Ed Bastian, PhD

Ed Bastian, PhD, is president of the Spiritual Paths Institute, offering programs in InterSpiritual Wisdom and Contemplative Practice. A former director of Smithsonian’s Biodiversity programs with a PhD in Buddhist studies, he is the award-winning author of Living Fully Dying Well and InterSpiritual Meditation, and producer of a series on Asian religion for the BBC and PBS.

Presentation by Ed Bastian

Thursday Pre-Conference Institute:

T7 InterSpiritual Meditation: Aligning Diverse Contemplative Practices for the Common Good

Modern neuroscience is validating the capacity of meditation to create tranquility, focus, health, happiness, compassion, and engaged service in the world. In this workshop, we consider InterSpiritual Meditation, a seven-step process based on the shared elements of meditation found within the world’s ancient spiritual traditions. Its mission is to help practitioners to develop sustainable, satisfying, and comprehensive meditation practices that are inclusive and not exclusive; and to help meditators of diverse traditions to create engaged contemplative communities for the common good.