Jon Kabat-Zinn (born Jon Kabat, June 5, 1944) is an American professor emeritus of medicine and the creator of the Stress Reduction Clinic and the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the

University of Massachusetts Medical School The University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School is a public medical school in Worcester, Massachusetts. It is part of the University of Massachusetts system. It is home to three schools: the T.H. Chan School of Medicine, the Morningside Grad ...

. Kabat-Zinn was a student of

Zen Zen ( zh, t=禪, p=Chán; ja, text= 禅, translit=zen; ko, text=선, translit=Seon; vi, text=Thiền) is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School (''Chánzong'' 禪宗), and ...

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

teachers such as

Philip Kapleau Philip Kapleau (August 20, 1912 – May 6, 2004) was an American teacher of Zen Buddhism in the Sanbo Kyodan tradition, a blending of Japanese Sōtō and Rinzai schools. He also advocated strongly for Buddhist vegetarianism. Early life Kapleau ...

Thich Nhat Hanh Thích is a name that Vietnamese monks and nuns take as their Buddhist surname to show affinity with the Buddha. Notable Vietnamese monks with the name include: * Thích Huyền Quang (1919–2008), dissident and activist * Thích Quảng Độ ( ...

, and Seung Sahn, and a founding member of

Cambridge Zen Center Cambridge Zen Center is an urban meditation center in Cambridge, Massachusetts, close to Harvard University, part of the Kwan Um School of Zen. Free meditation training and dharma talks are offered to the public and the Zen Center also provides a ...

. His practice of

yoga Yoga (; sa, योग, lit=yoke' or 'union ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient India and aim to control (yoke) and still the mind, recognizing a detached witness-consci ...

and studies with Buddhist teachers led him to integrate their teachings with scientific findings. He teaches mindfulness, which he says can help people cope with stress, anxiety, pain, and illness. The stress reduction program created by Kabat-Zinn, mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR), is offered by medical centers, hospitals, and health maintenance organizations, and is described in his book ''

Full Catastrophe Living ''Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness'' is a book by Jon Kabat-Zinn, first published in 1990, revised in 2013, which describes the mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) program ...

''.

Life and work

Kabat-Zinn was born in New York City in 1944 as the oldest of three children to Elvin Kabat, a biomedical scientist, and Sally Kabat, a painter. He graduated from Haverford College in 1964 and went on to earn a Ph.D. in

molecular biology Molecular biology is the branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecular basis of biological activity in and between cells, including biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactions. The study of chemical and physi ...

in 1971 from

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the m ...

, where he studied under

Salvador Luria Salvador Edward Luria (August 13, 1912 – February 6, 1991) was an Italian microbiologist, later a Naturalized citizen of the United States#Naturalization, naturalized U.S. citizen. He won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1969, with ...

, Nobel Laureate in medicine. While at MIT, Kabat-Zinn was a leading campaigner against military research at the university and against the

Vietnam war The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...

. During this time, he pondered his life's purpose, which he called his "karmic assignment."

Career

Kabat-Zinn was first introduced to meditation by

, a Zen missionary who came to speak at MIT where Kabat-Zinn was a student. Kabat-Zinn went on to study meditation with other Buddhist teachers such as

Thích Nhất Hạnh Thích Nhất Hạnh ( ; ; born Nguyễn Xuân Bảo; 11 October 1926 – 22 January 2022) was a Vietnamese Thiền Buddhist monk, peace activist, prolific author, poet and teacher, who founded the Plum Village Tradition, historically recogni ...

and

Seungsahn Seungsahn Haengwon (, August 1, 1927November 30, 2004), born Duk-In Lee, was a Korean Seon master of the Jogye Order and founder of the international Kwan Um School of Zen. He was the seventy-eighth Patriarch in his lineage. As one of the earl ...

. He also studied at the

Insight Meditation Society The Insight Meditation Society (IMS) is a non-profit organization for study of Buddhism located in Barre, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1975, by Sharon Salzberg, Jack Kornfield, and Joseph Goldstein and is rooted in the Theravada tradition. I ...

and eventually taught there. In 1979 he founded the Stress Reduction Clinic at the

, where he adapted the Buddhist teachings on mindfulness and developed the Stress Reduction and Relaxation Program. He subsequently renamed the structured eight-week course

Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction Mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) is an eight-week evidence-based program that offers secular, intensive mindfulness training to assist people with stress, anxiety, depression and pain. Developed at the University of Massachusetts Medica ...

(MBSR). He removed the Buddhist framework and any connection between mindfulness and Buddhism, instead putting MBSR in a scientific context. He subsequently also founded the Center for Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society at the University of Massachusetts Medical School. His secular technique of Mindful Yoga, which combines meditation and

yoga as exercise Yoga as exercise is a physical activity consisting mainly of postures, often connected by flowing sequences, sometimes accompanied by breathing exercises, and frequently ending with relaxation lying down or meditation. Yoga in this form has ...

