Monday, June 25, 2007
Epilepsy and Spiritual Literature
Spirituality has been associated with a mysterious epilepsy-like medical condition.
For example, a study reported at the American Neurological Association meeting in October 2002 by Dr. Thomas Hayton and associates reported people with epilepsy were more religious and spiritual than the general population. They scored higher than others in terms of daily, personal spiritual experiences (feeling the presence of God, love, deep inner peace, and the beauty of creation). They also scored higher in measures of the strength of their spiritual beliefs and values.
Here is one explanation. Our states of consciousness are managed in the temporal lobes of our brains. The temporal lobes do all sorts of things including language, long-term memory storage, emotional reactions, perceiving spatial relationships, and music, smells are interpreted here, as well as patterns, whether these are patterns in time or in space.
Most importantly, the human sense of self is maintained here, including our feelings of self-worth, our sense of being an independent person, and it infuses our moment-to-moment experiences with meaningfulness. If the pathways that are involved with the experience of meaningfulness have their thresholds lowered, individuals find meaning in more and more things. Miss the bus? It was 'meant' to happen. One may also experience less of a sense of independence, such as being under God's will, or in the presence of another.
The temporal lobes are unique in having their own special kind of epilepsy. Its usually called temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), but it also goes by the name of 'complex partial seizures' because it stays in the temporal lobes of the brain. Because the temporal lobes control states of consciousness, unsusual activity produces odd states, at least compared to that person's usual (or baseline) states.
Todd Murphy, a behavioural neuroscientist reports that sufferes of TLE might 'hear voices', and are more likely to spend time writing. Poets have been found to have TL 'signs' more often than others. There are important language centers in the temporal lobes, and when the temporal lobes are generally more active, these language centers are going to be affected. When TLE patients were asked if they 'felt that they had an important book to write', most answered 'true'.
Great works of spiritual literature or brain malfunction? Gives one pause for thought.
For example, a study reported at the American Neurological Association meeting in October 2002 by Dr. Thomas Hayton and associates reported people with epilepsy were more religious and spiritual than the general population. They scored higher than others in terms of daily, personal spiritual experiences (feeling the presence of God, love, deep inner peace, and the beauty of creation). They also scored higher in measures of the strength of their spiritual beliefs and values.
Here is one explanation. Our states of consciousness are managed in the temporal lobes of our brains. The temporal lobes do all sorts of things including language, long-term memory storage, emotional reactions, perceiving spatial relationships, and music, smells are interpreted here, as well as patterns, whether these are patterns in time or in space.
Most importantly, the human sense of self is maintained here, including our feelings of self-worth, our sense of being an independent person, and it infuses our moment-to-moment experiences with meaningfulness. If the pathways that are involved with the experience of meaningfulness have their thresholds lowered, individuals find meaning in more and more things. Miss the bus? It was 'meant' to happen. One may also experience less of a sense of independence, such as being under God's will, or in the presence of another.
The temporal lobes are unique in having their own special kind of epilepsy. Its usually called temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), but it also goes by the name of 'complex partial seizures' because it stays in the temporal lobes of the brain. Because the temporal lobes control states of consciousness, unsusual activity produces odd states, at least compared to that person's usual (or baseline) states.
Todd Murphy, a behavioural neuroscientist reports that sufferes of TLE might 'hear voices', and are more likely to spend time writing. Poets have been found to have TL 'signs' more often than others. There are important language centers in the temporal lobes, and when the temporal lobes are generally more active, these language centers are going to be affected. When TLE patients were asked if they 'felt that they had an important book to write', most answered 'true'.
Great works of spiritual literature or brain malfunction? Gives one pause for thought.
Labels: epilepsy, spirituality, temporal lobes
¶ 5:04 PM 0 Comments
Monday, June 18, 2007
Motivational literature on adversity is not Biblical
Modern motivational literature says: "there is no failure; there is only feedback". They suggest that successful people look at mistakes as outcomes or results, not as failure.
