My Neuro-Enlightenment: The Final Chapter!
Those of you who follow me regularly know I’ve been struggling through a messy post series lately. The topic? Spiritual Enlightenment, and actual neurological changes in the brain that might go along with it.
I blame Oprah.
It all started with my attempt to review her multi-media marketing of Eckhart Tolle’s psuedo-Buddhism, ala A New Earth.
Then it snowballed into sharing my personal experiences and half baked hypothesis, which I’m afraid comes off like What-The-Bleep, Part Deaux. Still, I’m compelled to finish this series, trudging onward bravely…
First, a reminder of the science:
Modern neurological research has seriously shaken up our understanding of the mind/brain connection. Not only does the brain shape thought, but thoughts help shape the brain.
When you think a new thought, you create a new neural pathway. Think it again, and reinforce that neural pathway.
With use, the new pathway strengthens and becomes easier to use, while any old unused pathways will gradually fade. At first, the new thoughts take effort, but with repetition, the structure of the brain will adapt so that your thoughts naturally flow in the new direction, without continued effort.
And now, mix in the spiritual stuff:
(with a minimal woo factor)
In practical terms, “Spiritual Enlightenment” amounts to a drastic, permanent change in perspective. Tradition holds that once you’ve experienced enlightenment, you are never quite the same. Even if you drop all of the practices, disavow the ideas, some of your core assumptions about the world are just different.
So it makes sense that the change in perspective and thought patterns called “enlightenment” must be reflected in actual changes in the brain - changes that then affect further thought patterns.
Studies of Buddhist monks and nun support this idea - scans of their brains reveal differences from the norm.
Tradition also holds that Enlightenment is a sudden burst of insight, sometimes brought on gently by long devotional study, meditation and single-pointed contemplation (all of which might slowly change neural pathways), and other times, not so gently - as part of a shattering, traumatic experience (which we know can trigger drastic neural changes and adaptations).
It seems possible to my lay-brain that the burst of insight, that instantaneous flash in which things change — is a burst of neural growth and reorganization.
And my personal experiences?
While I don’t claim enlightenment, I certainly did experience different states of consciousness, states that no doubt would have been reflected in brainwave patterns, had I been able to measure them at the time. I did have a sense of “Oneness” with all things, especially conscious things - I discovered a new sense of identity that wasn’t dependant on labels, the state of my body, relationships to others, and so on. I learned to approach situations, people and my own thoughts with a new non-judgemental attitude of acceptance (and yet, without setting aside the judgements necessary for life). I learned to not be so attached to my ideas of how the universe works, learned to maintain awareness while in those deeper brainwave states, deepened my sense of compassion, became more self-lesss, developed a single minded effortless focus, learned to be in the “now” and no where else.
Sure sounds like Enlightenment. But I certainly wasn’t intentionally on that path, or seeking deep spiritual awareness in any traditional form.
(Honestly, I was arrogant enough at the time to think I was already there) At first, I was just learning about computers, and enjoying the new experience of being online. Once things started changing, I was trying to understand what was happening to me, which lead me into more new experiences and perspectives.
Looking at it through the lens of modern neuro-science, it seems likely I could have induced a period of neuroplasticity, a sort of massive reorganization of my brain’s wiring.
Learning computers themselves (especially DOS commands and rudimentary programming languages) had certainly primed my brain for new wiring. Chatting online, and removing many of the communication cues I ordinarily depended on? I relate that to losing one sense, and the mind reorganizing to emphasize other forms of gathering information (maybe I became more sensitive to subtle changes in word choice, punctuation, and so on).
The experience of anonymity and sameness stripped away part of my identity, as well as my assumptions about the identities of others. The sense of mind-to-mind communication (via the computers: I don’t claim actual telepathy!) challenged my perceptions and assumptions about what was possible).
As each of my existing assumptions fell apart, my brain likely responded with bursts of neural activity, trying to find new ways to relate to the world, ways that allowed for the new experiences, reshaping itself in response to the new elements it was exposed to.
The meditative and trance experiences in my free-writing practices, the single pointed attention that was akin to Buddhist contemplation exercises, and the possibility of actual brainwave entrainment? That, too, may have caused actual changes in my brain.
The sense of disorientation, not knowing who, or what I was, exactly, and even the tingling I had…. they fit with both the idea of spiritual awakening, and with the idea of a massive neurological growth/reorganization.
So can I prove that “Enlightenment” is a period of neuro-plasticity or neuro-genesis? Not a chance.
I can’t even prove that it’s what I experienced - I didn’t have a home fMRI handy, dang the luck!
