The Science Behind Meditation: Bridging the Gap Between Ancient & Eastern Wisdom and Modern Understanding

Meditation is a 4500 yr old spiritual practice that was first channeled by ancient sages and, then passed down and preserved, by oral traditions and later recorded in the Vedas, the central scriptures of Hinduism, specifically in the Upanishads. The Upanishads are philosophical dialogues relating to the concepts expressed by the Vedas. The word Veda means “knowledge” and the four Vedas are believed to contain the essential knowledge of the universe and how an individual is to live in it. The Vedas are considered Shruti (“what is heard”) in that they were received by sages in a deeply meditative state directly from God.The term Upanishads means to “sit down closely” as if drawing near to listen to some important instruction. So, the Vedas provide us with an overview of how the universe works and how one is to respond; the Upanishads then give instruction on the specifics of an individual's response and this is where we find the teachings of meditation. This faith of Hinduism is also known as Sanatan Dharma meaning “Eternal Order” or “Eternal Path”, and this order is thought to be revealed through the Vedas whose concepts are again, believed to be direct knowledge communicated from God including the meditation practice and techniques many of us know today.

In the west, in 1920 we were first notably introduced to Meditation through the great Saint & Kriya Yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda. Who is now known as "the Father of yoga in the west". On meditation, Yogananda, is quoted on saying the following, " When you meditate, deeply, God's light of divine wisdom cauterizes the seeds of undesirable karma stored in the deep recesses of consciousness in the brain." “Do not be anxious if you don’t have meditative experiences. The path to God is not a circus! Don’t even be anxious about such fruits of meditation as inner joy and peace. Everything will come in time. Meanwhile, consider meditation, too, as a form of karma yoga: action without desire for the fruits of action. Meditate above all to please your higher self, not your ego.” In another passage he reiterates the first passage by saying, " Every time you meditate on God, beneficial changes take place in the patterns of your brain." We can deduct from these quotes the claims that meditation actually alters our brain's functioning patterns as well as the advice to not fret if we aren't skilled meditator's instead to focus on the act of meditating vs how well we are meditating or what it is we are trying to achieve through meditation.

Now that we understand where the first written record of meditation originates from and we have a brief introduction of the Saint known for spreading the practice in the west as well as some examples of his thoughts & advice on meditation, we are ready to see what the science has to say. In 2014 Dr. Fadel Zeidon, a cognitive neuroscientist with the center for mindfulness, in the Institute for Empathy and Compassion, published preliminary data showcasing the results of brain functioning in 14 subjects, before and after a 20 minute meditation practice. The subjects brains were scanned using Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging, a device that allows for us to take a snap shot image of an individuals brain activation and deactivation. The results showed state anxiety was reduced by 22% in participants after only 20 mins of meditation following the brief explanation on how to practice. These participants weren't seeking an outcome but were instructed to focus solely on the instructions and techniques given for the practice. Essentially we could say they were directed to approach it as a karma yogi and through such their ego or frustration around whether or not they were doing it right or feeling any specific result was out of the equation. And we know through this study that even through a first time, "imperfect" meditation, in which the benefits are not sought after, they will still come. Through that lens we can make the correlations to Yoganada's wisdom as profoundly meaningful and useful to the beginning meditator.

But what about the patterns in the brain? Were those shown to be changed just as Yogananda and the wise sages before him claimed? The science says yes! What we know is that when someone is stressed out or anxious there's an inability of the part of the brain that controls thoughts and emotions to work. Brain images show us that your prefrontal cortex and your anterior cingulate cortex are deactivated in this state. Generally speaking they are deactivated because they reflect an inability to govern or control thoughts, worries, and anxieties. The part of the brain that becomes highly activated during stress and anxiety is the posterior cingulate cortex. This is the part of the brain that is associated with mind wandering, self referential thought processes aka the thoughts in our head. The results of Dr. Zeidan's study showed that the correlation between the reduction in state anxiety by 22% after the meditation, was associated with greater activation in these exact brain regions. So higher activation in the anterior cingulate cortex and the prefrontal cortex predicted reductions in anxiety and greater deactivation of the region of the posterior cingulate cortex also predicted reductions in anxiety. So even if you aren't an expert in techniques or meditating for spiritual self-realization, meditation can still help your over all well being by regulating and changing your brain patterns and is therefore a practice for everyone. Meditation is known to have more benefits than just reducing anxiety and there's other studies and other examples of yogi's imparting the wisdom of meditation but for now this gives you a quick glimpse into how the gap of science and eastern spiritual sciences have been closing for sometime now. So if you aren't already working towards incorporating meditation into your daily self regulation and/or spiritual practice then take a moment to ask yourself, "what am I waiting for?".

I learned how to meditate by my first teacher and guru, Corey Dowds, who is a part of the direct lineage of Paramahansa Yogananda in the Kriya Yoga Order. I am not initiated into Kriya Yoga but this is the foundation of my meditation practice and style, though I can teach meditation using whatever language(science or spiritual) that is comfortable to the person I am teaching. Regardless of what your intentions behind meditating are here are some helpful tips on how to do it.

Tip 1. You don't have to sit cross legged to meditate if it's uncomfortable. Most of us in the west didn't grow up meditating and sitting in a cross legged position and therefore it can be uncomfortable for our bodies to sit that way. Or we may have health conditions that make it more difficult. Whatever the case, using a chair will work just as well. The key is to be sitting straight up but in a comfortable sitting position in whatever way that means to you.

Tip 2. If you are falling asleep during meditation, a helpful technique to become more alert can be found by gently massaging or tapping your 3rd eye chakra (The space in the center of your forehead, right above your eyebrows) A long term solution can be found by observing your sleeping patterns and nutrition. Yoga before meditation can also prepare the body in this way and was its original intended use.

Tip 3. Remember that patience and consistency are key to any practice. Like the wisdom parted onto us from Yogananda or from what we can conclude about the above scientific study, imperfect meditation is perfectly ok and letting go of any ego attachment to being the "best mediator" or the expected result of the practice, is key to allowing the benefits to flow naturally to us and without resistance.

Tip 4. What is meditation? Meditation is a practice in which an individual focuses their attention generally speaking, on the breath. The individual is trained to focus on the changing sensations of their breathing and not if but when their mind gets distracted the individual is taught to acknowledge distracting thoughts & feelings for what they are and to simply let them go without judging themselves or the distraction by bringing their attention back to their breath.

Tip 5. Click this link if you're interested in hearing more about what Yogananda says about meditation and how to do it.

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