The ancient literature has another view of failure, a view that had to be learned as a consequence only of trial and error experience, through mistakes. People self-limit themselves when they don't know these ancient truths. Most people do not achieve a fraction of what they are capable of achieving because they are stumbling in the dark without the wisdom of the past.
Here the beliefs found in motivational literature are compared with the wisdom literature.
Belief: Take Action. Bold, decisive action. Do something scary. Fear of failure immobilizes you. To overcome this fear, you must act. When you act, act boldly. Action gives you the power to change the circumstances or the situation.
The Bible suggests a more cautious approach. For example, Proverbs 14:8 "The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception."
In Biblical view, instead of "What would you do if you knew you could not fail?" we should be thinking about "What could be the consequences to yourself and those around you?" It is not a matter of being brave. If it doesn’t work out the way you want, doing something else may not be possible, and beware if you fall into a trap.
Belief: Persist. Successful people just don’t give up. They keep trying different approaches to achieving their outcomes until they finally get the results they want.
But in Proverbs 22:3 "A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it." While successful people take note of things that don’t work, the Biblical examine their motives. Often excessively persistent can gain goalsat the expense of other more important things in life.
and young men stumble and fall;
But in Proverbs 3:33 "The Lord's curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous." Although what you do may not think you are the problem, when you don't get the result you wanted, you may be the reason.
And in Proverbs 16:2 "All a man's ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord."
Belief: Do things differently. If what you are doing isn’t working, do something else. There is an old saying, "if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got." If you’re not getting the results you want, then you must do something different.
There are right things to do and wrong things to do, not just different things: Proverbs 15:10 "Stern discipline awaits him who leaves the path; he who hates correction will die."
Belief: Don’t be so hard on yourself. Hey, if nothing else, you know what doesn’t work. Failure is a judgement or evaluation of behavior. Look at failure as an event or a happening, not as a person.
The Bible disagrees again: Proverbs 10:16 "The wages of the righteous bring them life, but the income of the wicked brings them punishment." Correspondingly, examine your income to see which category you fall into: righteous or wicked. If you are reaping the income of the wicked, then it is time to look hard at yourself.
Proverbs 12:1 "Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid." Then use what you learned from the experience to examine yourself and your motives.
Belief: Look for possible opportunities that result from the experience. Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, says "every adversity, every failure and every heartache carries with it the seed of an equivalent or a greater benefit." Look for the opportunity and the benefit.
Adversity is a seed that God can bring to the harvest given a Biblical perspective. In fact, the Bible states that we can anticipate adversity resulting from success: John 15:2 "He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful." ¶ 9:52 PM 0 Comments
The ancient literature has another view of failure, a view that had to be learned as a consequence only of trial and error experience, through mistakes. People self-limit themselves when they don't know these ancient truths. Most people do not achieve a fraction of what they are capable of achieving because they are stumbling in the dark without the wisdom of the past.
Here the beliefs found in motivational literature are compared with the wisdom literature.
Belief: Take Action. Bold, decisive action. Do something scary. Fear of failure immobilizes you. To overcome this fear, you must act. When you act, act boldly. Action gives you the power to change the circumstances or the situation.
The Bible suggests a more cautious approach. For example, Proverbs 14:8 "The wisdom of the prudent is to give thought to their ways, but the folly of fools is deception."
In Biblical view, instead of "What would you do if you knew you could not fail?" we should be thinking about "What could be the consequences to yourself and those around you?" It is not a matter of being brave. If it doesn’t work out the way you want, doing something else may not be possible, and beware if you fall into a trap.
Belief: Persist. Successful people just don’t give up. They keep trying different approaches to achieving their outcomes until they finally get the results they want.
But in Proverbs 22:3 "A prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it." While successful people take note of things that don’t work, the Biblical examine their motives. Often excessively persistent can gain goalsat the expense of other more important things in life.
