Meditation and the Brain
When discussing the relationship of brain and behavior, the materialist view of human experience runs into conflict with the historically dominant religious accounts. Recent studies, however, suggests that there may be a "middle view" between the two world-views. Religions, especially Buddhism, stress the role of meditation in one's spiritual growth. Meditation has tangible psychological and physiological benefits, though, which can be explained strictly in neurobiological terms. Understanding of how meditation affects the brain, and, by extension, human behavior, also gives insight into consciousness, the role of feedback loops, and the nature of the I-function.
The goal of Buddhist meditation is to detach oneself from desires and objects which are the cause of suffering. Other forms of meditation, while differing in terms of their metaphysical grounding (1), effectively separate the individual from the transitory nature of the world. In prayer, the effort is largely mental, but Transcendental Meditation (TM) and Zen meditation also involve the body. Body positioning is important to the meditation, and in Zen, the object is to have as little tension as possible in the body. "The body has a way of communicating outwardly to the world and inwardly to oneself. How you position your body has a lot to do with what happens with your mind and your breath . . . Although [Zen meditation] looks very disciplined, the muscles should be soft. There should be no tension in the body" (2). The correlation of physical states with mental states in meditation reinforces the correspondence between neural functions and behavior.
Zen practice also has a revealing theory about the nature of the self, namely that it ...
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Plant (2014) describes Christian Spiritual writings as texts that help Christians in deepening or discovering their relationship with God. The mysteries of God are spiritual facts known by people only by the exposure of those mysteries. God reveals His unknown to only the people who are obedient to the Gospel (Intellectual Reserve, 2014). The Gospel is the revelation or the teaching of the unknown of Christ, but some of God’s mysteries have not been shown to the world yet (Oxford University Press, 2014). Meditation helps Christians form a deeper relationship with God. Christian meditation is a different type of prayer where the meditator makes the effort to become more alert of and in which there is an attempt made to be able to become aware of and reflect upon the exposures of God (Zanzig & Kielbasa, 2000).
In Eastern cultures, meditation has been practiced for over two thousand years. Through this training a culture has developed in which an individual is empowered to engaged in preventative behaviors, which reduce stress and morbidity, resulting in a general state of wellbeing, with stability and mental peace in the face of everyday challenges (Richardson and Lutz, 2008). Over the last half-century, the western-scientific community has begun to evaluate the efficacy of the eastern methods of meditation. In the modern western world there is an over abundance of stress, pressure and over stimulation. These conditions often result in stress-related morbidity, high levels of anxiety and mental illnesses. This cause and effect relationship is well established, and typically emphasis is placed on symptom control and less on preventative behavior modification. There are clinically documented see table 1, meditation practices that can be taught over a short period of time to an individual which have been shown to have positive results. Meditation can be used preventatively in supporting immune function and during illness as a method to aid healing and wellbeing for nominal costs. This paper will make an literary examination of a variety of studies of which examine the role of meditation training in regards to promoting immune function in athletes, recovering cancer patients, in addition to reducing stress and promoting well being in business professionals, cancer patients and seasoned meditation practitioners.
Meditation is an age-old practice that has renewed itself in many different cultures and times. Despite its age, however, there remains a mystery and some ambiguity as to what it is, or even how one performs it. The practice and tradition of meditation dates back thousands of years having appeared in many eastern traditions. Meditation’s ancient roots cloud its origins from being attributed to a sole inventor or religion, though Bon, Hindu, Shinto, Dao, and later, Buddhism are responsible for its development. Its practice has permeated almost all major world religions, but under different names. It has become a practice without borders, influencing millions with its tranquil and healing effects.
The adolescent brain is in many ways much different than the adult brain. It processes and learns things much different than the adult brain. For many years scientists have been studying the adolescent brain trying to find out what really happens as children grow older. Scientist have found that teenagers (adolescent) process actions without thinking about the possible outcomes. Based on the technology these days our brains have been able to learn and adapt to new challenges.
Adolescence is a time when many teenagers are struggling to determine where they fit in the world. No longer a child, but not yet an adult, issues surrounding the decisions and rights of adolescents prove to be a difficult subject to tackle. Adolescents are gradually awarded various privileges such as the right to drive, smoke, and drink, meaning there is no clear defining moment when an adolescent is fully considered an adult. Because of this, research on adolescent brain development should be heavily considered when resolving issues surrounding the well being of adolescents.
