The Mind of a Mystic
Does all life spring from one cosmic source? Are we all connected in ways too deep for the mind to grasp?
Is there really such a thing as no-mind state?
For centuries, science and spirituality have been battling it out on these issues of perennial importance for humanity.
Although spiritual leaders have always maintained that the no-mind state is a 'real' phenomenon, and a perfectly realizable goal for all of us, the scientific community has naturally been unwilling to accept this without solid proof.
For the first time in our century, science has hopefully found a key to supernormal and paranormal phenomena, with solid medical evidence that explains why the spiritually super-evolved are blessed with 'powers' that the rest of us can only daydream about.
In March 2004, hoping to find answers to these vital questions, a team of top neurologists from Oklahoma (USA) performed pioneering and extensive scientific research on THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM's science-defying neurological system.
The team's preliminary research report, presented in the following pages, has profound relevance not only for the global medical fraternity, but for every one of us who has been silently asking these same questions - who believe and yet don't believe, who know and yet don't know - for all of humanity, fellow adventurers on this pathless path that is Life!
A Mind Matters Column™ The Mind of a Mystic By R. Murali Krishna, M.D. President COO, INTEGRIS Mental Health & James L. Hall, Jr. Center for Mind, Body and Spirit
THE SUPREME PONTIFF OF HINDUISM BHAGAWAN SRI NITHYANANDA PARAMASHIVAM is a trim, healthy-looking young man with dark, shoulder-length hair. Handsome and polite, possessing an open manner and a wealth of curiosity, he could be any ordinary American college student.
The difference is that ordinary American college students do not wear saffron robes and turbans, have not experienced spiritual enlightenment and are not regarded as a teacher, healer and mystic by millions of people in all corners of the world.
A mystic? The term is not a bad fit for 'Swami', as he is known. Mystics, popular culture tells us, have direct communion with God. Through means not understood or measurable, mystics are thought to have access to ultimate realities or truths. Picture a mystic and you'll probably picture someone full of bliss, someone gifted with lofty thoughts and insights that the rest of us do not possess. The very presence of a mystic is thought to bring peace and healing to others.
That's an apt description of Swami, a 27-year-old from South Bharat. He is approached by thousands of people every year seeking relief from diseases and ailments that conventional medical approaches have not cured. Swami's background lends him the air of a mystic, too. He left his home as a teen, visited ashrams across Bharat, immersed himself in philosophy, read extensively and mastered the art of meditation.
When Swami passed through Oklahoma City recently as one stop in his world travels, I asked him if he would let me use some of modern medicine's newest technology to peer into his brain while he meditated. My goal: to understand, measure and demystify what happens during the mystic phenomena. Swami, who believes that meditation has a scientific basis, happily agreed.
The procedures Swami went through were administered by some of Oklahoma City's finest and most experienced physicians, neuropsychologists and researchers: Drs. Fordyce, Ruwe and Higgins of the Jim Thorpe Rehabilitation Center Neuropsychology Department and Dr. Chacko of the PET Center of Oklahoma. These doctors were using technology they use with patients on a routine basis. When they look at images obtained by their technology, they know what's normal and what's not.
The results from testing Swami? Decidedly not normal!