So if you have tried and failed, with self-help books lined up on your bookcase, the Bible suggests looking first for strength from the Lord: Isaiah 40:31
"Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint."
But in Proverbs 3:33 "The Lord's curse is on the house of the wicked, but he blesses the home of the righteous." Although what you do may not think you are the problem, when you don't get the result you wanted, you may be the reason.
And in Proverbs 16:2 "All a man's ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord."
Belief: Do things differently. If what you are doing isn’t working, do something else. There is an old saying, "if you always do what you’ve always done, you’ll always get what you always got." If you’re not getting the results you want, then you must do something different.
There are right things to do and wrong things to do, not just different things: Proverbs 15:10 "Stern discipline awaits him who leaves the path; he who hates correction will die."
Belief: Don’t be so hard on yourself. Hey, if nothing else, you know what doesn’t work. Failure is a judgement or evaluation of behavior. Look at failure as an event or a happening, not as a person.
The Bible disagrees again: Proverbs 10:16 "The wages of the righteous bring them life, but the income of the wicked brings them punishment." Correspondingly, examine your income to see which category you fall into: righteous or wicked. If you are reaping the income of the wicked, then it is time to look hard at yourself.
Belief: Fail forward fast. Tom Peters, the management guru, says that in today's business world, companies must fail forward fast. What he means is that the way we learn is by making mistakes, and we must make mistakes at a faster pace.
In Romans 8:25, "If we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." All throughout the Bible are warnings against impulsive actions and encourages waiting for the right time.
Proverbs has a way to knowledge other than making more mistakes: Proverbs 1:7 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline."
So if we want to progress at a faster pace, we must wait and fear (or revere) the Lord. We don't need to keep making mistake after mistake. The key is to line your behaviour up with the word of God. Then you will reap the promise of Proverbs 4:6 "Do not forsake wisdom, and she will protect you; love her, and she will watch over you."
Proverbs 12:1 "Whoever loves discipline loves knowledge, but he who hates correction is stupid." Then use what you learned from the experience to examine yourself and your motives.
Belief: Look for possible opportunities that result from the experience. Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, says "every adversity, every failure and every heartache carries with it the seed of an equivalent or a greater benefit." Look for the opportunity and the benefit.
Adversity is a seed that God can bring to the harvest given a Biblical perspective. In fact, the Bible states that we can anticipate adversity resulting from success: John 15:2 "He cuts off every branch in me that bears no fruit, while every branch that does bear fruit he prunes so that it will be even more fruitful." ¶ 9:52 PM 0 Comments
A World Within
Consider a world within, a world within worlds. Where the nightingales play and tuneful gondolas lap through eerie labyrinths. Our mind, it is said, is a complex organ or is it as has been written, a reflection of the world like a canal façade rippling among the dip of poles and serene swish of passage.
Consider a world within. It is, is it not, a world of poetry or a world of repartee? Is it a world of spirits dwelling or a world of robots clanking and whirring or any of these? What is your world within? What is your conception of your world within, that is, the reflection of your reflection? And does your reflection affect your reflection and does the reflection affect the reflected, that is, our view of the world affects our action which changes it?
Our world within, the influence of our thinking, that we need to change to change our reality. Is there a shift or a shake that rearranges it for the benefit, or is there a trauma that scars it forever? And is there healing in this world and also suffering. Our world, personal, or public?
A world within is an endeavor to understand the world of our minds from a variety of viewpoints that will enable us to better use that amazing resource. We can see the results of different worlds in different actions and lifestyles. We can see the people with fertile worlds or desert landscapes. The mind of the city, of the internet and the bar. But we cannot easily control the change. That is, to reflect our reflection easily. To realize the reality that is the conception.
We are looking into the spirit of man and his core that reflects all there is. We are looking into a world of demons and angels. A world that is a once solid as a testament but then strange, like a devil reading from a bible. These too are world that emerge when we admit to worlds within. But without worlds within we have only worlds without. Which, I am prepared to say, is a distinct and comforting possibility, but not so near to my feelings.
