Searching for Sacred Mountain

This review was written by three colleagues and close friends at Texas Christian University (TCU) in Fort Worth, Texas. Although slightly unusual in this sort of review, we believe that describing our academic training and contemplative practices will help readers better understand our comments that represent, like any good interpretive exercise or classroom discussion, multiple, sometimes-incompatible assumptions, orientations, and conclusions. Rather than a shortcoming, however, we see these points of divergence modeling robust critical thinking based on deep and compassionate listening, and mindful engagement and interpretation. Dave Aftandilian is an anthropologist whose teaching and research focus especially on animals and religion in cross-cultural perspective. He cofounded and directs TCU’s minor in human–animal relationships (HARE) and serves on the executive committee of TCU’s Contemplative Studies Program. Blake Hestir is a professor of philosophy who teaches and writes on ancient Greek philosophy, philosophy of mind, and ecological interconnection. He is a yoga and mindful movement practitioner, and serves as associate director of the Contemplative Studies group. Mark Dennis is a professor of religion and director of the Contemplative Studies group whose teaching and research focus on Japanese Buddhism, Japanese literature, and contemplative studies. In this way, we all teach in the humanities but are also deeply committed to contemplative practice—mindfulness, meditation, yoga, and so on—and regularly teach these practices to our students.