The Student
Convinced that the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of life were fundamental for personal growth, for true knowledge, and for fulfillment, Dr Nader dedicated his life to exploring how these aspects can be understood and fully developed. He attended medical school and studied internal medicine, psychiatry and neurology first at the American University of Beirut and later at Harvard Medical School. Finding that there were still a lot of unknowns in medicine, he devoted more time to research and earned a Ph.D. in Brain and Cognitive Science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He became a visiting physician and assistant director of the MIT Clinical Research Center and a clinical and research fellow at the Massachusetts General Hospital, a teaching hospital of Harvard Medical School.
It was at a French Jesuit school that Dr Nader completed his primary and secondary education. He was brought up learning the history and geography of France and the philosophies of its great thinkers before those of the country of his birth, Lebanon. Even as a boy, he was brimming with existential questions. His earliest attempts at answering them were in the spiritual and philosophical contexts in which he was being raised.
“Why are we here? What is our purpose? What should we do with our short lifespan on earth? How did this world come about? Why do people suffer, and does it have to be that way?”
Dr. Tony Nader
These were not idle questions for Dr Nader; he passionately wanted to know the answers and made his life’s principal endeavour to discover “the Truth” about everything. This later helped spark his passion for public service and shaped his conviction that there is more to life than we are led to believe.
In 1975, while still a premedical student, Dr Nader learned Transcendental Meditation as a technique to unfold full human potential through development of consciousness. Practising meditation allowed him, in time, to “experience a reality, which is inner, beyond the sensory level, transcendental, but more full, more peaceful, more blissful.” As a result, he wanted to understand more about consciousness and his desire later grew into a commitment to give the experience of meditation to others.
“The inner experience is so fulfilling that you just want all your friends, all the people you love, and everyone in the world to have it.”
Dr. Tony Nader
Dr Nader considers life as an eternal school: he is an apprentice, always ready to listen and learn, at every occasion – not only in the prestigious institutions that he was fortunate to attend or with the famous teachers and scientists with whom he has worked. He has kept this openness even as he became an accomplished teacher and leader in advanced fields of knowledge.