out the path to meditation-inspired healing, and offers a revolutionary new understanding of what constitutes a healthy emotional life.

  • "One of the most sophisticated integrations of the therapeutic and spiritual disciplines."
    Daniel Goleman, New York Times
  • "Eloquent yet down-to-earth, this gem offers an exhilarating and expansive perspective on the therapeutic process."
    Booklist
  • "A highly personal, thoughtful, illuminating synthesis.... Patients, psychologists, and mediators...will find much spiritual nourishment."
    Publishers Weekly
  • "Mark Epstein's book is inspired by its lucidity.... After Thoughts Without a Thinker, psychotherapy without a Buddhist perspective looks like a diminished thing."
    Adam Phillips, author of Missing Out: In Praise of the Unlived Life
  • "A groundbreaking work.... The book will take its place among the classics of the literature of meditation."
    Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Mindfulness for Beginners
  • "Epstein tries bravely and earnestly to make such matters of the mind and heart as clear as possible."
    Robert Coles, New England Journal of Medicine
  • "Epstein's solid book offers another example of contemporary efforts to revitalize psychotherapy."
    Spirituality and Practice
  • "A marvelous book that is at once scholarly and fresh, informative and personal."
    Stephen A. Mitchell, author of Can Love Last?
  • "A most lucid and expert account of the wedding of psychotherapy and meditation. An Eastern-Wester psychology that truly speaks from the inside of both worlds."
    Jack Kornfield, author of Meditation for Beginners
  • "I loved Thoughts Without a Thinker. Mark Epstein has given us a brilliant account of how an ancient science of mind, based on a rich meditative tradition, can complement therapy and lead to new dimensions of wisdom and wholeness."
    Joan Borysenko, author of Fried: Why You Burn Out and How to Revive

Mark Epstein

About the Author

Mark Epstein, M.D., is a psychiatrist in private practice in New York City and the author of a number of books about the interface of Buddhism and psychotherapy, including The Zen of Therapy, Advice Not Given, and Going to Pieces Without Falling Apart.

Learn more about this author