A new edition of a classic work that originated the embodied cognition movement and was one of
the first to link science and Buddhist practices.This classic book first published in 1991
was one of the first to propose the embodied cognition approach in cognitive science. It
pioneered the connections between phenomenology and science and between Buddhist practices and
science claims that have since become highly influential. Through this cross-fertilization of
disparate fields of study The Embodied Mind introduced a new form of cognitive science called
enaction in which both the environment and first person experience are aspects of embodiment.
However enactive embodiment is not the grasping of an independent outside world by a brain a
mind or a self rather it is the bringing forth of an interdependent world in and through
embodied action. Although enacted cognition lacks an absolute foundation the book shows how
that does not lead to either experiential or philosophical nihilism. Above all the book's
arguments were powered by the conviction that the sciences of mind must encompass lived human
experience and the possibilities for transformation inherent in human experience. This revised
edition includes substantive introductions by Evan Thompson and Eleanor Rosch that clarify
central arguments of the work and discuss and evaluate subsequent research that has expanded on
the themes of the book including the renewed theoretical and practical interest in Buddhism
and mindfulness. A preface by Jon Kabat-Zinn the originator of the mindfulness-based stress
reduction program contextualizes the book and describes its influence on his life and work.