, has since spread worldwide. The course aims to help patients cope with stress, pain, and illness by using what is called "moment-to-moment awareness." Kabat-Zinn's MBSR began to get increasing notice with the publication of his first book, '' Full Catastrophe Living: Using the Wisdom of Your Body and Mind to Face Stress, Pain, and Illness'' (1991), which gave detailed instructions for the practice. Then, in 1993, his work in the Stress Reduction Clinic was featured in

Bill Moyers Bill Moyers (born Billy Don Moyers, June 5, 1934) is an American journalist and political commentator. Under the Johnson administration he served from 1965 to 1967 as the eleventh White House Press Secretary. He was a director of the Counci ...

's PBS special ''Healing and the Mind'', spurring wide interest in MBSR and helping to make Kabat-Zinn nationally famous. In 1994 Kabat-Zinn's second book, titled ''Wherever You Go, There You Are'', became a national bestseller. In the latter part of the 1990s, many MBSR clinics were opened, either as standalone centers or as part of a hospital's holistic medicine program. Research by Kabat-Zinn includes the effect of MBSR on

psoriasis Psoriasis is a long-lasting, noncontagious autoimmune disease characterized by raised areas of abnormal skin. These areas are red, pink, or purple, dry, itchy, and scaly. Psoriasis varies in severity from small, localized patches to complete ...

, pain, anxiety, brain function, and immune function. He is a board member of the

Mind and Life Institute The Mind & Life Institute is a US-registered, not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization founded in 1991 to establish the field of contemplative sciences. Based in Charlottesville, Va., the institute “brings science and contemplative wisdom togeth ...

, a group that organizes dialogues between the

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current D ...

and Western scientists. MBSR has been adapted for use by the US military to improve combatants' "operational effectiveness," apparently with Kabat-Zinn's approval, which has provoked some controversy among mindfulness practitioners. Discussing the integration of narratives into mindfulness practice, Kabat-Zinn has said, "''the map... can occlude... the territory. Kabat-Zinn is Professor of Medicine Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.

Personal life

Kabat-Zinn is married to Myla Zinn, the daughter of the historian and playwright

Howard Zinn Howard Zinn (August 24, 1922January 27, 2010) was an American historian, playwright, philosopher, socialist thinker and World War II veteran. He was chair of the history and social sciences department at Spelman College, and a politica ...

and his wife Roslyn. They have three grown children. Kabat-Zinn grew up in a non-practicing Jewish family. He has stated that his beliefs growing up were a fusion of science and art. Although he has been "trained in Buddhism and espouses its principles", he rejects the label of "Buddhist", preferring to "apply mindfulness within a scientific rather than a religious frame".

Awards

* 2008: Mind and Brain Prize from the Center for Cognitive Science, University of Torino, Italy * 2007: Inaugural Pioneer in Integrative Medicine Award from the Bravewell Philanthropic Collaborative for Integrative Medicine * 2005: Distinguished Friend Award from the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies

Works

* * ''Mindfulness Meditation for Everyday Life''. Piatkus, 1994. . * ''Wherever You Go, There You Are: Mindfulness Meditation in Everyday Life''. Hyperion Books, 1994. . * ''The Power of Meditation and Prayer'', with Sogyal Rinpoche, Larry Dossey, Michael Toms. Hay House, 1997. . * ''Everyday Blessings: The Inner Work of Mindful Parenting'', with Myla Kabat-Zinn. Hyperion, 1997. . * ''Coming to Our Senses: Healing Ourselves and the World Through Mindfulness''. Hyperion, 2006. . * ''The mindful way through depression: freeing yourself from chronic unhappiness'', by J. Mark G. Williams, John D. Teasdale, Zindel V. Segal, Jon Kabat-Zinn. Guilford Press, 2007. . * ''Arriving at Your Own Door''. Piatkus Books, 2008. . * ''Letting Everything Become Your Teacher: 100 Lessons in Mindfulness''. Dell Publishing Company, 2009. . * ''The Mind's Own Physician: A Scientific Dialogue with the Dalai Lama on the Healing Power of Meditation'', co-authored with

Richard Davidson Richard J. Davidson (born December 12, 1951) is professor of psychology and psychiatry at the University of Wisconsin–Madison as well as founder and chair of the Center for Healthy Minds and the affiliated non-profit Healthy Minds Innovations. ...

(New Harbinger, 2012) (based on the 13th

Dialogue in 2005). * ''Mindfulness for Beginners: reclaiming the present moment - and your life''. Sounds True, Inc., 2012. .

References

External links

Jon Kabat-Zinn
at the Center for Mindfulness
Jon Kabat-Zinn
at the Omega Institute {{DEFAULTSORT:Kabat-Zinn, Jon American health and wellness writers American spiritual writers Alternative medicine researchers Jewish American writers Massachusetts Institute of Technology School of Science alumni 1944 births Living people University of Massachusetts Medical School faculty Place of birth missing (living people) Haverford College alumni Mindfulness movement Mindfulness (psychology) Modern yoga pioneers Mindful Yoga American yoga teachers 21st-century American Jews