ABOUT CCR EUROPE
The Foundation for Contemplative Research, a nonprofit organization, was established to create the Center for Contemplative Research at Drölkar Ling—which in English is Sita Tara Hermitage (Centro per la Ricerca Contemplativa all’Eremo di Tara Bianca). This hermitage of CCR Europe is located in Castellina Marittima, in the Province of Pisa.
We believe that the root causes of the world’s most pressing challenges are unhealthy minds that yield destructive behavior, including corruption, violence, environmental degradation, and social oppression. And we believe that these global problems can be solved if and only if we fathom the nature and potentials of consciousness.
OUR ENDORSEMENT FROM HIS HOLINESS THE DALAI LAMA
The past century has seen remarkable developments in the scientific understanding of the human body and brain, yet people across the world struggle to find peace of mind. In the meantime, little progress has been made in understanding the relationship between the body and mind, while the nature of consciousness remains as great a mystery as ever. Fresh light may be shed on these topics by turning to the wisdom of the great contemplative traditions of the world that have explored the mind directly through rational, empirical, introspective inquiry.
I am delighted that the Center for Contemplative Research, under development in Tuscany, Italy, has taken up the challenge in not only offering opportunities for rigorous mind-training, but also in supporting collaborative research by practised contemplatives and scientists. Together they seek to explore the inner sources of mental conflict and distress, the roots of genuine wellbeing, and the origins, nature, and potentials of the mind.
I wholeheartedly endorse the establishment of this Center, dedicated as it is to taking a practical, secular approach to deepening our understanding of the mind, with the prospect of contributing to the creation of a happier more peaceful world.
With my prayers and good wishes,
Tenzin Gyatso, the XIVth Dalai Lama