Consciousness Mattering

A Buddhist Synthesis

Peter D. Hershock

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Hardback

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English

Bloomsbury Academic
14 December 2023

Oriental & Indian philosophy; Philosophy of mind; Philosophy of religion; Buddhism; States of consciousness

Consciousness Mattering presents a contemporary Buddhist theory in which brains, bodies, environments, and cultures are relational infrastructures for human consciousness. Drawing on insights from meditation, neuroscience, physics, and evolutionary theory, it demonstrates that human consciousness is not something that occurs only in our heads and consists in the creative elaboration of relations among sensed and sensing presences, and more fundamentally between matter and what matters. Hershock argues that without consciousness there would only be either unordered sameness or nothing at all. Evolution is consciousness mattering.

Shedding new light on the co-emergence of subjective awareness and culture, the possibility of machine consciousness, the risks of algorithmic consciousness hacking, and the potentials of intentionally altered states of consciousness, Hershock invites us to consider how freely, wisely, and compassionately consciousness matters.

By: Peter D. Hershock
Imprint: Bloomsbury Academic
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781350411210
ISBN 10: 1350411213
Pages: 224
Publication Date: 14 December 2023
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Introduction 1. Consciousness as Dynamic Relationality: A Buddhist Perspective 2. Creative Anticipation: Consciousness in the Wild 3. Toward a Buddhist Metaphysics of Consciousness: The Sentient Expansion of the Cosmos 4. Beyond Organic Consciousness: The Coming of Conscious Machines 5. Altering Consciousness: Toward a Neuroscience of Experimental Evolution 6. Consciousness Theory Mattering: Responsibilities of Engineered Evolution 7. The Future of Human Consciousness: Cultural and Ethical Evolution Appendix: A Genealogy of Contemporary Synthesis Notes Works Cited Index

Peter D. Hershock is Director of the Asian Studies Development Program and Coordinator of the Humane AI Initiative at the East-West Center, USA.

Reviews for Consciousness Mattering: A Buddhist Synthesis

Peter Hershock is one of the most important philosophers of religion in the world today, and this book is an extraordinary accomplishment. Weaving together elements of consciousness studies, neurology, AI technology, New Materialism, cosmology and ethics, Consciousness Mattering offers a comprehensive Buddhist vision for our contemporary world. * Clayton Crockett, Professor and Director of Religious Studies, University of Central Arkansas, USA * The book demonstrates in an impressive way how western science of the brain can learn from eastern spiritual tradition. Consciousness is not in the brain, it is in the relationship between the world and the brain. * Georg Northoff, Canada Research Chair for Mind, Brain Imaging and Neuroethics, University of Ottawa, Canada * Attentive readers and intrepid thinkers will take much from Consciousness Mattering, and I hope that they extend Hershock’s daring efforts in innovative ways well beyond this single suggestion. * Reading Religion *