Former Harvard neuroscientist, Jill Bolte Taylor has taken a strange path on the road to enlightenment—and not one that most of us would want to follow—it was while she was having a stroke that she reached nirvana. Now she’s written a book, “My Stroke of Insight,” detailing how the left brain is what gets in the way of our happiness, and everyone from The New York Times to Oprah Winfrey is jumping on Dr. Taylor’s bandwagon.
In The New York Times article “A Superhighway to Bliss,” Leslie Kaufman details the story of Dr. Taylor’s stroke, which led to her discovery that “people can choose to live a more peaceful, spiritual life by sidestepping their left brain.” Taylor explained to Kaufman:
“Generally, the left brain gives us context, ego, time, logic. The right brain gives us creativity and empathy. For most English-speakers, the left brain, which processes language, is dominant…I believe that the more time we spend choosing to run the deep inner peace circuitry of our right hemispheres, the more peace we will project into the world, and the more peaceful our planet will be.”
For Oprah’s “Soul Series” webcast where she interviews Dr. Taylor, click here.
posted May 29, 2008 at 11:03 pm
I read “My Stroke of Insight” in one sitting – I couldn’t put it down. I laughed. I cried. It was a fantastic book (I heard it’s a NYTimes Bestseller and I can see why!), but I also think it will be the start of a new, transformative Movement! No one wants to have a stroke as Jill Bolte Taylor did, but her experience can teach us all how to live better lives. Her TED.com speech was one of the most incredibly moving, stimulating, wonderful videos I’ve ever seen. Her Oprah Soul Series interviews were fascinating. They should make a movie of her life so everyone sees it. This is the Real Deal and gives me hope for humanity.
posted June 2, 2008 at 1:14 am
I saw the beautiful expression of her experience. I agree that she had an epiphany that few of us could survive. I guess my hope is that her path, while truly enlightening, should not be seen as a shortcut to the end we seek. Such
posted June 17, 2008 at 5:09 am
I loved the beautifully written “My Stroke of Insight – a Brain Scientist’s Personal Journey” by Jill Bolte Taylor and her incredible talk on TED dot com. Dr. Taylor’s unique perspective as a Harvard neuroanatomist having a stroke, combined with her sensitivity and awareness, produced something as powerful as I’ve ever witnessed. I want to share Dr Taylor’s story far and wide because it’s a wonderful story and a great book to read, but more importantly, this is the message we desperately need if we are to survive as a species.