Global Consciousness Conference Opens at IIT Mandi — 400 Scholars Bridge Ancient Wisdom and Neuroscience

Global Consciousness Conference Opens at IIT Mandi — 400 Scholars Gather to Bridge Ancient Wisdom and Modern Neuroscience

MANDI, Himachal Pradesh — The third International Mind, Brain and Consciousness Conference (MBCC 2026) opens today at the Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, bringing together over 400 participants from across the globe for a four-day exploration of consciousness that deliberately weaves together cutting-edge neuroscience with India's ancient contemplative traditions.

Organised by the Indian Knowledge System and Mental Health Applications (IKSMHA) Centre, the conference features more than 250 technical presentations, 18 keynote lectures, and eight invited talks spanning neuroscience, cognitive science, yoga, meditation, Ayurveda, artificial intelligence, mental health, and Sanskrit studies.

What distinguishes MBCC from conventional scientific conferences is its explicit commitment to Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS) as a legitimate framework for understanding consciousness — not merely as an object of study, but as a source of methodology.

Who Is Speaking

International researchers attending include Stuart Hameroff (United States), Giorgio Ascoli, Dimitris A. Pinotsis (United Kingdom), Pieter-Jan Maes (Belgium), and Ithamar Theodor (Israel). Indian speakers include BK Shivani, Ganti S. Murthy, Sisir Roy, Anirban Bandyopadhyay, and Sushrut Jadhav.

Padma Subrahmanyam, the renowned Bharatanatyam dancer and scholar, will attend the inaugural session as chief guest and present a special dance performance today. On June 4, Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty is scheduled to deliver a keynote address and perform a Hindustani classical music concert — reflecting the conference's conviction that the arts offer genuine pathways into understanding consciousness.

Why It Matters

The integration of yoga, meditation, and Sanskrit philosophy into a scientific conference on consciousness is not merely decorative. Researchers are increasingly recognising that first-person contemplative traditions have accumulated sophisticated maps of conscious states over millennia — maps that third-person neuroscience is only now beginning to verify.

"The integration of mind, brain, and consciousness, with consciousness viewed as a fundamental aspect of reality, represents a paradigm shift in how we approach mental health and cognitive science," said IIT Mandi Director Laxmidhar Behera, speaking ahead of the conference.

MBCC 2025, the previous edition, featured 10 plenary talks and over 160 technical presentations, with Springer publishing four volumes of selected papers. This year's programme substantially expands on that foundation.

Sources: IIT Mandi, MBCC 2026 — Careers360, conference programme

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#Consciousness #Neuroscience #Spirituality

#Consciousness #Neuroscience #Spirituality