avenue of pain reduction. This other-focus state, potentially propelled by opioids and feelings of
warmth, caring and love, would benefit both self and society and may even reinforce itself naturally.
This could provide a potential biological explanation for the Buddhist claim that compassion is the
path to freedom from suffering. Scientifically, there is certainly much work to be done but early
studies suggest meditative practice may be a very promising avenue to reduce pain and suffering.
Acknowledgements
Special thanks to the participants and the people who assisted in conducting the experiments,
particularly my doctoral supervisor Pierre Rainville, Jerome Courtemanche, Emma Duerden and
Gary Duncan. This work was jointly supported by grants from the Canadian Institutes of Health
Research (CIHR) and Mind and Life Institute as well as fellowships from the Fonds de la recherche
en santé du Québec (FRSQ) and CIHR. We also want to thank Matthieu Ricard for his willingness
to generously serve as a participant in many projects at the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig,
Germany, providing us with valuable first-person experience.
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