Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon - University of The West and Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Methods

University of The West and Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Methods (NIEM) have jointly launched the Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon Website (http://www.uwest.edu/sanskritcanon/dp/) for the benefit of the scholastic world. Our goal is to promote research into the vast corpus of Sanskrit Buddhist texts. The scriptures and treatises which make up this collection encompass tens of thousands of printed pages.

Electronic access to Sanskrit Buddhist texts, with its profound possibilities for enhancing the depth, scope and subtlety of research, has been a desideratum of the field for some time. Clearly, the conversion of canonical Buddhist texts into machine-readable format is an idea whose time has come.

In 2003, the University of the West, Los Angeles, under the generous sponsorship of Most Venerable Master Hsing Yun and guided by the initiative of Dr. Lewis Lancaster, began the Sanskrit Buddhist Canon Project (SBCP). The initial grant, covering the input of 50 Mahayana sutras, was completed in 2004.

Our second phase, generously sponsored by Mr. Ching-Tung Tsai and Mr. Ming-Ti Tsai, covering the input of about 100 Shastra titles comprising the works of Acarya Nagarjuna, Arya Deva, Asanga, and Vasubandhu, has already commenced, and will be completed at the end of 2009. We are currently seeking donations for the final phase of the project, which will make over 150 additional sutras, shastras, and other Buddhist titles freely available to all.

Tal Ben-Shahar: Tal David Ben-Shachar happiness tips

Positive psychology definition: positive psychology exercises, positive psychology articles

Positive psychology definition: positive psychology is a recent branch of psychology. As described by Martin Seligman and Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi: "We believe that a psychology of positive human functioning will arise that achieves a scientific understanding and effective interventions to build thriving in individuals, families, and communities."Positive psychologists seek "to find and nurture genius and talent", and "to make normal life more fulfilling", not simply to treat mental illness.

Positive psychology researchers: current researchers in positive psychology include Martin Seligman, Ed Diener, Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, Christopher Peterson, Carol Dweck, Barbara Fredrickson, Sonja Lyubomirsky, Kennon Sheldon, Jonathan Haidt,] Shelley Taylor, C. R. Snyder, Donald Clifton, Albert Bandura, Charles S. Carver, Michael F. Scheier, and Ilona Boniwell.

 
Positive psychology exercises: it is suggested to exercise positive psychology by writing a thank-you letter to someone who made a difference in our lives. This is beneficial both to the sender as well as the receiver, improving awareness about what really counts, creating good feelings and showing our appreciation.
 
Positive psychology articles: these are some articles about positive psychology

• Gable, S. L., & Haidt, J. (2005). What (and why) is positive psychology? Review of General Psychology, 9, 103-110. Full text
• Economic Downturn: Can Money Buy Happiness? WhyFiles.org
• Niemiec, R., & Wedding D. (2008). Positive Psychology at the Movies: Using Using Films to Build Virtues and Character Strengths.Cambridge, MA: Hogrefe.

Tags: positive psychology definition, positive psychology exercises, authentic happiness book, positive psychology articles, authentic happiness inventory

IQ, beliefs and fidelity: Intelligent men 'less likely to cheat'?

Dr Satoshi Kanazawa and his studies, as reported by The Telegraph:

Dr Satoshi Kanazawa research concludes that more intelligent men are more likely to value monogamy and sexual exclusivity than less intelligent men. But the connection between conventional sexual morality and intelligence is not mirrored in women.

The patterns were uncovered by Dr Satoshi Kanazawa of the London School of Economics and Political Science in a paper published in the March edition of the journal Social Psychology Quarterly. He found that men with higher IQs place greater value on monogamy and sexual exclusivity than their less intelligent peers. The researchers could find no evidence that clever women are more likely than the general population to remain faithful.

As part of the study he analysed two major US surveys which ascertained the social attitudes and IQs of thousands of teenagers and adults. Dr Kanazawa claims that the correlation between intelligence and monogamy in men has its origins in evolutionary development. Sexual exclusivity is an "evolutionary novel" quality that would have been of little benefit to early man, who was programmed to be promiscuous, he argues.

The modern world no longer confers such an evolutionary advantage to men who have several sexual partners - but it is only intelligent men are able to shed the psychological baggage of their species and adopt new modes of behaviour. Other "evolutionary novel" qualities that are more common among people of higher intelligence include liberalism and atheism, his study indicated.

Zen Meditation: Thicker Brains Fend Off Pain

This study was supported jointly by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research and a Mind and Life Institute Varela Grant. As reported by http://www.sciencedaily.com/ regarding University of Montreal (2010, February 24). Zen Meditation: Thicker brains fend off pain.

