McMindfulness
Page 24
Thank you to many colleagues and friends who supported me along the way, many of whom have made their own unique contributions to a critical mindfulness discourse, including Steven Stanley, Venerable Bhikkhu Bodhi, Robert Thurman, Christopher Titmuss, Kevin Healey, Glenn Wallis, Richard King, Jeff Wilson, Jack Petranker, Linda Heuman, Hugh Wilmott, Alex Caring-Lobel, Joe Millilo, Deborah Rochelle, Bernard Faure, Tom Yarnall, Richard Payne, Lisa Dale Miller, Shaila Catherine, Alan Senauke, Ilmari Kortelainen, Mushim Patricia Ikeda, Katie Loncke, Dawn Haney, Funie Hsu, Brian Victoria, David Brazier, Manu Bazzano, Gary Gach, Peter Doran, Samuel Stephan, Juan Humberto-Young, Pierce Salgado, David McMahan, C.W. Huntington, Nirb Singh, Antonino Raffone, Massimo Tomassini, Ruth Whippman, William Davies, Willoughby Britton, Paul Grossman, Miguel Farias, Catherine Wikholm, Rabbi Michael Lerner, Justin Whitaker and Josh Baran.
I must also thank James Shaheen, editor of Tricycle, who was a generous co-sponsor for “Mindfulness and Compassion: The Art and Science of Contemplative Practice”, an international conference which I organized at San Francisco State University. Likewise, I am grateful to Norm Oberstein and the generous financial support the Frederick Lenz Foundation for American Buddhism has provided me for envisioning ways to liberate mindfulness from its current stranglehold under neoliberalism.
I extend special thanks to my friend and mentor B. Alan Wallace, who, from the beginning, shared my concerns regarding the commodification of mindfulness. Alan’s supportive presence was behind the scenes throughout the writing. His unwavering source of spiritual and intellectual support was critical to sharpening the critique. I am also deeply indebted to the Ven Dr Jongmae Kenneth Park, former Bishop of the Korean Buddhist Taego Order, whose wisdom, compassion and unbridled energy has been a source of inspiration.
I would like to thank Tom Thomas, my department chair at San Francisco State University, for his tolerance and patience given that I was missing in action from department duties for about a year.
Finally, I wish to thank my lifelong partner, Wendell Hanna, for her initial prodding that I should venture off to become a solo author. She has stood behind me in taking on the mindfulness movement and without her this book would never have made it into print. And, a special thanks to my dog, Nick, who helped me to get the exercise when I needed breaks from the computer.
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