The End of Suffering and the Default Mode Network
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- Опубліковано 26 вер 2015
- Gary Weber speaking on "The End of Suffering and The Default Mode Network" for the "Non-Dual Couch" channel filmed by Studio2012 @ Heart of Art in Hamilton, NJ.
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You are fucking amazing. Exactly what I needed. I have no idea how I stumbled upon you but when the student is ready the teacher appears. I am at my wits end and have had enough of my own mind. This is such down to earth no nonsense gold. Great appreciation for your work.
Hi Matthew. Great that it was "exactly what you needed". Many folk come upon this work at just the right time, serendipitously.
If you look under "Show More" in this video and any of my videos, you'll see links to all of my "stuff"...books, podcasts, interviews, blogposts, articles, presentations, etc. all free in some format.
If you get really into the work, and come upon some challenges with the practices, send me an email @ the address on the website under "About". i work 1/1 w/hundreds of folk and ask only that they focus on 2 or 3 practice issues, and 300 words or less and max of 1
Thank you. I spent all day reading your books and watching more of your videos. I had one of the best most relaxing days at work because of your teaching, I work full time in child care so I am surrounded by noise and egos all day!
My thoughts exactly Matthew, Thank you for posting your comment.
@@anaglyphx can we get a 3 year update?
I've became more interested in becoming a better, more rational human instead of becoming a different kind of human, which is Weber's explicit goal. He advocates for upgrading our operating system (aka mind) to version 2.0 or even 3.0. I don't know about that. Maybe I'm more interested in upgrading to v1.5. Still human, but with a deep awareness of our limitations and inherent flaws and techniques and a morality to mitigate or take advantage of them. So hey, the appeal of Stoicism, which is equal parts philosophy and psychology. And meditation techniques that aren't intended to enlighten me, but to maximize my mental, physical and even emotional/moral (e.g. Loving-Kindness meditation) capabilities.
Thank you the wonderful informative presentation Mr Weber!. Finding your channel and blog is like discovering a gold mine...especially in contemporary times where mindfulness and yoga are fast transforming into 'a business' and 'a wonder miracle' to be peddled to the masses. Thanks and looking forward for more in future. :)
Great presentation, Gary. Concise, engaging and grounded. And great work from Studio2012@Heart of Art in gifting us such a well produced record.
Hi +Glenn Thomson. Gratitude for the feedback. Studio2012 and Heart of Art did a great job w/the videography, editing, and hosting for their "Non Dual Couch" channel. stillness
I've never heard of you and I honestly expect the first few results of my searches to be sketchy but you cannot deny data driven facts when they are clear and concise. Thank you.
Hi Hippy Dude. All of my work comes from my background as an empirically-trained scientist looking carefully at all sorts of spiritual practices and the neuroscience around them, so it is a very different, unbiased, approach. If you want to see more, just look under "Show More" in any of my youTube videos for links to website, blog, articles, books, etc., all free in some format. stillness
Very good work Dr. Weber, really nice how you tied all this together. Beautiful distillation of the relevant investigative findings. I have been working more with prisons, and I will showing the staff and program directors this.
nice work. proud of you.
Hi The Helm,
Great that it has been so useful for you. If you look under "Show More" above, or in any of my videos, you'll see links to many resources, all free in some format, that many folk have found useful.
stillness
really, really enjoyed this. grateful for the prep and effort to upload.
as a side note, i also really enjoy hearing this message from a rational, scientific perspective. and it's cool having an "interpreter" of these fascinating studies for us lay folk.
Hi +iloverumi. Gratitude for the feedback and to know that is useful for you. stillness
So grateful to have found and watched all the way through
Hi Shit Talker SkyWalkerTM. Great that you found it so useful.
If you look under "Show More" in any of my vids, you'll see links to all of my work, including books, website, blogs, interviews, etc., all free in some format.
stillness
Hi Gary this video really hit me.
I'm student of cognitive neurosciences right now and I found this video searching for "Default Mode Network" because I'm now studying the NPD and many different papers talked about the importance of this DMN so I decided to look around this subject.