Researchers from the Université de Montréal discovered that we can reduce our sensitivity to pain by thickening our brain, according to a new study published in a special issue of the American Psychological Association journal, Emotion.  "Through training, Zen meditators appear to thicken certain areas of their cortex and this appears to be underlie their lower sensitivity to pain," says lead author Joshua A. Grant, a doctoral student in the Université de Montréal Department of Physiology and Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal. "We found a relationship between cortical thickness and pain sensitivity, which supports our previous study on how Zen meditation regulates pain." "The often painful posture associated with Zen meditation may lead to thicker cortex and lower pain sensitivity," says Grant, noting that meditative practices could be helpful in general for pain management, for preventing normal age-related grey matter reductions or potentially for any condition where the grey matter is compromised such as stroke.

Researchers made their discovery by comparing the grey matter thickness of Zen meditators and non-meditators,and found evidence that practicing the centuries-old discipline of Zen can reinforce a central brain region (anterior cingulate) that regulates pain. As part of this study, scientists recruited 17 meditators and 18 non-meditators who in addition had never practiced yoga, experienced chronic pain, neurological or psychological illness. Grant and his team, under the direction of Pierre Rainville of the Université de Montréal and the Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal, measured thermal pain sensitivity by applying a heated plate to the calf of participants and followed by scanning the brains of subjects with structural magnetic resonance imaging. According to MRI results, central brain regions that regulate emotion and pain were significantly thicker in meditators compared to non-meditators.

Edward Diener: Ed Diener on happiness

Edward Diener was born in 1946 in Glendale, California. The Dieners’ son Robert has collected well-being data in collaboration with Dr. Diener. Because of the exotic groups involved in Robert's research, including the African Maasai, Greenlandic Inuit, the Amish, and slum dwellers in Calcutta, Robert has been called the Indiana Jones of well-being research. He was branded in a rite of manhood by the Maasai. Two other daughters, Kia and Susan, are not psychologists.

Ed Diener is Joseph R. Smiley Distinguished Professor of Psychology at the University of Illinois. He has over 240 publications, and with over 12,000 citations is one of the most highly cited psychologists according to the Institute for Scientific Information. About 190 of these citations are in the area of the psychology of well-being. For more than a quarter of a century he has been doing research on happiness, which has earned him the nickname "Dr. Happiness". Edward Diener is the founding editor of Perspectives on Psychological Science, and was formerly editor of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology and the Journal of Happiness Studies. He is the president of the International Positive Psychology Association, and was formerly president of the International Society of Quality of Life Studies, and of the Society of Personality and Social Psychology.

Edward Diener received his B.A. in Psychology in 1968 from California State University at Fresno. He received his doctorate at the University of Washington in 1974 and has been a faculty member at the University of Illinois for the past 35 years. Professor Diener's research focuses on the measurement of well-being; temperament and personality influences on well-being; theories of well-being; income and well-being; and cultural influences on well-being. Ed Diener has six books in 2008-2009. One of these is a popular book on the science of well-being, authored with his son, Robert Biswas-Diener. The title is Happiness: Unlocking the Mysteries of Psychological Wealth. This volume was described by David Myers as “The most authoritative and informative book about happiness ever written.” The work provides an overview of scientific findings on well-being, including the benefits and optimum levels of well-being, as well as some causes such as temperament, money, attitudes, spirituality, and accurate forecasting. The book describes the evidence for the benefits of “happiness” for good health and longevity, social relationships, and work and income.

Edward Diener also has a book on Well-being and Public Policy (2009), which is authored with John Helliwell, Richard Lucas, and Ulrich Schimmack. The book argues the case for implementing national accounts of well-being for public policy. In addition, Diener has a three-volume collected works appearing in 2009, with Volume 1 including some of his major review and theory articles, Volume 2 including culture and well-being articles, and Volume 3 including articles on measurement and new measures of well-being. A final book in 2009 is one edited with Daniel Kahneman and John Helliwell: International Differences in Well-Being.

Professor Diener has educated a number of students who have gone on to become well-known scientists: Randy Larsen (Washington University), Robert Emmons (U California at Davis), Frank Fujita (IUSB), Shigehiro Oishi (U Virginia), Ulrich Schimmack (U Toronto), Richard Lucas (Michigan State U), Eunkook Suh (Yonsei U), and William Pavot (Southwest Minnesota State U), and many others. He has also worked with outstanding post-doctoral students and research students such as Carol Nickerson (UIUC), Richard Smith (U Kentucky), and Michael Eid (U Berlin). He has collaborated in his work with leading researchers such as Daniel Kahneman (Princeton), Martin Seligman (U Pennsylvania), and Joar Vitterso (U Tromso).

