Re: The God Spots in the Brain

"Immortalist" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote in message
news:[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> The God Spot
>
> We evolved with a "god spot," a desire and need to look toward something
> beyond us, something that can provide meaning and direction for our lives,
> our high and low experiences, and can help us understand and control what
> goes on in the world around us. With what do we fill that spot? I propose
in
> this series of lectures to explore how our forebears achieved this tens of
> thousands of years ago and how infants do so today. Such barely culturated
> experiences and beliefs teach about what the god that adequately fills the
> god spot must satisfy. The lectures continue by describing how
Christianity
> has, does, and might better fill this god spot in each of us.
>
> http://www.ksharpe.com/word/EP36.htm
>
> ----------------------------
>
> Believers from every tradition and around the world have reported similar
> sensations of religious experience - a feeling of completeness, absence of
> self, or oneness with the universe, feelings of peace, freedom from fear,
> ecstatic joy, visions of a Supreme Being.
>
> With the aid of new technology that allows them to watch the brain in
> action, a group of scientists - sometimes described as
"neurotheologists" -
> have tried to explain how such experiences occur and perhaps even why.
>
> "There are certain [brain] patterns that can be generated experimentally
> that will generate the sense, presence and the feeling of God-like
> experiences," says professor of Neuroscience Michael Persinger of
Ontario's
> Laurentia University. "The patterns we use are complex but they imitate
what
> the brain does normally."
>
> Persinger originally set out to explore the nature of creativity and sense
> of self. But his research into patterns of brain activity led him to delve
> into the nature of mystical experiences as well.
>
> To do this Persinger puts his subjects in a quiet room, depriving them of
> light and sound, so that the nerve cells typically involved in seeing and
> hearing are not stimulated. Then he applies a magnetic field pattern over
> the right hemisphere of the brain.
>
> Persinger was asked if his work leads him to conclude that "God," or the
> experience of God, is solely the creation of brain-wave activity.
>
> "My point of view is, 'Let's measure it.' Let's keep an open mind and
> realize maybe there is no God; maybe there might be," says Persinger.
"We're
> not going to answer it by arguments - we're going to answer it by
> measurement and understanding the areas of the brain that generate the
> experience and the patterns that experimentally produce it in the
> laboratory."
>
> Mind, Body and Belief
>
> To others who have thought deeply about religion, that is a conclusion
that
> far outstrips the evidence - a scientific leap of faith, if you will.
>
> "They have isolated one small aspect of religious experience and they are
> identifying that with the whole of religion," says John Haught, professor
of
> theology at Georgetown University.
>
> Religion "is not all meditative bliss. It also involves moments when you
> feel abandoned by God," says Haught. "It involves commitments and
suffering
> and struggle.. Religion is visiting widows and orphans; it is symbolism
and
> myth and story and much richer things."
>
> Persinger says he is less concerned with trying to prove or disprove the
> existence of God than with understanding and documenting the experience.
> However, in his view, "if we have to draw conclusions now, based upon the
> data, the answer would be more on the fact that there is no deity."
>
> He is clear about an underlying motivation of his work - a fear that
> unscrupulous people might use techniques to provoke a spiritual experience
> to control people.
>
> But Persinger also acknowledges a more positive possibility: "If you look
at
> the spontaneous cases of people who have God experiences and conversions,
> their health improves," he says. "So if we can understand the patterns of
> activity that generate this experience, we may also be able to understand
> how to have the brain - and hence the body - cure itself."
>
> What Prayer Does
>
> That search for the mind-body connection also motivates the work of other
> researchers, such as Professor Andrew Newberg at the University of
> Pennsylvania.
>
> "Whether there is a God or not in some senses isn't as relevant to the
kind
> of research we're doing so much as understanding why those feelings and
> experiences are important to us as human beings," he says.
>
> Newberg observed the brains of Tibetan Buddhists and Franciscan nuns as
they
> engaged in deep prayer and mediation by injecting radioactive dye, or
> "tracer" as the subject entered a deep meditative state, then
photographing
> the results with a high tech imaging camera. He found that "when people
> meditate they have significantly increased activity in the frontal area -
> the attention area of the brain - and decreased activity in that
orientation
> part of the brain."