I find NPD a very interesting pathology since its collocation in between psychosis and normality with many possible applications in positive psychology.
After a bit I started seeing the whole picture and the DMN really resembled the concept of the psychoanalytic "ego" in many ways.
The parallel with NPD, where an hyperactivation of this network makes other beings invisible (due to the external perception suppression because of the self-perceptive DMN) to the narcissist, was also relevant since this is a pathology always associated with "big egos".
I'm also into meditation since when I was 15, but in a very infrequent way with ups and downs.
I'm starting to seeing more of your videos now and reading your blog since I would like to take back in hand my daily practice with a new awareness.
It's like an "exactly what I needed" for me too since I had to restart my practice again since a while.
Thank you and sorry for my English!
Hi AkitosAncitis. On Narcissistic Personality Disorder, this work is directly focused on NPD, as it is all about deconstructing the ego/I through inquiring directly into what an "I" is, where it is, why did it originate, etc.
Since you have found the blog, if you put DMN or "Default Mode Network" in the search box, you'll find many, many articles with many citations and links.
As far as your daily practice, there are many blogposts and videos. In the blogs a good place to start is :
"What is the 'Direct Path' to nondual awakening? What is self-inquiry?" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/08/what-is-direct-path-to-nondual.html and
"Surrendering the 'I', letting go of suffering" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/05/surrendering-i-letting-go-of-suffering.html
There are many excellent approaches to a meditation practice in the playlist "Guided Meditation" @ ua-cam.com/play/PLuH37Fyz9VEMrD8dcreiCNKGROGlOENhL.html.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
Thank you.
Found you via searching for default mode network. Great video. looking forward to seeing more of your talks.
Hi snoo333. Great that you found the video so useful. If you look under "Show More" in any of my videos, you'll see links to all of my material including books, website, blog, interviews, etc. all free in some format. stillness
Anyone else seeing this shit? This is gold.
Hi SE9. Great that you found the gold. There is lots of gold if you look under "Show More" in any of my youTube videos. you'll see links to all of my work, all free in some format...all gold. stillness
Good talk!the music behind it is kinda distracting, but good information , thank u!
Hi +trissuper1. Great that you found it useful. Tks for the feedback. Yes, the music was an interesting touch that Studio2012 put in. They did all of the videography, editing, etc. for their own "Non Dual Couch" channel, which resulted in a vid that was one of the highest quality i've seen in this genre. Gratitude to them for giving us a copy for this channel and permission to share it. stillness
I thought it was funny, I heard it as the voice of the ego yammering away as a constant irritating background noise in our heads.
So he is pretty much enlightened.
Hi Gary
Do you know what brainwaves were happening when you were tested in your natural state (was it theta with bursts of gamma? Or alpha all the time?)
would be super interesting to see that info if available!
As a Western Theravada practitioner for decades with meditation as part of maintaining a sound and stable self regulated mind, the results of introducing psilocybin to reduce DMN activity is intriguing. 28:45 . Deep meditation can be an experience beyond description.
Good stuff
thank you
Hi Rachel. you're more than welcome. Many folk have found it useful to summarize the work. BTW, if you look under "Show More" in any of my vids, you'll see links to all of my work, all free in some format.
stillness
Hi Gary
Thanks again for your insights. I recently purchased Happiness Beyond Thought and it provides so many new ways to enjoy stillness. Do you have any plans to write a book that would encompass your teachings on You Tube? Many times I find in viewing your presentations that I wish I could hit a button that would have you amplify more on a concept you hit on. Please consider this as I find your body of work to be the best resource not only clinically but spiritually.
Hi Charles. Great that you have found the work so useful and are now reading HBT. i am completing a fourth book, "Evolving Beyond Thought: Updating Your Brain's Software", but it won't provide your "hit a button" on all concepts requirement.
The best solution is to go to the blog @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/. There are 288 blogposts on a Google platform so they are key-word searchable. Virtually all of this work is covered there someplace, and as it has the equivalent of 5 books on a words/book basis, so it is pretty comprehensive.