I am not only writing to those who are whole and able, but to those who have been to hell and back. To those who are desperate and those who are trying to feed the flock of lost sheep. There is much to say and I will start with a story.
In one of my struggles with my mind, I was convinced something was wrong. I had trouble concentrating, focusing and forget where I was momentarily, entering another world so to speak. For example, I would go roller-skating and suddenly trip and fall, suddenly clumsy, suddenly losing track of my legs. While this does not seem a very serious condition, still a friend convinced me to go to a doctor and they found something on an EEG and pronounced that I had epilepsy from early birth trauma. The prescribed the anti-convulsive drug Dilantin. Wow. The first pill made such a difference! I felt suddenly like I was real. As if the past years had been spent in a dream. I don’t know what the medical implications of that are, whether the effect of a medicine can confirm a condition. However, the change was dramatic. My inner world, instead of being unstable, prone to sudden life changes, impulsive departures and changes of direction, became focused. I embarked on a program of study that ultimately led to a job in a laboratory. It was there that the prospect of side effects of constant drug-taking concerned me and I decided to stop. By then, I had experienced enough of a normal life within and felt I could emulate it without from then on. It ultimately led to further study, and a PhD in mathematical modeling. I think I was determined to prove to myself there was nothing wrong with my mind, and the proof was the highest academic success.
This illustrates the feature of the world within, that given an experience of a world, we can make this world persist. Until we experience of the world within some way, we can create it perhaps, but most of us need to experience it first.
Most people are familiar with the process of modeling, where one person by modeling the kind of behaviors desired, will better influence the others in that direction. Modeling is a form of inner world experiment.
Another form of inner world emanates from books or acts of any kind. A well-crafted book or movie can have through attention to every detail of its world it creates, an effect on the mind that creates an inner world. Immersion and repetition also intensifies the effect until it can be turned on constantly.
Literature can also exhibit inner world. For example, the Bible is not so much about something but an expression of an inner world of God’s existence. A world that is so persuasive that millions of people have cohabited within its rich corridors. And Christians speak of reading the Bible and “spending time with the Word” as an experience of other world immersion. Faith, spirit, and prayer are inner world constituents that solidify and give permanence to that world. Loss of faith, lack of faith, and so on associated with shallow, dissolute and perhaps desperate lives, at least, it is said by believers. Many effectual people are not believers, but there are other worlds that in occupation produce lives of substance, solidity, and predictable desirableness.
Consider a world within. It is, is it not, a world of poetry or a world of repartee? Is it a world of spirits dwelling or a world of robots clanking and whirring or any of these? What is your world within? What is your conception of your world within, that is, the reflection of your reflection? And does your reflection affect your reflection and does the reflection affect the reflected, that is, our view of the world affects our action which changes it?
Our world within, the influence of our thinking, that we need to change to change our reality. Is there a shift or a shake that rearranges it for the benefit, or is there a trauma that scars it forever? And is there healing in this world and also suffering. Our world, personal, or public?
A world within is an endeavor to understand the world of our minds from a variety of viewpoints that will enable us to better use that amazing resource. We can see the results of different worlds in different actions and lifestyles. We can see the people with fertile worlds or desert landscapes. The mind of the city, of the internet and the bar. But we cannot easily control the change. That is, to reflect our reflection easily. To realize the reality that is the conception.
We are looking into the spirit of man and his core that reflects all there is. We are looking into a world of demons and angels. A world that is a once solid as a testament but then strange, like a devil reading from a bible. These too are world that emerge when we admit to worlds within. But without worlds within we have only worlds without. Which, I am prepared to say, is a distinct and comforting possibility, but not so near to my feelings.
I am not only writing to those who are whole and able, but to those who have been to hell and back. To those who are desperate and those who are trying to feed the flock of lost sheep. There is much to say and I will start with a story.