>
> Many of these changes occur whether people are praying (focusing on
oneness
> with a deity) or meditating (focusing on oneness with the universe). But
> there are differences, in that prayer activates the "language center" in
the
> brain, while the "visual center" is engaged by meditation.
>
> Either way, Newberg finds that the sense of "unity," or "oneness"
> experienced by his subjects is a real, biological event. And he
acknowledges
> the limits of his own work: He currently lacks a means to measure the
> neurological events associated with other religious practices - such as
> caring for the poor or ecstatic worship.
>
> "Our work really points to the fact that these are very complex kinds of
> feelings and experiences that affect us on many different levels," says
> Newberg. "There is no one simple way of looking at these kinds of
> questions."
>
> Science and the Afterlife
>
> Across the country, at the University of Arizona, professor of Neurology
and
> Psychiatry Gary Schwartz would probably say: "Amen" to that.
>
> Perhaps the most controversial of the group of researchers dedicated to
> studying the "God spot" in the brain, Schwartz explores the question of
> whether consciousness survives death with the help of mediums (people who
> demonstrate unusual accuracy in describing intimate attributes of the dead
> to those who knew them well).
>
> His experiments compare the brain waves and heart rates of both the medium
> and the person for whom he or she is trying to contact the dead.
>
> "One of the fundamental questions is, 'How does a medium receive this kind
> of information?'" he explains. "To what extent are they using specific
> regions of the brain which are purportedly associated with other kinds of
> mystical or religious experiences?"
>
> Schwartz says his research "is actually a window or a doorway, if you
will,
> to a much larger spiritual reality which integrates ancient wisdom with
> contemporary science."
>
> He concludes that the human brain is wired to receive signals from what he
> calls a "Grand Organizing Design," or G.O.D.
>
> "Survival of conscience tells us that consciousness does not require a
> brain, that our memories, our intentions, our intelligence, our dreams?
all
> of that can exist outside of the physical body," says Schwartz. "Now, by
the
> way, that's the same idea that we have about God - that something that is
> "invisible," that is "bigger than all of us," which we cannot see, can
have
> intellect, creativity, intention, memory and can influence the universe."
>
> The Quest for Larger Things
>
> Like the other researchers interviewed for Nightline, Schwartz suggests
that
> his work has taken him on a personal spiritual journey, requiring him to
ask
> himself hard questions about science, faith, and reason. And Schwartz says
> that rather than diminishing faith, inquiries like his should enlarge the
> world's understanding of it.
>
> On that point, he and theologian John Haught agree.
>
> "Faith is the sense of being grasped by this higher dimension, or more
> comprehensive, or deeper reality," says Haught. "If we could come up with
> clear proof or an absolutely mathematically lucid proof or verification of
> deity, then that would not be deity - it would be something smaller than
> us.."
>
> http://tinyurl.com/wpob
>
> ----------------------------
>
> Scientists, philosophers and atheists have long argued that God and
> spirituality are constructs of the human mind, although that opinion
> generally hasn't been a popular one. After centuries of bloody holy wars
and
> fierce theological dispute, the controversy of the Creator's existence has
> taken a strange new turn: humanity may finally have uncovered tangible
> evidence that the phenomenon of religious faith is all in our heads.
>
> Literally.
>
> A group of neuroscientists at the University of California at San Diego
has
> identified a region of the human brain that appears to be linked to
thoughts
> of spiritual matters and prayer. Their findings tentatively suggest that
we
> as a species are genetically programmed to believe in God.
>
> The researchers came upon these cerebral revelations in the course of
> studying the brain patterns of certain people with epilepsy. Epileptics
who
> suffer a particular type of seizure are often intensely religious, and are
> known to report an unusual number of spiritually-oriented visions and
> obsessions. Measurements of electrical activity in the brains of test
> subjects indicated a specific neural center in the temporal lobe that
flared
> up at times when the subjects thought about God. This same area was also a
> common focal point overloaded with electrical discharges during their
> epileptic seizures.