BTW, there is a book, "Into the Stillness", where the first 30-some dialogues that Rich Doyle and i had, have been transcribed which some folk have found helpful. The website @ happiness-beyond-thought.com also has an "MP3 Downloads" section where all spoken things, including interviews, podcasts, videos, etc. are available.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
This presentation is the best and I continue to watch it as part of my growth. A question. Are you aware of any recent studies that would shed light on whether marijuana use is positive/negative/neutral. I smoke nightly. Thank you again for these videos and your website.
Hi Charles.
The best credible studies have shown that weed actually strengthens the connections in the Default Mode Network and "blah, blah". This is the exact opposite of what the serotonergic psychedelics like LSD, mushrooms, DMT, acid, ayahusaca, etc., or self-inquiry practices do, which is weaken or deactivate the DMN by breaking key connections.
These studies all fit with my experience in working with folk.
However, as an approach to minimizing acute pain, both weed and mushrooms have been shown to be effective. There are some excellent mushroom studies @ Johns Hopkins based on using them for cancer pain remediation, which hopefully will make them legally available for such purposes.
As weed increases DMN activity, it would, however, create more self-referential "blah, blah" around the pain which would increase suffering. Mushrooms would reduce the "blah, blah" along with the pain.
As mentioned, i have not used any psychoactive drugs as i found other ways, fortuitously, to produce which appears to be the same experiences. Virtually every culture has done the same.
stillness
gary
Gary thank you for your response and guidance on this issue
You think we live in a simulation and what are your thoughts on Hemi-Sync meditation?
Hi I was wondering if you know anything about brain waves and if the ambient background noise in this video was somehow related to Theta or Alpha Binaural beats ?
Hi Al Berz. Contacted the producer for the video, in whose studio it was recorded, and he told me that the background ambient sound is a Sufi "Hu" chant, which may sound like or can be turned into a binaural beat. stillness
thank you
Hello sir, between directive and non-directive meditations which is the best for decreasing ruminative thoughts and future projections, and increasing creativity and emotional well-being? Non-directive meditations seem to increase default network mode but mindfulness of breath, concentration seem to reduce it, which kind of meditation would be better? Isn't reduced DMN better for overall mental health?
Hi Efe Işıkgör. The meditation that has proven "best for decreasing ruminative thoughts and future projects and increasing creativity and emotion well-being" is self-inquiry. The video "Does Mindfulness Lead to Persistent Nonduality" and the many comments to it, discuss this in detail.
The blogpost "mindfulness meditation - religious vs secular - does it work? - new research" @ gives an in-depth discussion on "mindfulness". The study by Goyal, et al., published in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association is discussed in this post.
This article shows that only 22% of the best mindfulness studies were unbiased and many of the sweeping claims that mindfulness folk make are not supported.
The mindfulness/Vipassana/Theravada fMRI studies at Yale on experienced meditators (10,000 hrs practice), showed that the DMN was only deactivated when they were diligently meditating and were therefore in the Tasking Network.
As soon as they stopped their intense meditation at which they were very skillful, they were right back in an active DMN.
Yes, reduced DMN is better for overall mental health, but you won't get there with mindfulness as the core problem, the ego/I is actually reinforced with mindfulness, as someone has to "do it".
Only by asking "Where/what/who/when am I?" diligently is this core problem of the ego/I and the DMN weakened.
If you look under "Show More" in any of my videos, you'll see links to all of my work, all free in some format, which is all about deconstructing this ego/I and weakening the DMN.
stillness
Hi humanyoda. In the "experienced meditators" study @ Yale, for folk with 10,000 hrs of meditation +/-, the first sentence applies, i.e. as soon as they stopped their intense meditation...they were right back in an active DMN".
In that study, "i" was the only one who had an inactive DMN without meditating. This is covered in the article "The Neuroscience of Suffering - And Its End" @ psychologytomorrowmagazine.com/jeff-warren-neuroscience-suffering-end/.
