Ancient Yogis Didn't know They Had Brains!

(Illustration sourced from the Net)

1. Yogis could not "feel" their central nervous system
 
a) Much of eastern philosophy is based on direct observation of the philosopher-mystic's own body.

b) But No yogi/mystic/seer has ever been able to directly observe/feel his own brain in action.

c) This is because brain is impervious to sensations and so the yogi's observation of his mind is indirect. Only indirectly can he sense the functions of his own brain (thought, emotions etc.) He does that by observing the rest of his body, and all his observations are limited to the endings of sensory nerves.

d) Therefore ancient seers confidently claimed that the mind is physically located in throat/mouth/heart/belly etc. (If you ask modern spiritualists --- who are very much aware of the functions of the brain  --- they would say, "No, yogic experiences are ethereal, spiritual, aural etc. But I don't buy that view because ancient texts are very physical and precise in their descriptions --  Uttara Gita is a good example.)


2. "Nadi," "Prana" etc are hyped without evidence
 
a)  Nadis appear to be nothing but nerves in action, but yogis and eastern philosophers claim that these are not physical but at higher planes, reflections of universal consciousness on ours.  However, the existence of any nadi separate from nerves (or more probably, the sensations felt from the activities of these nerves) has not been proved.

b) Sushumna is believed to be an ethereal form of the spinal cord. But I think it is rather a composite of stimulations arising from the 11th cranial nerve (vagus nerve) PLUS the large number of vital organs enervated by this unusually  long and all-pervasive nerve. Unlike other cranial nerves, the vagus not only extends outside the head and neck, but also  travels crisscross throughout the viscera. Vagus nerve also appears to be one of the most ancient of viseral nerves, considering the multiple jobs it does. One of its branchees even travels a long distance from the head, winds around the aorta, and goes straight back up to the larynx, which may be why vocalizing repetitive sounds as "Aum", various mantras (perhaps even the Christian rosary) is so important for spiritual experience.

c) Prana is another over-hyped yogic term. There are various esoteric explanations of prana (life force) which is believed to be one of the vital links between the human body and universal consciousness. Here again, I am of the view that prana is probably nothing but an experiential representation of the olfactory system.

Why so? Olfactory system happens to be our most ancient sense, which evolved before our ancestors developed other senses, and could communicate with the environment only by exchanging chemicals. Not only olfactory system is the most primitive, but it is also the only one which directly connects itself to the most ancient part of the limbic system of the brain without any filtering or monitoring by more modern parts of even the limbic system, let alone the neocortex.

So when we breathe in, we are ingesting huge amounts of information from the environment by means of molecules, and as there is no blood brain barrier, these molecules have free access to the most primitive parts of our brain and activate it. We keep reacting to those molecules without even being aware why. But a yogi sitting in meditation and rapt attention to all parts of his body is probably able to sense these acutely and "see" the physical reality around him, maybe as sensitively as a mouse or a dog would do. And we think he has spiritual powers.

[Of late electrical stimulation for vagus nerve has been shown to relieve depression. It is also suggested that deafferenting of olfactory bulb leads to severe depression. Meanwhile, yogic and pranayamic practices are touted as effective therapy for depression. --- depression is perhaps strongly connected with our basic roots, much below our homo sapien level.]

So the understanding a yogi has about himself comes essentially from these two sources -- activities of the sensory nerves, probably very acutely even up to the end of each dendrite  (which he calls "nadis"), and his acute sensitivity towards the chemicals around him due this super-sensitive olfactory system.

There other phenomena also yogis claim as esoteric in origin, such as the Third Eye which have perfectly natural and humble explanations. (Third Eye requires a separate post, all unto itself.) However, ancient yogis and seers claimed they could understand not only themselves, but the entire universe, "knew" an unchanging Brahman (universal self) etc. How can we buy that, considering their understanding of their own bodies was limited?

I can accept only one of their claims --- that there is no unchanging "I" or individual self, because it has evidence from other sources.

Conclusion:

 This highlights the limitations of "direct perception" and "self realization." Those esoteric claims of individual seers/mystics/yogis should be viewed skeptically till they are validated scientifically. We must also extend  this skepticism to our own self realization by meditation, mystical experiences etc. Though after such an experience we may think that "we know all that is to be known" it may be half truth and half delusion.

I am also increasingly coming around to the view that spirituality is not a higher state but a lower (basic) one. Spiritual experiences seem not beyond thought, but below it.

Human beings seem to miss spirituality mainly because we are seeking it above us. Perhaps we should look down  --- maybe this is the true meaning of humility, to stay with reality, whatever it is. This is not to discount the value of spiritual experiences. We need them very much. But for that, we need to understand their true nature.


Note: The above is NOT complete. I shall be revising this or writing another blog with additional information shortly.

-- Sajjeev Antony

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