>
> Could this heretofore unidentified part of the brain -- nicknamed the "God
> module" -- actually be some sort of physiological seat of religious
belief?
> The scientists who discovered it believe it might be. They have performed
a
> further study comparing epileptic subjects with different groups of
> non-epileptics -- a random group of average people, as well as individuals
> who characterized themselves as extremely religious. The electrical brain
> activity of the subjects was recorded while they were shown a series of
> words, and the God module zones of the epileptics and the religious group
> exhibited similar responses to words involving God and faith. No word yet
on
> whether the brains of atheists and agnostics might flatline the monitors,
> but the parallel results among the strong believers are considered
> impressive.
>
> "There may be dedicated neural machinery in the temporal lobes concerned
> with religion," the research team announced at a conference for the
Society
> for Neuroscience. "This may have evolved to impose order and stability on
> society."
>
> Anthropologists and Darwinian theorists have frequently speculated that
> religion may have developed as a self-policing mechanism as cooperation
with
> others became useful. With their intelligence and skills at making
weapons,
> there was little to stop early humans from slaughtering each other like
wild
> maniacs, until they began to fear unseen beings even bigger and badder
than
> themselves. This sort of adaptation has always been considered a purely
> psychological function, but now we have the first evidence that the
> religious instinct may be physically hard-wired right into our noggins.
>
> Which brings us to the most intriguing conundrum posed by the discovery of
> the God Spot. It's a double-edged sword shoved right through the heart of
> the science vs. religion debate, bearing either good news or bad news for
> the faithful masses depending on how you answer the chicken-or-the-egg
> question: does it mean that God created our brains, or that our brains
> created God?
>
> "These studies do not in any way negate the validity of religious
experience
> or God," the God module's discoverers took care to note, plainly
> anticipating a reception of fire and brimstone from certain quarters.
"They
> merely provide an explanation in terms of brain regions that may be
> involved."
>
> No matter how inconclusive or sketchy they label their findings as being,
> these scientists will inevitably be denounced as heathenistic blasphemers
> doing the work of Satan. Yet at the very same time, other equally devout
> worshipers will praise this discovery as a beautiful and wondrous epiphany
> that spells out God's great plan.
>
> So what'll it be? A sacred temple in the temporal lobes, or an incidental
> conflagration of the synapses? The Kingdom of Heaven confined to the
insides
> of our skulls, or "I think of God, therefore He is"? Touched in the head
by
> an angel, or brainwashed into belief by biology?
>
> Believe what you want, but either way, I think those who draw any serious
> mechanistic or teleological conclusions from this research ought to have
> their heads examined, as well.
>
> http://tinyurl.com/r3ik
>
> -------------------------------
>
> An article in Nov 17th, 2001 edition of New Scientist magazine claimed
that
> the prophet Ezekiel probably suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy. It
> maintains that many of the typical, tell-tale signs are there, such as
> fainting spells, temporary bouts of speechlessness, aggression, delusions,
> compulsive writing, and excessive religiousness.
>
> There is nothing particularly original about the New Scientist's claim.
For
> many years now, there has been a suspicion that people like St Paul, St.
> Joan of Arc, St. Teresa of Avila and Mohammed may have suffered from what
is
> sometimes referred to as the 'sacred disease.' It is also quite possible
> that, like them, Ezekiel was a victim of the same malady.
>
> In recent times, many neuroscientists have carried out brain research
which
> has tended to confirm that epilepsy and religiosity are often
> interconnected. For example, in 1998, Vilayanur Ramachandran, of San Diego
> University, published a book entitled, Phantoms in the Brain. In it he
> maintained that, following seizures, about 25 per cent of epileptics
report
> deeply moving spiritual experiences. They include a feeling of a divine
> presence and a sense of direct communication with God. Everything around
> them is imbued with cosmic significance. They may say, "I finally
understand
> what it is all about... Suddenly it all makes sense... I have insight into
> the true nature of the universe."