This is also discussed at length in Robert Wright's nonfiction best-seller "Why Buddhism Is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment".
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
Thank you for the video. Could you explain the relationship between the DMN & the human subconscious?
Hi superluminal89. The Default Mode Network (DMN) is a collection of neural centers shown at about 19:41 which has been getting better and better defined for the last 10 years or so.
As explained in the video, it is responsible for creating all of the "blah, blah" and sub-networks for generating the sense of a "self passing through time" and a "self and other".
If those sub-networks are deactivated, or if the PCC shown in the video is deactivated, then one gets the classical mystical experiences of living "now, now, now", and "All is One".
The human "sub/un/non-conscious" is the "elephant" in the metaphor of the "rider" and the "elephant" discussed in the latter part of the talk. The processing power differential is enormous.
The "rider" has a 40 to 60 bit/sec processor that can handle 7 +/- pieces of data and solve one problem at a time. The "elephant" operates nominally at 25,000,000 bits/sec with 100 trillion synaptic interconnections for data storage, etc and is "massively parallel" with an aggregate processing power of 320 billion bits/sec depending on tasks, assignments, etc.
The blogpost "Right-sizing your 'I', understanding confirmation bias...new studies" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2017/05/right-sizing-your-i-understanding.html discusses this in detail.
As explained in the video, the DMN does not solve problems, plan, analyze or choose, as the other network, the Tasking Network video does that. we cannot be "conscious" of what either of these networks is doing.
The "elephant" does everything from moving your arms, digesting your food, speaking, running, seeing, hearing, tasking, etc. to doing all of the analytical tasks that the Tasking Network undertakes and all that the DMN does as well.
This area of neuroscience is getting a lot of attention as we understand how different centers interact for different functions and environments and we learn more every day.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
For the first time in my life I finally get an understanding of my ADHD, I just need to shutup.
thank you! thank you! thank you.. This is wonderfull..
Hi Brian Bak. Great that you found it so useful. JIC, if you look under "Show More" above, you'll find links to all of work, all free in some format. stillness and letting go
First of all! Thank you for every thing..The last 24 Hours has been abselutley amazing.!You and tour channel has done some profpund work on me already! This is one of my first time ever to replay on somthing on youtube/Internet..I would become a long and complex story! I realy feel i have been searching for you the last 13/14 years! I talk to my frend and tell him! this is it..! is there eany way you woud replay to me on my Email ! Brian.bak@rsyd.dk ?
Thank you sir..First shri nisargadatta maharaj, the youtube klip with the english translator! the meaning in my mystisk ex experience 13 years ago..Meating is knowledge..continess meeting continess.. I have been studied them all..Robert Adams. u.g krishanamurti..Mooji..When i saw you i surrended tatally..I am 34 years and from Denmark scandinavia. I work with computers as a computer specialist on a hospital.. Thank you for taking the time to replay on my massage... Thank you thank you thank you.. Last night there was 3 knocks on my bedroom door! I live by my selv in a house!..I knew somthing was up!... :)
all my childhood is full of mystical experience..Is it realy you
Hi Brian Bak. If you go to my website @ www.happinessbeyondthought.com and look under "About", you'll find my email. i work with many folk, all over the world, by email and occasionally by skype. stillness.
Yes i understand.! I will contact you..Thank you, thank you, thank you :) This is amazing..The one movie when you saying the mantras names..I whent in to a complet trance like state.. Im so happy tro have found you!
Thank's for answering me..
great idea the humming sound.... really peaceful
Hi Nirvana Freedom. That is the Sufi "Hu" chant, that the producer added. Great that you found it so peaceful. BTW, if you look under "Show more" above, you'll see links to all of my work, all free in some format. stillness
thank you .... i'm dealing with default mode state these years... with time and practice unknowingly it has increased. i really need to get out from there and be in this world. can weed amplify this state? the sound really help and is a very intelligent choice... the more relax the mind is the more information can get in
Hi Nirvana Freedom. No, weed can't amplify your practice to get out of the default mode state. In fact, surprisingly, the research shows that, of all the "psychedelics", it is the only one that actually strengthens the default mode network, so it works in exactly the opposite way.
