Thoughts Without a Thinker

Upon its first publication, this pathbreaking book launched an explosion of interest in how Eastern spirituality can enhance Western psychology. Since then, the worlds of Buddhism and psychotherapy have been forged into a revolutionary new understanding of what constitutes a healthy emotional life. In his insightful introduction, Mark Epstein reflects on this revolution and considers how it is likely to evolve in the future.

“Mark Epstein’s book is inspired in its lucidity…After Thoughts Without a Thinker, psychotherapy without a Buddhist perspective looks like a diminished thing.” —Adam Phillips, author of On Kissing, Tickling, and Being Bored

“A groundbreaking work…The book will take its place among the classics of the literature of meditation.” —Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of Wherever You Go, There You Are

“A marvelous book that is at once scholarly and fresh, informative and personal.” —Stephen A. Mitchell, author of Freud and Beyond

“A most lucid and expert account of the wedding of psychotherapy and meditation. And Eastern-Western psychology that truly speaks from the inside of both worlds.” —Jack Kornfield, author of A Path with Heart

“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 Minding the Body, Mending the Mind

“Instructive and impressive.” —Robert Coles, author of The Mind’s Fate