Edward Diener books
1 - Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, 71- 75.
2 - Diener, E. (1984). Subjective well-being. Psychological Bulletin, 95, 542-575.
3 - Diener, E. (2000). Subjective well-being: The science of happiness and a proposal for a national index. American Psychology, 55(1), 34-43.
4 - Time magazine, January 17, 2005.
5 - Diener, E., & Biswas-Diener, R. (2008). Happiness: Unlocking the mysteries of psychological wealth. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing. (ISBN 1405146613)

Aaron Temkin Beck: Aaron Temkin Beck's cognitive therapy

Aaron Temkin Beck is an American psychiatrist and a professor emeritus in the department of psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania. He is widely regarded as the father of cognitive therapy, and his pioneering theories are widely used in the treatment of clinical depression. Beck also developed self-report measures of depression and anxiety including Beck Depression Inventory (BDI)[1], Beck Hopelessness Scale, Beck Scale for Suicidal Ideation (BSS), Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and Beck Youth Inventories. He is the President of the Beck Institute for Cognitive Therapy and Research and the Honorary President of the Academy of Cognitive Therapy, which certifies qualified cognitive therapists.

It is possible to identify several recurrent themes in constructivists' work. The psychotherapist M. J. Mahoney has listed five such common themes, which stands out in Aaron Temkin Beck's work as well as the writings of other constructivists.:

- Humans are active agents with the power to effect changes in their own lives. This theme stands in contrast to the view that humans are passively controlled by larger forces.
- Humans are actively engaged in ordering their experiences through assigning emotional as well as intellectual significance to them.
- These processes of ordering are primarily self-referential; that is, they underlie a person's sense of selfhood or personal identity.
- On the other hand, humans are not isolated individuals; they cannot be understood apart from their relationships to other people, larger communities, and symbol systems.
- Humans continue to grow and develop over the entire course of their lifespan.


His work at the University of Pennsylvania inspired Dr. Martin Seligman in refining Seligman's own cognitive techniques and exercises and later work on Learned helplessness.

Aaron Temkin Beck is noted for his research in psychotherapy, psychopathology, suicide, and psychometrics, which led to his creation of cognitive therapy, for which he received the 2006 Lasker-DeBakey Clinical Medical Research Award, and the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), one of the most widely used instruments for measuring depression severity. Beck is also known for his creation of the Beck Hopelessness Scale and the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and has founded the Beck Institute in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in which his daughter, Dr. Judith Beck, works. Beck believed that depression is due to unrealistic negative views about the world. Depressed people have a negative cognition in three areas that are placed into the depressive triad. They develop negative views about: themselves, the world, and their future. Beck starts treatment by engaging in conversation with clients about their negative thoughts.[citation needed] Cognitive therapy has also been applied with success to individuals with anxiety disorders, schizophrenia, and many other disorders. In recent years, cognitive therapy has been disseminated outside academic settings, including throughout the United Kingdom, and in a program developed by Dr. Beck and the City of Philadelphia.

Tal Ben-Shahar: Tal David Ben-Shachar happiness tips

Tal Ben-Shahar is an author and lecturer. He taught the largest course at Harvard on "Positive Psychology" (855 students enrolled in the class, making it the the most popular class of the spring semester) and the third largest on "The Psychology of Leadership"--with a total of over 1,400 students. He currently teaches at the Interdisciplinary Center, Herzliya, where he co-founded The Institute for Positive Psychology in Education. Tal Ben-Shahar consults and lectures around the world to executives in multi-national corporation, the general public, and at-risk populations. Topics include happiness, self-esteem, resilience, goal setting, mindfulness, and leadership.An avid sportsman, Tal won the U.S. Intercollegiate and Israeli National squash championships. He obtained his PhD in Organizational Behavior and BA in Philosophy and Psychology from Harvard. His undergraduate thesis, completed in 1996, is titled "Honesty Pays: Bridging the Gap Between Moral Theory and Practice." Ben-Shahar is a veteran of the Israeli Defense Forces and is the Scholar-in-Residence at the The David Project, a non-profit, educational organization on Israel.

