books 2012: Happiness, by Mathieu Ricard

As a book on meditation, Mathieu Ricard's ​Happiness: A Guide to Developing Life's Most Important Skill​ is the best of both worlds, presenting both a spiritual and a scientific perspective. Ricard left a promising career in biology and genetics to become a Buddhist monk, so he uniquely understands both perspectives and is fascinated by the scientific study of the brain and how meditation affects, on a biological level, the way we think. ​Happiness​ is at once a guide to how meditation can improve our lives and help us to become happier and a thorough description of why it works, written in language accessible to any reader. ( Read more... )

(Cross-posted to my yoga blog)