The start of puberty causes a flood of changes to take place throughout the brains and bodies of children in order to transition them into adults. Such changes include an overproduction of neurons, dendrites, and synapses and the development of the prefrontal cortex. (http://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ981198.pdf) These changes also proceed at different rates, as boys are able to process their motor and sensory functions earlier than girls and girls are able to better control their impulses and create long-term plans earlier than boys. However, impulse control and long-term planning are still amongst the latest developing skills in the
The period of adolescence is a time of immense changes, both biologically and socially, through self-discovery and identification. During adolescence, the human body goes through a wave of hormonal changes in preparation for sexual reproduction. As the individual reaches adulthood, this process is called puberty (Arnett, 2015, p. 350). In addition to the physical changes, teens undergo many social and psychological changes as they approach adulthood, preparing them for the many responsibilities to come (Arnett, 2015, p. 350). Adolescence is constructed by changes in relation to the physical, cognitive, and emotional states of an individual. Within each of these developmental areas, teens mature in varying ways. In regards to physical changes, adolescents undergo the previously mentioned process of puberty, but they also face many issues such as eating disorders and substance abuse (Arnett, 2015, p. 357-359). For cognitive development, teens undergo
Eastern enlightenment religions have been gaining popularity throughout the western world for the past few decades, with many people attracted to a "different" way of experiencing religion. As with many other enlightenment religions, Buddhism requires disciples to understand concepts that are not readily explainable: one such concept is that of no-self. In this essay I shall discuss the no-self from a number of modern perspectives; however, as no-self is difficult to describe I shall focus on both the self and no-self. Beginning with psychological aspects, and neurophysiological research on transcendental meditation, I shall discuss the impact of modern brain science on our understanding of the self and transcendence. Next I will outline the relationship between quantum physics and non-locality, as this gives a western scientific explanation for no-self. Returning to the original source of Buddhism, I will briefly outline the discussion between Siddhartha and Vaccha regarding atman, then discuss the mind and no-self and their relationship to liberation. Finally I will summarize a few issues that the western mindset may face approaching this topic.
What are your thoughts, views, musings and experiences etc. regarding meditation? As we all can learn from each other when it comes to sharing ways of creating a healthy, happy and vibrant life work balance.
National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM). (2010). Health info. Meditation: An introduction. Retrieved from http://nccam.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm
Born on July 1, 1961, Diana Spencer had no clue of the life she would someday live. Diana grew up as the daughter of the Viscount and Viscountess of Althorp. However, they divorced 8 years after Diana’s birth. Diana lived with her father and attended preparatory school in Norfolk. She then went on to attend West Heath Girls’ School in Kent, where she failed her O-level exams. She dropped out of West Heath and her father sent her to a finishing school in Switzerland. Before she left England for school, she met Prince Charles through mutual friends. Once she returned home from Switzerland, she and her family visited Prince Charles and his family at the castle in Scotland. This started their “royal romance.” Their wedding in 1981 was one for the history books. There was over one billion worldwide viewers watching at home on their televisions and she was the first woman born in England to marry the heir to the throne in over 300 years. Their first child, William, was born in 1982 while their second, Harry, was born two years later.
The brain is the organ that changes most throughout our lives and, as it develops, our way of thinking, acting and relating evolves, perhaps being the adolescent stage in which it is most evident. Moody, rebellious, without fear of taking risks, teenagers are the headache of adults, with a body and brain that is still maturing. Today, we want
Born on July 1, 1961, Diana Frances Spencer was the third daughter of her parents, the Viscountess and Viscount Althorp. Growing up, Diana was introduced to a life of lavishness and luxury in Sandringham, Norfolk, where she resided with her family in a ten-room mansion. Charles, who was twelve years older than Diana, lived right next door.
This week’s analysis is associated with the yoga class provided online to help with stress reduction. The first term that I came across was psychophysiology and how this principle is based on the mind and body being one and how our thinking affects all physiology. This principle was the perfect definition of yoga because yoga focuses on how the mind and body connects with each other. It gives you a sense of relaxation throughout your mind and body together. Furthermore, the yoga that was in the video was a yoga style called hatha. Which practices asana (yoga postures) and pranayama (breathing exercises). According to the book, this practices helps bring peace to the mind and body and prepare our body to do deeper exercises. The art of breathing was mentioned during the exercise and in the book. Breathing is very important when trying to unite the mind, body, and spirit. So, having slow, deep breathes was a main focused during the exercise. Another term that was used in the video was the art of stretching, which allows us to become aware of our flexibility of our muscle while moving. Lastly, the art of balance is significant because it allows us to move into the next form of position on both sides of our body. Some of the workouts pose that was mention in the textbook that I did was two knees to the chest, cobra, and head of cow. Overall, hatha
Universities have their own particular cultures and for students who join these institutions of higher learning, adjusting to such culture of a university usually takes time and effort. Considering the culture of Australian universities, students face a number of problems in an attempt to successfully adjust to this culture. Apparently, these cultures related problems are pertinent to Australian traditions and cultural practices. Among these problems include; adjusting to a new culture, cultural stress, cross-cultural male-female relationships, reverse cultural shock, communication difficulties which finally lead to learning difficulties, cultural discrimination and a decision made after graduation based on an individual’s cultural background.