Buddha's Brain - Self Care and the Importance of Sleep
- Affan Kermani
- Jan 19
- 3 min read
“The brain can’t be fully attentive unless it's fully awake. Unfortunately, the average person is sleep-deprived, getting about an hour less sleep a day than the body really needs. Try to get enough sleep (enough depends on your nature and factors such as fatigue, illness, thyroid problems, or depression). In other words, take care of yourself. Struggling to pay attention when you are tired is like spurring an exhausted horse to keep running uphill.” Pg 185
In Buddha’s Brain, Rick Hanson explores the profound intersection of neuroscience and contemplative wisdom, showing how the structure and function of the human brain can be shaped by intentional practice. For someone like me, who holds peace, human wellbeing, equality, and kindness to all sentient beings at the center of his life, the book offers not only intellectual insight but also a practical path toward living with greater presence and compassion.
To be fully attentive and awake is not merely a spiritual aspiration; it is a human necessity. In a world filled with distraction, division, and suffering, attention is the gateway to freedom. Hanson reminds us that the brain is not fixed—it is plastic, capable of rewiring itself through repeated patterns of thought and awareness. By cultivating mindfulness, we train the mind to rest in the present moment, where peace naturally arises.
For me, this attentiveness is not self-centered but deeply relational. To be awake is to see others clearly, to recognize their dignity, and to respond with kindness rather than reactivity. In this way, attention becomes an act of justice and equality, because it refuses to reduce others to stereotypes or shadows.
Reading Buddha’s Brain is not just an intellectual exercise; it is an invitation to practice. For myself, the message is clear: peace begins in the attentive mind. By training the brain through mindfulness, gratitude, and compassion, we awaken not only for ourselves but for the benefit of all beings.
To be fully awake is to live in harmony with the deepest truths of human existence—that we are interconnected, that kindness heals, and that peace is possible when we choose to nurture it within.
In essence, attentiveness is both a personal liberation and a gift to the world. I see it as the bridge between inner stillness and outward compassion, between the science of the brain and the wisdom of the heart.
Please consider joining the 6D Book Club Buddha's Brain Mondays beginning on February 16th, 2026. This journey will allow us to reflect on and share our individual experiences, management of our daily lives, and our individual strengths and weaknesses. Together, we shall build our emotional resiliency, learning from each other as part of this 6D community.
Rick Hanson, Ph.D., is a neuropsychologist and New York Times best-selling author. His books include Hardwiring Happiness, Buddha's Brain, Just One Thing, Mother Nurture, and Resilient: How to Grow an Unshakable Core of Calm, Strength, and Happiness. Hanson is the founder of the Wellspring Institute for Neuroscience and Contemplative Wisdom. He is on the Advisory Board of the Greater Good Science Center at UC Berkeley and taught in meditation centers worldwide.
Affan is a US tax professional within the financial services industry. He survived Polio as an infant of twenty-eight days in the early seventies. As a person with disabilities, Affan has been on a lifelong journey seeking ways to manage muscle weaknesses, bone loss, and contain progressive disability that comes with Post Polio Syndrome. He discovered the ‘Whole Foods Plant’ lifestyle during the thick of COVID-19 and adopted the lifestyle evidencing a positive shift in energy and mobility.
Affan moderates book clubs with a focus on books that will lead minds to contemplate the human ability of ‘mind over matter’ and the influence of modern-day technology and environment, on how each of us can best navigate life for our individual needs of health and wellbeing. Affan is also an administrator on our 6D Facebook Page - and the writer of these posts, of course!
Be well
Stop.Breathe.Focus.Move.Flow.
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