The Symptom of Meditation

Posted on November 18, 2007
Filed Under Awareness, Meditation, Spirituality, Consciousness |

I have written plenty of times about how everything in our culture is backwards. That often the effect is seen as the cause. A few months ago an experiment was carried out which simulated an Out of Body Experience, by stimulating certain parts of the body and the senses. Some conclusions are that OBE’s occur due to certain physical conditions within the body. In other words OBE’s are an illusion of the senses. Although there is some hope for the sanity of science:

“Scientists have long suspected that the clue to these extraordinary, and sometimes life-changing, experiences lies in disrupting our normal illusion of being a self behind our eyes, and replacing it with a new viewpoint from above or behind.”

Simulated OBE

Perhaps the quote didn’t quite mean it in the manner I read it…but; “the illusion of being a self behind our eyes”. That’s surely a very important assertion; our experience point of awareness is illusory and even transitory. With meditation it is possible to actually move and reshape that point of awareness. But just because science can simulate an OBE by moving our viewpoint – that doesn’t really explain much. Sure – you can artificially move the viewpoint – but that doesn’t tell us anything about how it occurs naturally?

The change of viewpoint is just a symptom of an OBE, not the cause.

Brian of Church of the Churchless has recently been talking at length about meditation and how it is affected by parts of the brain. Brian refers to the book The Mystical Mind , which states that different modalities within parts of the brain affect the experience we have whilst under meditation. The change in brain activity can be measured with electronic instruments.

The claim is that our consciousness during meditation is affected by how those specific parts of the brain react. Now Brian isn’t making any claims against the benefits of meditation (he meditates plenty himself) – and I gather, neither are the authors of The Mystical Mind.

Yet again though, it is all backwards. Firstly viewing meditation in this manner defeats the objective of what it is all about. Meditation is about the experience and resulting self-understanding, rather than the dissection of our physical body (although there is no reason not to do that). Secondly and more importantly – the doctor’s are viewing the change in brain activity as the cause of changes in consciousness. But what proof do they have that the opposite isn’t actually true? Could it not equally be possible that changes in our consciousness cause our brain-activity to change? Therefore making the change in brain-activity a symptom of altered meditative consciousness, rather than the cause of it.

The problem is that science works with what is measurable and physical – and to date there is no proof that consciousness is actually something physical. Sure, consciousness works through the physical world, and yes it requires a physical body to house it – at least whilst we are in physical form. But that doesn’t say anything at all about a theoretical concept of physical consciousness.

That said, science has made great progress in the realms of neuroscience and understanding how the brain works. Both the body and brain are physical things and it only makes sense that they would react to the physical environment and physical stimulation. That much is pretty obvious even to the most insensate of people.

Perhaps it once again comes down to the whole issue of association. As the quote at the beginning of this post states; we believe our self to be the experience viewpoint which exists behind our eyes. Just like we also believe our identity to be our thoughts. And so in the same manner, we believe our consciousness to be our brain and body, rather than seeing them as the sensory organs which report to our consciousness. After all, without a physical body and brain how else would our consciousness be able to experience the physical world?

Comments

2 Responses to “The Symptom of Meditation”

Attila Borcsa on November 18th, 2007 12:28 pm

I guess the original article generalizes too much, saying that scientists have done what they have done… In this case seemingly it reflects the good old-fashioned reductionist approaches which are far from being enough these days for some serious scientific interest. Some times it touches the ridiculous/hilarious when – like in this case – it proves almost nothing (in terms of usefulness). But maybe it is just the original article that reflects it like this.

Many good points here Marcus. It can be considered a symptom, although for me it kind of sounds like referring to a medical condition.
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Marcus on November 18th, 2007 8:23 pm

Yep, the reductionist approach rarely adds anything of much value. Although it no doubt has it’s uses.

Well the word symptom does indeed sound like a medical condition. I used it partially to reflect the irony that in some circles meditation is perceived that that way.
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