Tal Ben-Shahar has published several books:
    * The Pursuit of Perfect: How to Stop Chasing Perfection and Start Living a Richer, Happier Life (2009)
    * Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment (2007)
    * The Question of Happiness: On Finding Meaning, Pleasure, and the Ultimate Currency (2002)
    * A Clash of Values: The Struggle for Universal Freedom (2002)
    * Heaven Can Wait: Conversations With Bonny Hicks (1998)

As reported on http://speakingmatters.org/tal_ben-shahar.html these are Six Tips for Happiness from Tal Ben-Shahar:
1. Give yourself permission to be human. When we accept emotions — such as fear, sadness, or anxiety — as natural, we are more likely to overcome them. Rejecting our emotions, positive or negative, leads to frustration and unhappiness.

2. Happiness lies at the intersection between pleasure and meaning. Whether at work or at home, the goal is to engage in activities that are both personally significant and enjoyable. When this is not feasible, make sure you have happiness boosters, moments throughout the week that provide you with both pleasure and meaning.

3. Keep in mind that happiness is mostly dependent on our state of mind, not on our status or the state of our bank account. Barring extreme circumstances, our level of well being is determined by what we choose to focus on (the full or the empty part of the glass) and by our interpretation of external events. For example, do we view failure as catastrophic, or do we see it as a learning opportunity?

4. Simplify! We are, generally, too busy, trying to squeeze in more and more activities into less and less time. Quantity influences quality, and we compromise on our happiness by trying to do too much.

5. Remember the mind-body connection. What we do — or don't do — with our bodies influences our mind. Regular exercise, adequate sleep, and healthy eating habits lead to both physical and mental health.

6. Express gratitude, whenever possible. We too often take our lives for granted. Learn to appreciate and savor the wonderful things in life, from people to food, from nature to a smile.

Tal Ben-Shahar Books with ISBN:
    * Tal Ben-Shahar (2007) Happier: Learn the Secrets to Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment, McGraw-Hill Professional. ISBN 978-0-07-149239-3
    * Tal Ben-Shahar (2009) The Pursuit of Perfect: How to Stop Chasing Perfection and Start Living a Richer, Happier Life, McGraw-Hill Professional. ISBN 978-0-07-160882-6
    * Tal Ben-Shahar (2010) Even Happier: A Gratitude Journal for Daily Joy and Lasting Fulfillment, McGraw-Hill Professional. ISBN 978-0-07-163803-6

Martin Seligman on Positive psychology

Positive psychology, the study of optimal human functioning, is an attempt to respond to the systematic bias inherent in psychology's historical emphasis on mental illness rather than on mental wellness. Humanistic psychologists such as Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers developed theories along these lines, but without solid empirical support. The pioneering research of a new generation of psychologists has led to a renewed interest in this approach, providing a firm scientific foundation for the study of human happiness and optimal function, thus adding a positive side to the predominantly negative discipline of psychology.

Martin Seligman worked with Christopher Peterson to create the 'positive' counterpart to the DSM (Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders). While the DSM focuses on what can go wrong, Character Strengths and Virtues looks at what can go right. In their research they looked across cultures and across millennia to distill a manageable list of virtues that have been highly valued from ancient China and India, through Greece and Rome, to contemporary Western cultures. Their list includes six character strengths: wisdom/knowledge, courage, humanity, justice, temperance, and transcendence. Each of these has perhaps a half-dozen sub-entries - for instance, temperance includes forgiveness, humility, prudence, and self-regulation. One of their key points is that they do not believe that there is a hierarchy for the six virtues – no one is more fundamental than or a precursor to the others

Nathaniel Branden: Nathaniel Branden books, Nathaniel Branden wiki

Nathaniel Branden is a Canadian psychotherapist and writer best known today for his work in the psychology of self-esteem, one-time associate of novelist Ayn Rand, Branden had a prominent role in promoting Rand's philosophy, Objectivism; in 1958, Branden established NBI, Nathaniel Branden Institute as an educational organization to spread the philosophical principles of Objectivism, the philosophy of Ayn Rand. Branden offered a series of lectures called "Basic Principles of Objectivism".

Barbara Branden, Nathaniel Branden's spouse at the time, would also contribute to the work of the Institute with a series of lectures on The Art of Thinking. Barbara and Nathaniel would separate in 1965. Barbara's maiden name was Barbara Weidman. In January 1953, Nathaniel Branden and Barbara Weidman were married in White Plains, New York.

