people (our Shadow Audiences) think about our actions ... about us. ⢠Release from the self is release from our shadow audiences ... My companion, C, may also.
Why People Are Not Naturally Mindful • Mindfulness has many benefits for mind and body, and few drawbacks. • So why are we not naturally mindful? Why do we need to cultivate mindfulness? • Language requires us to have a fast automatic Theory of Mind – to infer what others are thinking. • Outside language, the Theory of Mind is unreliable • The Theory of Mind drives emotions – as we imagine what other people (our Shadow Audiences) think about our actions • This is the origin of unmindful thought patterns and responses • Close attention to the present moment brings release from the thought patterns of the Theory of Mind • The Self is only a collection of what we think other people think about us • Release from the self is release from our shadow audiences
Language Requires a Fast Theory of Mind We need to understand the other person’s thoughts, both for semantics (what they mean) and pragmatics (to carry on a conversation) A: Can you fetch me a menu?
B: I don’t work here, you know.
- B looks like a waiter. -Waiters know where the menus are. -Waiters expect to fetch menus -If I ask him if he can do it, he will know that I want him to actually do it
- A is asking me if I can do something -He wants me to actually do it -I need to tell him that I won’t do it -He is referring to a menu for this restaurant -He thinks I am a waiter -If I tell him I am not a waiter, he will know I am not going to fetch a menu for him
Society and Emotion are Built on the Theory of Mind A: Can you fetch me a menu?
- B looks like a waiter. - Waiters have inferior social status to customers like me. - Waiters expect customers to issue peremptory requests
This all happens very rapidly. (Society is what people think it is)
B: I don’t work here, you know.
- A thinks I am a waiter - He thinks I have inferior social status to him - My companion, C, may also think I have inferior social status to A - I am actually a customer - A is crass and insensitive to make that mistake - Therefore he is of inferior social status to me - I must demonstrate this to C
C: ?
Shadow Audiences Drive Un-Mindful Thought Patterns Shadow Audiences
People with taste
My peers at work
Self
Concerns of the self
Parents
Educated people
Friends
Self Self Self
Self
Possessions and labels
Comparison s
Life story
Achievement s
Feelings
Plans
Highlighted example: ‘My parents think I have a successful career.’
The ‘self’ is nothing more than the collection of all these thought patterns.
Attention to the Body Brings Release from Un-Mindful Thought Patterns Imagination
Symbolic tokens
Theory of Mind
Attention
Spatial Cognition
Social Cognition
• Un-mindful thought patterns are triggered by approximate matches to bodily feelings •Cascades of unmindful Theory of Mind thought patterns can only persist when there is not close attention to bodily feelings. •When the body is closely observed, those thought patterns no longer match •This brings release from the self and its shadow audiences
Mindfulness and the Theory of Mind Further Tests • •
Understanding the cognitive basis may not necessarily help practice mindfulness We can check if ToM brain regions are affected by mindfulness:
Pragmatic Language Tasks
Emotional Responses
Mindfulness & Meditation
Theory of Mind Deficits
Consistent distributions of activation across the brain?
