Meditation Explained Scientifically

Dear All,

It has been quite sometime (maybe more than an year) since my last posting. I came across the following article in Times of India's "Speaking Tree" and thought it deserves a place in my blog. Though meditation is more to do with the experience but for those who love intellectual stimulation may find the following explanation of meditation and thereby the effects of practising meditation, to be quite an endearing read.

Bose-Einstein condensate and state of samadhi
30 Dec 2008, 0000 hrs IST, DEEPAK RANADE

Matter and energy are inter convertible. Matter is present in various energy states. These energy states were found to be temperature-dependent. The higher the temperature, the greater the energy. For example, water boils when it is heated to higher temperatures. This increases the disorder in the molecules as they are energised. This disorder is referred to as entropy. It represents the excitability and chaos of the molecules that constitute matter. Satyendra Bose proposed to Einstein that if matter was cooled to very low temperatures to Absolute Kelvin or minus 273 degrees Centigrade, then the entropy of that matter should decrease and matter should come down to a zero-energy state. This remained only in the realms of hypothetical speculation until it was proved much later on. This zero-energy state is now known in physics as the Bose-Einstein condensate. This state of matter is also called a super atom as the entire mass behaves as if it were a single atom. It loses all its characteristics of shape, charge and polarisation. It probably reverts to a shapeless, attribute less phenomenon in a de-evolution of matter, reverting back to just the potential to manifest as anything and everything. The human brain is an aggregate of nearly 100 billion neurons. Various thoughts that constantly crowd our minds are the sum total of simultaneous activity of different neurons. No wonder there is chaos in our waking state. The thoughts translate into various biological changes mediated by the hormonal apparatus at the pituitary interfacing system. The complex interconnections that abound in the nervous system ensure that even a small impulse rapidly spreads seismically via the dense network. Some individuals have innate higher entropy levels and so find it harder to concentrate. They are `distracted' easily. They have fleeting thoughts and are very restless. The sensory organs serve as an important pathway to increase the entropy as they stimulate various neuronal circuits adding to the entropy. Therefore, closing the eyes helps in the process of concentration. Continuous stimulation of the neural networks is what happens in the waking state. Hence sleep is necessary for minimising these constant excitatory inputs. Sleep deprivation leads to fatigue of the neural networks. When you concentrate, there is a resultant decrease in the disorder of the neural system. As concentration increases, the tendency of the mind to waver and scatter decreases. The mind is more sharply focused. We all have experienced the need to concentrate when we are studying or performing some important activity. So when we concentrate, we are increasing the synchronicity of a specific group of neurons and silencing unrelated neuronal activity. In scientific parlance, concentration decreases the entropy of the neuronal apparatus. Just as the entropy of matter drops to near-zero levels when we approach Absolute Kelvin, similarly, the neuronal disorder keeps waning as we concentrate. The neuronal firing decreases in amplitude as well as frequency. So would the propagation across various networks. In the waking state, when you consciously attempt to decrease the entropy of the nervous system, it is referred to as meditation. As the entropy of the neurons keeps decreasing, a state of calmness is perceived. As this progresses further, the neurons start becoming synchronous. That is, they neither modulate nor amplify any incoming signal. They just resonate in harmony. As this orchestra gets more in sync, you experience varying states of bliss and happiness. Till what is presumably the final state of zero-entropy, where all 100 billion neurons function in total unified quantum coherence. The Bose-Einstein condensate equivalent of the neuronal system is what may be termed as Samadhi.