The Rand-Branden business partnership lasted till May 1968. Rand announced in the The Objectivist, Nathaniel Branden would no longer be her intellectual heir and ordered all future printings of Atlas Shrugged not to carry his name in the dedication page. At the time, Rand did not reveal she was having a secret love affair with Branden who was twenty four years her junior and he was leaving her for a younger woman who was also an attractive model whom Branden would eventually marry. However, Branden divulged this information in his book, Judgment Day: my years with Ayn Rand. After the rift with Ayn Rand, Branden went on to develop his own school of bio-centric psychology basing his work mainly on the psychology of self-esteem. Branden's brand of Biocentric Psychology is neither Freudian nor behaviorist in nature. According to Branden, "...The establishment of Wilhelm Wundt's experimental laboratory in 1879 is often regarded as the formal beginning of scientific psychology. But when one considers the views of man and the theories of his nature that have been put forth as knowledge in the past hundred years, it remains a moot question whether the starting date of the science of psychology lies behind us - or ahead."

As a psychologist, Nathaniel Branden has elucidated the crucial role of self-esteem in psychological health, and has outlined the volitional practices he has observed to be essential to achieving and maintaining self-esteem. As a therapist, he developed a sentence completion test, a psychotherapeutic tool proposed as useful for making unconscious thoughts and feelings conscious, and to transform limiting beliefs and attitudes. Currently, he tends to use a blend of sentence completion exercises, exercises derived from energy therapy, humor, and "just plain talking" in his therapy practice. Nathaniel Branden continues to write and practice psychotherapy in Los Angeles, California, as well as present seminars and workshops on self-esteem.

California Assemblyman John Vasconcellos discovered self-esteem and became convinced it was the solution to many a social evil. Promoted by Assemblyman Vasconcellos, the state legislature of California formed "The California Task Force to Promote Self-Esteem and Personal and Social Responsibility." After some initial setbacks, including a veto by the governor, the legislation creating the 25-member task force was passed and signed into law in the Fall of 1986. One result of the California Task Force was the creation of NASE (National Association for Self-Esteem) "dedicated to integrating self-esteem into the fabric of American society." Nathaniel Branden is a member of the board. In its 1989 report, the state of California task force on self-esteem concluded: "... Many, if not all, the major problems plaguing society have roots in the low self-esteem of many of the people who make up society." According to some educational authorities, if Branden's concept of self-esteem had been accepted as he proposed as far back as 1969, it would have been a force for good in the field of education. Instead, there was only the acceptance of self-esteem simply as "having a favorable opinion of oneself" regardless of any objective evidence to the contrary. However, in the twenty first century, in 2003, the self-esteem movement suffered a serious setback when it was conclusively proven that in the relation between self-esteem and the education of children, the inculcation of self-esteem in children does not raise grades, better career achievements or produces any other positive effects in the field of education.

In 1969, Dr. Nathaniel Branden studied Karate privately with Joe Lewis who would become the first U. S. and the first world heavyweight kickboxing champion; the two would practice for an hour and discuss philosophy for three.

According to Self-Esteem Guru Nathaniel Branden, "... We have reached a moment in history when self-esteem which has always been a supremely important psychological need, has become an urgent economic need." Global economy "... characterized by rapid change, accelarating scientific and technological breakthroughs and an unprecedented level of competitiveness... also creates new demands on our psychological resources... a greater capacity for innovation, self-management, personal responsibility and self-direction."

In Self-Esteem at Work, Nathaniel Branden wrote: "... We now live in a global economy characterized by rapid change, accelerating scientific and technological breakthroughs, and an unprecedented level of competitiveness. These developments create demands for higher levels of education and training than were required from previous generations. Everyone acquainted with business culture knows this. What is not understood is that these developments also create new demands on our psychological resources. Specifically, these developments ask for greater capacity for innovation, number one, self-management, number two, personal responsibility, number three, and self direction.". "... In the past two or three decades, extraordinary developments have occurred in the American and global economies. The United States has shifted from a manufacturing society to an information society. We have witnessed the transition from physical labor to mind work as the dominant employee activity. We now live in a global economy characterized by rapid change, accelerating scientific and technological breakthroughs, and an unprecedented level of competitiveness. These developments create demands for higher levels of education and training than were required of previous generations. Everyone acquainted with business culture knows this. What is not understood is that these developments also create new demands on our psychological resources. Specifically, these developments ask for a greater capacity for innovation, self-management, personal responsibility and self-direction. This is not just asked at the top, it is asked at every level of business enterprise, from senior management to firs-line supervisors and even to entry-level personnel... Today, organizations need not only an unprecedentedly higher level of knowledge and skill among all those who participate but also a higher level of independence, self-reliance, self-trust, and the capacity to exercise initiative."



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