I write for the Guardian on health, well-being and religious issues - I am a regular con
tributor to the paper's comment is free pages, which won a 2009 Webby award for religious affairs coverage. My journalism has also been published in many other newspapers and magazines - recent samples below (from the Guardian unless stated otherwise).
Buddhism In Education (Guardian) Piece by Ed on how meditation is justified in schools by its practical benefits. But there's more to it than that...
The Mindful Enlightenment (Guardian) Piece by Ed on how mindfulness practices can bring about a new kind of social enlightenment
Investigating the Buddhist mindset (Guardian) Piece by Ed about neuroscience and meditation. Does the Dalai Lama's support for a 'centre for investigating healthy minds' compromise its scientific respectability?
A prescription for meditation Research shows Transcendental Meditation, despite its celebrity baggage, can be an effective way of fighting depression
Suffering doesn't have to be worthlessDoes suffering improve us?If we can steer a middle way through suffering, neither wallowing in it nor ignoring it, it can help us grow
How do you get to Nirvana? Practice Buddhism is not a theory, but a body of practical teachings, and without practice it is just an excuse for smugness
Buddhism beats depression Should the health service sponsor Buddhist techniques to beat depression? Why not, if they work
Self-help can be no help Quick fixes often make the underlying problems worse. Letting go of the desire for self-improvement is the answer
"Psychiatric diagnoses are less reliable than star signs" The psychologist Richard Bentall says that psychiatrists dish out drugs but ignore the value of good relationships (The Times)
Confession or therapy? How about both The Vatican has told Catholics not to confuse confession with therapy. But to really benefit, we need a combination of the two
Paths to happiness and well-being When it comes to emotional health and well-being, the last half century has seen a significant and welcome shift in public consciousness (The Times, mental health supplement, scroll to p8-9)
Between the rational and the mystical We neither need an external, creator God, nor to close ourselves off from the spectacular majesty of existence
Dawkins strips away religion's dead wood Dawkins is doing religion a favour – by exposing faith and spirituality to criticism, he paves the way for their renewal
A nation running scaredWhen 77% of Britons say the world has become a more frightening place, it's time to look at how emotions rule our lives
Buddhism and the Brain The Mind and Life conference brings together two powerful ways of understanding mind and its place in the world
A sense of self Personality may be an illusion, but not the kind described by materialists like Colin Blakemore
One insight, two cultures Religious solutions to our problems are too often ignored because of the language they are couched in
Is it always about belief?The Buddha emphasised that we should not trust the teachings of any faith based on – among other things – scripture, religious authorities, or logical and philosophical reasoning
Searching for enlightenmentIs Google's 'school of personal growth' a spiritual boon or corporate fig leaf?
The magic of ordinary experience Buddha avoided the tragi-comic debate about God's existence to focus on far more important issues
Reasons to be cheerfulBuddhism teaches that good cheer, rather than 'happiness', might be the key to beating winter blues
End-Of-Life Issues While Tibetan monks are sent to meditate in graveyards, most of us deny the reality of death. But this is a recipe for fear.
When waiting for treatment is worse than the cure NHS environments are stressful enough places without piped pop and TV.
-
War itself makes war more likely Should we fight war to end wars? We will not end conflict until we have learned first to cultivate peace in our own minds
The Smileometer. Forget measuring a country's success by its GDP - there's a much better system that takes happiness into account. (Independent On Sunday)
Money for no hope. We're throwing more cash than ever before at alternative therapies, but do they cause more stress than they cure? (Independent On Sunday)