Recently I have developed a fascination with the link between
physiology and
spirituality - more particularly the complicated interconnectedness
of the
brain, mind, hormones, emotions and soul. This search is helped
and
perpetuated by a fair amount of new scientific research and
commentary
(admittedly some in very odd publications - from The Economist's
article on
the physiology of love to the latest Big Issue's one on the
brain). Of
particular personal interest has been a book on DMT (The Spirit
Molecule) by
Dr Rick Strassman - a researcher who was Clinical Associate
Professor of
Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico. DMT (Di-Methyl-Tryptamine)
is a
naturally occurring hallucinogenic produced by the pineal gland
in the brain
and elevated states of it are associated with birth (both for
mother and
newborn if it is vaginal), near death experiences, death and
mystical
states. Dr Strassman hypothesises that religious experiences,
mystical
states and advanced meditation practices share a great deal
of similarity
with exogenous use of DMT: "All spiritual disciplines describe
quite
psychedelic accounts of the transformative experiences. Blinding
white
light, encounters with demonic and angelic entities, ecstatic
moments,
timelessness, heavenly sounds, feelings of having died and being
reborn,
contacting a powerful and loving presence underlying all of
reality." He
goes further to point out that in many Eastern and Western mystical
traditions, the location of the pineal gland (the crown of the
head) is
considered the highest level - in Judaism the "Keter",
in Hinduism the crown
chakra, in Christianity the centre of the halo. The seventeenth-century
French philosopher, Rene Descartes (he of "I think therefore
I am" fame)
considered the pineal gland to be the 'seat of the soul' - the
link between
spiritual and physical, life and death.
Another interesting observation (or further "proof")
is the correlation
between the Tibetan Buddhist belief that the soul takes 49
days after death
to collect itself, assess the lessons of its past life and
chose another.
This time period matches exactly with two landmark events
in the development
of the foetus from conception: "Forty-Nine is when the
foetus differentiates
into male and female gender. It also takes forty-nine days
from conception
for the first signs of the human pineal to appear." This
synchronicity, when
stripped of its dogma, starts to indicate that science and
religion may not
be as irreconcilable as many believe.
How do we define this spirit/soul?: "There is something
that 'enlivens' us
when joined with our body. When present in matter, it shows
itself by way of
movement and heat. When it is gone, the light is extinguished
and the engine
stops."
So, if indeed the pineal gland is the home of the soul, what
does this mean
for us in our practice of yoga and the internal production
of DMT: "How
might meditation evoke the pineal DMT response? Several meditative
disciplines bring about an intense fine-tuning of attention
and awareness;
for example, one-pointed focus on the breath. Many studies
have reported
that experienced meditators produce brain wave patterns that
are slower and
better organised than those found in everyday awareness. The
'deeper' the
meditation, the slower and stronger the waves."
Recently I had first-hand experience of this when I tested
an
electroencephalogram (brain wave measuring device) - the difference
between
'normal' activity and when I did some meditation or pranayama
was
unbelievable. Frontal lobe coherence also increased hugely
with focused
attention. So what happens to the waves: "The pineal
begins to vibrate at
frequencies that weaken its multiple barriers to DMT formation:
the pineal
cellular shield, enzyme levels, and quantities of anti-DMT.
The end result
is a psychedelic surge of the pineal spirit molecule, resulting
in
subjective states of mystical consciousness."
In the book Strassman explains that some of his Buddhist
monk friends had
their first experiences of this altered consciousness whilst
taking
psychedelics like DMT, mescaline, ibogaine or psilocybin but
later found
that through meditation they could delve even deeper - without
'help'. My
own experience of DMT was in the form of a Native South American
Indian tea
called ayuahusca (made from the 'vine of death') and used
by shamans to
heal, transform and initiate. The experience defies description
(it
certainly was not recreational) but it is something I will
do again. In
Brazil there are three churches that use ayuahusca as part
of their
ceremonies and scientific research is being furthered. In
the USA, use of
ayuahusca is being considered in the treatment (both remedial
and
compassionate) of cancer patients and in Peru and Columbia
it is used to
treat alcohol and drug addiction patients in the mainstream
as well as still
being used by shamans throughout Central and South America.
I might also add
that Strassman's research was the first US-government-approved-and-funded
clinical research with psychedelic drugs in over 20 years
(the study took
place between 1990 and 1995). Strassman even postulates that
DMT production
'spikes' in the pineal gland may account for alien abduction
accounts since
the person would not be aware of the visions they see and
experience.
In my personal experience this research and the book starts
to synthesise
many elements into a logical and consistent framework. Ashtanga
Yoga is
meditation in motion with single-minded focus on the breath
(not the
postures) and through this meditation we are able to access
deeper realms of
our brain (and possibly spirit) on an experiential level -
in an
individualistic realm - not tied by religious dogma or someone
else's
experience. Right down to the headstand in the finishing postures
(placing
pressure on and stimulating the pineal gland) - it's all starting
to make
sense. There is a reason that practices like yoga have survived
thousands of
years (who says it's a fad?) and that reason simply has to
go beyond the
fitness and physical benefits.
In June we explore elements of meditation with the second
of our Pranayama
courses and at the end on June we will look separately at
meditation so
watch out for these courses.
With love,
Chris and the Moksha team.
"It's now dear that, whatever their dogmatic claims,
people of all religious
persuasions experience the same thing when they worship. As
far as activity
in the brain goes, no religion can be 'true' or 'false' and
religious
exclusivism is revealed as a self-delusive sham."
~ From May's Big Issue.
Kinda makes you wonder why we spend so much time persecuting
and killing
each other because of religious differences.
"Love is the law, love under will."
~Aleister Crowley
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