>
> As a result of examining the epileptics who report such significant
> religious experiences, Ramachandran and other researchers have suggested
> that there appears to be a "God spot" in the left temporal lobe of the
> brain. Briefly put, they suspect that epileptic seizures cause damage to
> some of the pathways which connect the area of the brain that deals with
> sensory information to the one that gives such information emotional
> significance. As a result, these patients can perceive an unusual depth of
> spiritual meaning in every object and event. Ramachandran goes on to ask a
> provocative question: if a surgeon removed a portion of the temporal lobe,
> would he be performing a "Godectomy"?
>
> http://www.redemptoristpublications.com/reality/sept02/godspot.html
>
> ----------------------------
>
> Seizures and the Sight of God
> Isabella Eguae-Obazee
> Researchers interested in the connection of the brain and religion have
> examined the experiences of people suffering from Temporal Lobe Epilepsy.
> Apparently the increased electrical activity in the brain resulting from
> seizure activity (abnormal electrical activity within localized portions
of
> the brain), makes sufferers more susceptible to having religious
experiences
> including visions of supernatural beings and near death experiences (NDEs)
> (9). Temporal Lobe Epilepsy (TLE) sufferers also may become increasingly
> obsessed with religion, the study and practice of it (1). Why is it that
> this form of epilepsy results in religious experiences among the other
> supernatural experiences possible? Can people who have never studied or
> practiced religion be susceptible to these same religious experiences? Why
> do some interested researchers claim that such notable figures as Paul on
> the road to Damascus, Joan of Arc, Ellen White of the Seventh-Day
Adventist
> Church and other persons suffered from TLE because of their range of
> reported experiences with God, angels, and demons (1,3)? In my first
paper,
> I highlighted the connection scientists have made between religious
> experience and the brain. In this paper, I intend to focus on Temporal
Lobe
> Epilepsy, as one of those connections, specifically the symptom of
> hyperreligiousity.
> In 1997 Vilayanur Ramachandran and his colleagues from the University of
> California at San Diego headed a research study. The team studied patients
> of temporal lobe epilepsy measuring galvanic skin response on the left
hands
> of the patients (11). This measurement allowed the research team to
monitor
> arousal (specific autonomic nervous system response) and indirectly
surmise
> the communication between the inferior temporal lobe and the amygdala,
both
> important in response related to fear and arousal (9). In addition to two
> control groups a religious control group and a non-religious control
group,
> each group was shown forty words, including violent words, sexual words,
and
> simple words (like "wheel"), and finally, religious-related words. The
> results of the study showed a greater arousal in the temporal lobe
epilepsy
> sufferers to religious words in comparison to the non-religious, whom were
> aroused by sexual words, and religious control groups, whom were aroused
by
> religious and sexual words (10).
>
> Ramachandran and his team concluded that although the patients were not
> experiencing seizures or experiencing supernatural occurrences at the time
> of testing, they were highly sensitive to religious words. Thus, the
> experiences of temporal lobe seizures strengthened the patients interest
in
> religion (11). Such a conclusion seems fairly reasonable considering that
> these patients also reported religious experiences during their seizures.
Is
> it possible that the increased arousal to religious words is not a direct
> result of their temporal lobe epilepsy, but rather a result of the
> supernatural experiences induced by their epilepsy? Possibly these
patients
> began to research and study religion more to finds ways to explain the
> experiences that they had during their seizures. Subsequent research on
very
> religious, non-epileptic subjects supports this idea. In a different
> experiment, the of very religious, non-epileptics' temporal lobes where
> noted to be more active (11). However, in epileptic patients, Ramachandran
> concludes that the seizure's damage to temporal lobe pathways makes these
> patients more sensitive to certain ideas that to others do not have great
> meaning; specifically, pathways that connect the part of the brain that
> gives recognizes to sensory information and the part that gives emotional
> meaning to the sensory information (4). Ramachandran believes that because
> of these specific damage, everything that these patients experience has
> great meaning (10).
