Dr. Cortland Dahl
Dr. Cortland Dahl
Chief Contemplative Officer, Healthy Minds Innovations
Dr. Cortland Dahl is a scientist, translator, author, and meditation teacher with a lifelong interest in the science of flourishing. His journey began in the early 1990s when he first learned to meditate. His passion led him on a journey around the world, from monasteries in Burma to zendos in Japan, as well as eight years living in Tibetan refugee settlements in Nepal and India.
During his travels, Dr. Dahl became fluent in Tibetan and became a prolific translator and scholar, receiving a master’s degree in Buddhist studies and publishing twelve volumes of translations. He went on to study at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he was mentored by the renowned neuroscientist Dr. Richard J. Davidson and received a Ph.D. in Mind, Brain, and Contemplative Science, the first ever degree of its kind awarded by the university. He has since published numerous scientific articles, including a new scientific framework for the cultivation of well-being, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
As part of his Ph.D. dissertation, Dr. Dahl created the Healthy Minds Program, now a free mobile app that has been downloaded more than a million times and featured by the New York Times, Vogue, Sports Illustrated, and many other publications. More recently, he authored A Meditator’s Guide to Buddhism and the forthcoming Born to Flourish: How to Thrive in a Challenging World, with Dr. Richard J. Davidson. He is a frequent public speaker and leads meditation retreats and courses on the science of flourishing around the world.
Dr. Dahl currently serves as Executive Director of Tergar International, which oversees a global network of meditation centers, and is a senior meditation instructor for the Tergar community. He is also Chief Contemplative Officer for Healthy Minds Innovations and a scientist at the Center for Healthy Minds.
Dr. Dahl and his wife divide their time between Madison, Wisconsin and the boundary waters of Northern Minnesota. In his free time, he enjoys traveling, meditating in retreat, and spending time with family.
Publications
- Recent Publications
- Dahl, C. J., Wilson-Mendenhall, C. H., & Davidson, R. J. (2020). The plasticity of well-being: A training-based framework for the cultivation of human flourishing. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. doi:10.1073/pnas.2014859117
- Goldberg, S. B., Imhoff-Smith, T., Bolt, D. M., Wilson-Mendenhall, C. D., Dahl, C. J., Davidson, R. J., & Rosenkranz, M. A. (2020). Testing the Efficacy of a Multicomponent, Self-Guided, Smartphone-Based Meditation App: Three-Armed Randomized Controlled Trial. JMIR Mental Health, 7(11), 23825. doi:10.2196/23825
- Dahl, C. J. & Davidson, R. J. (2019). Mindfulness and the contemplative life: Pathways to connection, insight, and purpose. Current Opinion in Psychology, 28, 60-4. doi:10.1016/j.copsyc.2018.11.007
- Dahl, C. J., Lutz, A., & Davidson, R. J. (2016). Cognitive processes are central in compassion meditation. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 20(3), 161-162. doi:10.1016/j.tics.2015.12.005
- Dahl, C. J., Lutz, A., & Davidson, R. J. (2015). Reconstructing and deconstructing the self: Cognitive mechanisms in meditation practice. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 19(9), 515–23. PMCID: PMC4595910.
- Davidson, R. J., Dahl, C. J. (2016). varieties of contemplative practice. JAMA Psychiatry. ePub ahead of print. doi:10.1001/jamapsychiatry.2016.3469
- Davidson, R. J., & Dahl, C. J. (2017). Outstanding challenges in scientific research on mindfulness and meditation. Perspectives on Psychological Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691617718358
- Goldberg, S.B., Wielgosz, J., Dahl, C., Schuyler, B., MacCoon, D.S., Rosenkranz, M., Lutz, A., Sebranek, C.A., & Davidson, R. J. (2015). Does the Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire measure what we think it does? Construct validity evidence from an active controlled randomized clinical trial. Psychological Assessment, 28(8), 1009-1014.http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/
pas0000233. PMCID: PMC4829487 - Goldberg, S. B., Baldwin, S. A., Riordan, K. M., Torous, J., Dahl, C. J., Davidson, R. J., & Hirshberg, M. J. (in press). Alliance with an unguided smartphone app: Validation of the Digital Working Alliance Inventory. Assessment. doi:10.1177/10731911211015310.
Books
- Steps to the Great Perfection: The Mind-Training Tradition of the Dzogchen Masters. (Author and translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2016.
- Ornament of the Great Vehicle Sutras: Maitreya’s Mahayanasutralamkara with Commentaries by Khenpo Shenga and Ju Mipham. (Volume editor and co-translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2014
- The Lalitavistara Sutra. (Co-translator). 84000, 2013.
- Distinguishing Phenomena from their Intrinsic Nature: Maitreya’s Dharmadharmata Vibhanga with Commentaries by Khenpo Shenga and Ju Mipham. (Volume editor and co-translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2013.
- Vajra Wisdom. (Volume editor and co-translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2012.
- Ornament of Reason: The Great Commentary To Nagarjuna’s Root Of The Middle Way. (Volume editor).Snow Lion Publications, 2011.
- Luminous Essence: A Guide to the Guhyagarbha Tantra. (Volume editor and co-translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2009.
- Entrance to the Great Perfection: A Guide to the Dzogchen Preliminaries. (Author and translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2009.
- Great Perfection: Separation and Breakthrough. (Author and translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2008.
- Great Perfection: Outer and Inner Preliminaries. (Author and translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2007.
- Middle Beyond Extremes: Maitreya’s Madhyantavibhanga with Commentaries by Khenpo Shenga and Ju Mipham. (Volume editor and co-translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2007.
- Deity, Mantra and Wisdom: Development Stage Meditation in Tibetan Buddhist Tantra. (Volume editor and co-translator). Snow Lion Publications, 2007.
Education
- Ph.D., Mind, Brain and Contemplative Science, University of Wisconsin–Madison
- M.A., Buddhist Studies, Naropa University
- B.S., Psychology, University of Minnesota–Twin Cities