This presentation will bring the visions of human being promoted through the Mind & Life Institute and in various writings of the Dalai Lama into conversation with the ideals of human being promoted in U.S. law. Western philosophical traditions emphasizing human individuality and autonomy merged with chattel slavery during the formative years of the United States to produce an aspirational legal human ideal characterized by control of and power over others, including other humans, all animals, and the natural environment. Although some complementarity exists between U.S. legal and contemplative perspectives on self-development, important conflicts exist regarding ethical responsibility toward the other. This paper will outline convergences and conflicts between the values of Tibetan Buddhist contemplative traditions and those of U.S. law, and discuss academic jurisprudential projects like Emory University’s Vulnerability and the Human Condition Initiative that may prove synergistic with the goals of the Mind & Life Institute.