>
> Some people, interested in proving God's inexistence, speculate that some
of
> the notable religious figures suffered from temporal lobe epilepsy. For
> example, they claim that Paul, a notable figure in Christianity had a
> temporal lobe seizure as he was walking toward Damascus (1). In the New
> Testament of the Bible, Paul claims to see God and hear Jesus Christ
> speaking to him. Other notable figures like Ellen Smith, of the
Seventh-day
> Adventist Church also claims to have had profound visions directly from
God.
> Contrary to these researchers belief, there are other components of
temporal
> epilepsy beyond hyperreligiousity that would negate these ideas.
Associated
> with temporal lobe epilepsy is also a change in personality. The person
may
> become irritable and obsessive-compulsive; they focus on extremely
abstract
> aspects of their daily life, and attach a great deal of importance to
daily
> situations. In addition they experience emotions with more intensity. With
> respect to these religious figures, the only one noted have any possible
> experience with epilepsy is Ellen White, an influential member of the
> Seventh Day Adventist Church. She suffered from a head injury during her
> childhood however the head injury was suffered near the nasal-area of her
> face (3). I found very little evidence to support the claims that her
among
> other religious figures suffered from TLE.
>
> From the studies completed on Temporal Epilepsy patients, it appears that
> hyperreligiousity may simply be a result of increased interest in the
> details and experiences of everyday life. However, the visions and other
> supernatural experiences reported by these patients gives cause for
> researchers to examine the temporal area of the brain. This portion of the
> brain may be what researchers are calling the "God Spot," a part of the
> brain where religion arises from (11). It is not clear why this would be
an
> ideal place for the so-called "God Spot." It is possible that the known
> functioning of the Temporal Lobe, recognizing sensory information and
> attributing meaning to sensory information is akin to the philosophies of
> religion. Maybe, the "God Spot" acquires its spot over time rather than
> having its presence in the brain early on in a human's life. If this were
> true, the next step would be to examine the Temporal Epilepsy cases of
> younger children. Do they also experience religion as older patients do?
>
> Furthermore, if possible researchers should examine the prior religious
> experiences and lives of temporal lobe epilepsy patients. Did they have
any
> interest in religion prior to their experiences with epilepsy? This may
> provide insight intensity and contents of the persons reported religious
> experiences. Hyperreligiousity is an interesting symptom of Temporal Lobe
> Epilepsy. The action of the temporal lobe after experiencing epileptic
> seizures supports the idea that religion might begin in the mind (10). I
> hope that within the coming years more scientists will research this
aspect
> of temporal lobe epilepsy. Thus, giving us more insight into whether the
> soul is within the brain.
>
> http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/bb/neuro/neuro01/web2/Eguae.html
>
> ----------------------------------
>
> 1)Epilepsy: Sacred Disease by Paul Newman
> http://stormloader.com/users/abrax7/epilepsy.htm
>
> 2)Yours, Mine, and Ours: Whose God is it, anyway?
> http://slate.msn.com/goodword/98-10-13/goodword.asp
>
> 3)Ellen G. White, by Don Hawley, Part 8
> http://www.sabbath.com/white/egw8.htm
>
> 4)BrainPlace.Com, Temporal Lobe
> http://www.brainplace.com/bp/brainsystem/temporal.asp
>
> 5)"The God Spot"
> http://www.parascope.com/articles/slips/fs22_3.htm
>
> 6)Brainstorms, A book review by Robert Finn
> http://nasw.org/finn/brnstrm.html
>
> 7)Personal Experience
> http://www.objectivethought.com/atheism/personalexperience.html
>
> 8)WebMD: Temporal Lobe Seizure
> http://my.webmd.com/content/asset/adam_disease_psychomotor_seizure
>
> 9)Touched by the Word of God
> http://www.newscientist.com/ns/971108/nreligion.html
>
> 10)Beliefnet
> http://tinyurl.com/wpnu
>
> 11)Genesis of Eden
> http://dhushara.tripod.com/book/rebirth/comment/scirel.htm
>
>

Nicked this from sci.Logic

http://www.godpart.com/pages/premise2.html