Monthly Meeting: Training the Brain for Compassion

TRAINING THE BRAIN FOR COMPASSION: Lessons from Contemplative Neuroscience

The guest speaker for our March Monthly Meeting will be CCSU Associate Professor Emeritus Jim Malley. Jim will discuss the mindfulness movement and its neurobiological underpinnings that grew out of an intriguing rapprochement between Western neuroscientists and His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Tibetan Monks. Referring to it as the “second intelligence” he will discuss how mindfulness can be used to cultivate compassion for the benefit of one’s own well-being and the well-being of others. Participants will be invited to join in a simple breathing meditation at the beginning of the workshop and a metta (loving-kindness) meditation at its conclusion.

Please join us for cocktails and conversation at 6:30, to be followed by Jim's talk, a brief business meeting, and dinner at 7:00. All are welcome!

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JIM MALLEY:

Jim is an Associate Professor Emeritus and former Chair of the Department of Counselor Education and Family Therapy at Central Connecticut State University. He is a founding member of CCSU’s Forum for Contemplative Practices that explores emerging theory in mindfulness and compassion in teaching and the practice of psychotherapy. Prior to accepting a full time faculty position at CCSU, Jim worked as a Counseling Psychologist for the Connecticut Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs for 27 years. He serves on the board of directors for the Copper Beech Institute, a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting mindfulness and compassion. He also chairs the U.S. board for the Masooli Project, a health clinic in Uganda.