Jed Forman, assistant professor in Buddhist Studies, released his book “Out of Sight, Into Mind: The History and Philosophy of Yogic Perception” on Dec. 6.

“Out of Sight, Into Mind” bridges the gap between cross-cultural philosophy, intellection and religion in India. These fields are commonly separated in academia. Forman believes they should be given more attention together, and these separate fields should give each other more attention.
His book is an offshoot of his dissertation where he aimed to understand why different Indian traditions used the same terms, yet had vastly different theories of yogic perception. He found this topic intriguing and wanted to explore why these ideas came about.
He spent a lot of time doing his research in India and breaking down Sanskrit and Tibetan texts. Forman worked with Indian Sanskrit experts and Tibetan monks to collect the texts, translate them and understand the context within them.
After finishing his dissertation and getting his PhD, he spent some time converting his dissertation into a book. Forman wrote the book with a wide audience in mind, and he wanted to make it as accessible to as many readers as possible. The book allows readers to gain understanding and knowledge about the topic without being an expert in the field.
First-year Parker Nelson is a student in Forman’s Intro to Buddhism class. He was not aware of Forman’s new book, but he thinks it would be a great read to learn more about these religious perspectives.
“He always tries to make his classes entertaining and makes sure you know the information. He is also very passionate and travels so much to learn more about the subjects,” said Nelson.
Being in one of Forman’s classes has made Nelson value how religions start and stay active. He especially finds interactions between religions and philosophical perspectives within religion interesting.
If you’re interested in how philosophy works outside of the West, Forman believes his book is a great way to learn more about it.
Forman says his book can be read in two ways: fully as a history of how yogic perception has changed over time or individually chapter by chapter. Each chapter is self-contained and deals with one philosophical idea, so readers are able to choose what topics interest them.
He doesn’t want readers to be intimidated when they pick up the book. He encourages readers to find a topic specific to their interests in the table of contents.
“I think the takeaway from the book should be ‘let’s blur those categories a little bit’… I think people will come away kind of questioning the division between religion and philosophy,” said Forman regarding his book’s main takeaway.
He hopes readers will lose their misconceptions about what is happening in India in terms of religion and philosophy because there are many assumptions we have in the West when it comes to religion. Forman wants everyone to realize there is a lot of historical and intellectual importance we can take away from India.