In one of my struggles with my mind, I was convinced something was wrong. I had trouble concentrating, focusing and forget where I was momentarily, entering another world so to speak. For example, I would go roller-skating and suddenly trip and fall, suddenly clumsy, suddenly losing track of my legs. While this does not seem a very serious condition, still a friend convinced me to go to a doctor and they found something on an EEG and pronounced that I had epilepsy from early birth trauma. The prescribed the anti-convulsive drug Dilantin. Wow. The first pill made such a difference! I felt suddenly like I was real. As if the past years had been spent in a dream. I don’t know what the medical implications of that are, whether the effect of a medicine can confirm a condition. However, the change was dramatic. My inner world, instead of being unstable, prone to sudden life changes, impulsive departures and changes of direction, became focused. I embarked on a program of study that ultimately led to a job in a laboratory. It was there that the prospect of side effects of constant drug-taking concerned me and I decided to stop. By then, I had experienced enough of a normal life within and felt I could emulate it without from then on. It ultimately led to further study, and a PhD in mathematical modeling. I think I was determined to prove to myself there was nothing wrong with my mind, and the proof was the highest academic success.
This illustrates the feature of the world within, that given an experience of a world, we can make this world persist. Until we experience of the world within some way, we can create it perhaps, but most of us need to experience it first.
Most people are familiar with the process of modeling, where one person by modeling the kind of behaviors desired, will better influence the others in that direction. Modeling is a form of inner world experiment.
Another form of inner world emanates from books or acts of any kind. A well-crafted book or movie can have through attention to every detail of its world it creates, an effect on the mind that creates an inner world. Immersion and repetition also intensifies the effect until it can be turned on constantly.
Literature can also exhibit inner world. For example, the Bible is not so much about something but an expression of an inner world of God’s existence. A world that is so persuasive that millions of people have cohabited within its rich corridors. And Christians speak of reading the Bible and “spending time with the Word” as an experience of other world immersion. Faith, spirit, and prayer are inner world constituents that solidify and give permanence to that world. Loss of faith, lack of faith, and so on associated with shallow, dissolute and perhaps desperate lives, at least, it is said by believers. Many effectual people are not believers, but there are other worlds that in occupation produce lives of substance, solidity, and predictable desirableness.
Labels: cognition, mind, thinking
¶ 5:11 PM 0 Comments
Tuesday, June 5, 2007
Pursuing the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is presented throughout the Bible as a source of power. But our actions can determine the extent of this power in us. The Bible instructs us in how to pursue the Holy Spirit and invite the Holy Spirit into our lives.
1. Pursue good, as the Holy Spirit is provided in order that we may 'tend the sheep'. The measure of the Holy Spirit increases in one's life in order to meet the demands of the flocks you shepherd.
2. Pursue excellence, as the Holy Spirit will not abide in laziness or sloppiness. This means checking your current activities for sloppiness and cleaning up messes, and also evaluating future activities on the basis of excellence. If excellence is not possible, because you are over committed already, perhaps it should be given to someone else. The excellent worker will be brought into the presence of Kings.
3. Obey the Lord, as the Holy Spirit is His helper. Watch and wait on the Lord's guidance and the train of the Holy Spirit will arrive on perfect time.
1. Pursue good, as the Holy Spirit is provided in order that we may 'tend the sheep'. The measure of the Holy Spirit increases in one's life in order to meet the demands of the flocks you shepherd.
2. Pursue excellence, as the Holy Spirit will not abide in laziness or sloppiness. This means checking your current activities for sloppiness and cleaning up messes, and also evaluating future activities on the basis of excellence. If excellence is not possible, because you are over committed already, perhaps it should be given to someone else. The excellent worker will be brought into the presence of Kings.
3. Obey the Lord, as the Holy Spirit is His helper. Watch and wait on the Lord's guidance and the train of the Holy Spirit will arrive on perfect time.
Labels: Holy Spirit
¶ 10:51 AM 0 Comments
