McMindfulness How Mindfulness Became the New Capitalist Spirituality

Mindfulness is now all the rage. From celebrity endorsements to monks, neuroscientists and meditation coaches rubbing shoulders with CEOs at the World Economic Forum in Davos, it is clear that mindfulness has gone mainstream. Some have even called it a revolution. But what if, instead of changing the world, mindfulness has become a banal form of capitalist spirituality that mindlessly avoids social and political transformation, reinforcing the neoliberal status quo?

In McMindfulness, Ronald Purser debunks the so-called “mindfulness revolution,” exposing how corporations, schools, governments and the military have coopted it as technique for social control and self-pacification.

A lively and razor-sharp critique, Purser busts the myths its salesmen rely on, challenging the narrative that stress is self-imposed and mindfulness is the cure-all. If we are to harness the truly revolutionary potential of mindfulness, we have to cast off its neoliberal shackles, liberating mindfulness for a collective awakening.

“Ron Purser cuts through the comforting New Age jargon used to promote mindfulness, enabling us to distinguish between the practice and its marketing.” Richard Payne, Institute of Buddhist Studies

“A much needed wake-up call to the dark side of mindfulness-based practices....a must-read.” Richard King, Professor of Buddhist and Asian Studies, University of Kent.

“Timely and incisive....Purser reveals how mindfulness became a vast industry, promising to cure us of a growing range of psychological ailments, and simultaneously propping up the political and economic system that generates them.” William Davies, author of Nervous States and The Happiness Industry

Ronald Purser is a Professor of Management at San Francisco State University. His essays and cultural criticism have appeared in the Huffington Post, Salon, Alternet, and Tricycle magazine. His viral article, "Beyond McMindfulness," opened the floodgates for the mindfulness backlash. His recent books include the Handbook of Mindfulness: Culture, Context and Social Engagement and the Handbook of Ethical Foundations of Mindfulness. Dr. Purser began his Buddhist training beginning in 1981 at the Tibetan Nyingma Institute in Berkeley, California, and is an ordained Buddhist teacher in the Korean Zen Taego order. He is cohost of Mindful Cranks podcast and is a regular speaker and guests on radio shows and podcasts. He lives with his family and dog in San Francisco, CA.

Forty years ago, I began studying Buddhism and practicing various forms of meditation. Based on my studies and encounters, I have a deep appreciation, gratitude, and respect for the Buddhist tradition. The meteoric rise of the “mindfulness revolution,” however, took me by surprise...

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