Since attaining enlightenment is unpredictable even with the most traditional methods, it would be tricky to run a research study to test the connection. But I’m willing to be that the differences found in the brains of long-term-meditating monks isn’t *just* about meditation, but also related to enlightenment — those brain changes either spring from the experience of enlightenment, or help lead towards it.
That’s my hypothesis anyway, layman brain blogger that I am.
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MindTweak: One day it was announced by Master Joshu that the young monk Kyogen had reached an enlightened state. Much impressed by this news, several of his peers went to speak with him.
“We have heard that you are enlightened. Is this true?” his fellow students inquired.
“It is,” Kyogen answered.
“Tell us,” said a friend, “how do you feel?”
“As miserable as ever,” replied the enlightened Kyogen. -Source unknown
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- How A Computer Raised Spiritual Awareness (part 1)
- How A Computer Raised My Spiritual Awareness, Part 2
- My Neuro-Enlightenment: The Final Chapter!
{ 11 comments… read them below or add one }
I like messy. If it wasn’t then why would I bother to post a reply and if there were no replies why have a blog.
If it was neat, tidy and perfect then where is the opportunity for new neural networks (aka NNN or 3N). Will post more later when I get the chance to read through the last of your “messy post”
The “enlightenment” or “awakening” event would most certainly have an effect on brain organization. The awakening event in most cases is a letting go of habitual patterns that block direct awareness. The net effect is one of expanse or emptiness when a lot of mind junk is cleared out. I think this effect is magnified when one is coming from a place of mental suffering or distress. In that case, one lets go of their entire being and finds a new life. For the rest, insights and awakenings are less traumatic but nevertheless powerful.
I’ve been staring at computer screens since 1983 and do find that they can put you into a meditative state. Perhaps the cumulative effect of all that staring can alter brain organization if one is predisposed to let go of old ways of being. Not sure about entrainment via a flicker/refresh rate. That hypotheses needs to be tested in a lab setting.
@Larry: Thank you for the considered response - the bit about letting go of habitual patterns reminds me of a friend who used to say enlightenment isn’t learning, but “unlearning”.
I’m not sure about the refresh rate and entrainment either, and I’m not even sure if the refresh rate translates to the flicker rate. I’ll try and remember to ask the entrainment folks what they think of it, next week. Who knows, maybe someone with a home EEG and an ancient monitor will get curious and run a quick test of it
@Maureen: I like the New Neural Networks notation of NNN 3xN- it’s very neat, and thus? Not messy!)
If we are to be truly ready for change in this world than we must be willing to increase our consciousness in all aspects of life and relating. You’re doing great by just being open, you give the rest of us hope.
Namaste
You’re a brave soul. I admire anyone who takes on the trip of breaking free of the encrustation of enculturation and poking their head out of the matrix and taking a look around at what’s real.
I just finished a book that I think you’d like. It’s called “My Stroke of Insight,” by Jill Bolte Taylor, Ph.D. She’s a Harvard-trained neuroanatomist who suffered a massive left-hemisphere stroke at age 37 that damaged or destroyed her language production/comprehension, her math abilities, ability to perceive the boundaries of her body, memory and ability to define herself as an individual.
For several months, she was conscious, but all of her consciousness was non-verbal, right-hemisphere consciousness. That experience was filled with joy, a feeling of being connected to all that is, and an ongoing absorption in the present moment, with the usual internal chatter entirely silent.
The description of her conscious awareness during that time sounds very much like the descriptions of enlightenment I have read, and matches some of my rare personal experiences of unity and global awareness. In particular, it’s very similar to the states of consciousness described by Jiddu Krishnamurti in his discussions of being awake and aware of the real world.
She used her knowledge of what was going on in her brain and neuroplasticity to recapture her lost language and logical processing abilities … over a period of 8 years.
It’s a good read, especially if you’ve spent time exploring your own space of subjective awareness. She gives a new-age slant to some of her interpretations that you may or may not agree with, but the nuts & bolts description of her watching certain parts & abilities of her conscious mind just fade away, lights out, and her thought processes and actions in reshaping and retraining her own brain function are fascinating, or at least they were to me.
Thanks for being out here.
Peace,
River Flows
Hello Tori
I could write for an hour but I’d say much that has already been commented on, including thanks for the space and time you’re providing here.
I had one of those connected to everything experiences however mine followed several years of fairly deep emotional work in several differnt organizations. I had a lot of similar experiences during some of the trainings but nothing like the experience in my bedroom one morning in Nov. 05.
