The New Abhidharma 2025: From Conception to Modern and Beyond (The writings of Jim Berg, MD) Paperback – September 9, 2025

The New Abhidharma 2025: From Conception to Modern and Beyond is both a faithful study of Buddhist psychology and a bold reconstruction for our times. Dr. Jim Berg, MD, guides the reader through the foundations of consciousness as taught in the Pali Canon and the early Abhidharma, then explores the refinements of Vasubandhu’s Abhidharmakośa and Asaṅga’s Yogācāra vision. From there, the book unfolds into a complete 2025 model of consciousness, introducing 20 core faculties that bridge ancient categories with modern neuroscience, psychology, and therapeutic practice. The book is organized as a progressive journey. Early chapters explain classical categories such as citta and cetasika, wholesome and unwholesome factors, and the traditional universals and occasionals. Later sections reframe these in modern terms — attention networks, affective valence, memory systems, imagination, resilience, and creativity — all supported by parallels in science and clinical insight. Dr. Berg shows how these faculties interrelate, how they shape our moment-to-moment experience, and how they can be cultivated for liberation, healing, and flourishing. More than theory, this work emphasizes practice and application. Each chapter links analysis to meditation, ethics, and contemporary challenges, from trauma and distraction to ecological crisis and social fragmentation. By updating terminology and expanding categories, The New Abhidharma 2025 provides a living map of mind that speaks equally to practitioners, teachers, scholars, and clinicians. It is a book for those who want to understand consciousness in depth and to use that understanding to foster wisdom, compassion, and transformation in themselves and in the world. Read more