I have searched my entire life to make sense of what we call life, even as a small child I was entralled with the mysteries of the universe. Finally I gave it up as a line of wishful stories described in any given myth.
In the spring of 2003 I read a book by Daniel Goldman, Emotional Intelligence, that put me on a new road to find, a gym to work to work out my emotional self that would somehow allow my head and heart to get on the same page.
After a few months of looking I researched a handful of organizations that offered experiential training programs which suggested something like emotional intelligence enhancement(although they didn’t market themselves quite like that).
I went through 2 different trainings over the next year and half and all I could think of when I wasn’t doing the work itself was, I wish I had a fMRI around here because I know big stuff is happening in my brain and would love to document it on some sort of film.
Three things changed most drastically:
1. I quit watching tv in 1967, but for the last 35 years I had to have a tv on to go to sleep. It was not just a need, it was a pathological necessity.
2. I was terribly claustophobic and it was getting worse by the day.
3. I had a monumental and progressive problem with anger which was starting to alienate me from my world.
Over night each of these was taken away at different segments of the work I had been doing. Although there was never any work that dealt with any of these specific areas of my life. These were followed by the experience where I just felt, hugged by the universe, and my relationship to BEING, was totallly altered. I walked around with this stupid looking grin on my face for a couple of weeks but I didn’t know how to explain to anyone what had happened to me. It was kinda of like being abducted by aliens, what do you tell your friends?
My passion now is to introduce research sience to the work that is being done out here in the trenches. Maybe if some of those guys doing the research had some of the experiences, they would probably be asking different questions and their research would look totally different. Kinda like the neurologist, Jill Taylor. By the way here is a link to a short presentation she made about her experience if you haven’t seen it already.
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/view/id/229
I haven’t read through your site yet but I shall. Thanks again for what your doing here. Also if you have any suggestions or know anyone else interested in what I’m about, please introduce us.
take care
Dale
River: Welcome to MindTweaks, and thanks for the comment.
I get concerned when she’s getting more press in my comments than I do.
I’m never quite sure how to respond to all of the glowing recommendations of Jill Taylor that have been hitting the blog lately. (It’s up to about a dozen, now, though I’ve deleted many of them, as they had no relevance at all to the posts they were on ) I’ve heard her story, read some about her, and yepp, she’s cool, and sure, she’s fascinating. But I’m cool and fascinating too, dang nabbit!
Dale:
I certainly relate to your desire to have an fMRI around - even an EEG (and the knowledge to use it) would be helpful. Your story is interesting, and sure does seem related to the brain’s ability to reshape itself, as well as what I would call an “initiatory experience”. As you said, it’s nearly impossible to explain to people who haven’t been through it, which leads some folks to believe its some sort of mass delusion.
I think some of the research is going in the right direction, but it is opposed by both materialist and religious folks. Making it more complicated, the mind is a lousy observer of itself, and it can’t be trusted, so scientists have to find measurable ways of identifying and confirming what we’re telling them we experience. But progress is being made, its all part of the neuroscience explosion.
As for other suggestions — off the top of my head? You might look into some of the work done in the field of spiritual emergence, especially by Stanislov and Christina Grof. It’s not exactly what you’re describing, but it may provide more clues (Mind you, I haven’t kept up with their work, so I don’t know where it’s led. )
it is my understanding that anyone who has the grace to become more conscious or (more accurately) have a growing awareness…that they should honor that by pursuing it…
but perhaps the scientific route is the long way round…
Damian, interesting thought there. After musing on your comment a moment, I think I’d say that science can add to our self awareness - confirming, correcting, or adding to our understanding.
Tori
Norman Doidge’s book , The Brain That Changes Itself, is an awesome read if you haven’t had the opportunity as yet. In the appendices he suggests that each new accessory we are introduced to remaps the brain. That our shoes become part of our body image as part of our feet as with the foot pedals in our cars become extensions of our feet and legs. One of the most interesting parts of the book deals with V.S. Ramachandran’s work around phantom limbs. He was successful in the first amputation of a phantom limb. Also if you haven’t seen it yet there are some wonderful workshops taking place at the Salk Institute on, thesciencenetwork. just put that in google. I think you’ll enjoy the conversation in the series, Beyond Belief. There are 3 of them. Hope you are enjoying the moments as they show up.
take care
dale
Thanks Dale! I’ve heard great things about The Brain That Changes Itself but haven’t made time to read it yet. I’ll move it up on the list. And double thanks for the Beyond Belief recommendation… I’m watching the introduction to Enlightenment 2.o as I type this.
Here’s the link for the one I’m watching now: Beyond Belief: Enlightenment 2.0