The "serotonergic" psychedelics, like mushrooms, acid, 5 MeO - DMT, ayahuasca, etc. all weaken, or shut down the default mode network temporarily while they are in your system. When they wear off, then the default mode network is back in action.
i have never heard of anyone who reached the persistent, permanent, natural, nondual state with psychedelics alone. To reach that state, the brain needs to learn how to do it "all by itself".
Both the brain and the psychedelics function through the same connections and final chemistry, but the brain will never learn how to do it by overwhelming it with a lot of strong chemicals from "outside".
The brain needs to be trained into producing it without those outside chemicals. The psychedelics can show the brain what is possible, but then they need to be phased out or it will never become persistent.
stillness
gary
Thank you very much Gary Weber. i'm removing weed as an option then. so what i have understood is that the only real solution is meditation.
Hi Nirvana Freedom. It is important to recognize that all meditations aren't as successful @ getting out of the default mode and having it naturally, effortlessly and continually deactivated. The article, The Neuroscience of Suffering - And It's End @ psychologytomorrowmagazine.com/jeff-warren-neuroscience-suffering-end/ covers the results of the long-term meditator (10,000 hrs) study @ Yale.
Of the 100 folk in the study, 99 were Theravada/Vipassana/mindfulness meditators, masters and arahats - i was the only one doing self-inquiry, and the only one in that state. The others had to meditate continuously to stay in the tasking state to avoid going into their active default mode state.
If you look under "Show more" above, you'll see links to all of my work, all free in some format. Download a copy of Happiness Beyond Thought, and c/o the website for much more material.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
Hi Gary,
I just found your channel and I am enjoying the content so far.
Not to sound hurried, but I was wondering if you can point me in the right direction to some of your resources that explain how and when to carry out self enquiry work.
I want to get started with the practice, but I'm I sure how to start and unfortunately don't have the time at the minute to read a book/spend lots of time understanding all the ins and outs etc.
I've been doing mindfulness meditation for about a year and feel self enquiry will help enhance my practice.
Thanks.
Hi C_MACK. The blogpost "What is the 'Direct Path' to nondual awakening? What is self-inquiry?" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/08/what-is-direct-path-to-nondual.html is a good place to start.
There are also five different self-inquiry guided meditations videos "Nondual awakening meditation - Where am I?" ua-cam.com/video/dmtGdoh7xHk/v-deo.html, Doors of the Mind @ ua-cam.com/video/uu7htZIERFA/v-deo.html, Who am I? @ ua-cam.com/video/8ClfCxePTTs/v-deo.html, Letting go, acceptance, surrender @ ua-cam.com/video/h9lDG7fRJyQ/v-deo.html, and
Opposites and spaces @ ua-cam.com/video/h9lDG7fRJyQ/v-deo.html that will give you some different approaches.
It is important to develop a "feel" for your internal space as well, the blogpost "Feeling your way to nondual awakening" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2015/04/feeling-your-way-to-nondual-awakening.html, will help with that.
If you look under "Show More" above, or in any of my youTube videos, you'll see links to all of my work, all free in some format.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
Fascinating and inspiring. How then to shut of the DMN when not meditating? Is it just about remaining mindfully awake during everyday activities? Tasking? (flow). I'm also curious what would be defined as "problem solving" insofar as activating the task network. For example, would it necessarily have to be non-emotional? (e.g. trying to solve a personal "problem" that has an emotional charge would presumably only activate the DMN). Would something as simple as being absorbed in a crossword puzzle de-activate the DMN?
Hi Casa Rio. Excellent questions. The popular video "What 'no thoughts' means - 3 different kinds of thoughts" @ ua-cam.com/video/WnWxCgiZfrc/v-deo.html answers these questions. stillness
I have adult ADHD, can you tell me if the meditation method of shutting down the DMN would work for a person with my condition? I am still new to meditation, but actively trying in hope I can get my mind back on track.
It can help significantly. The longer you have it the more time/effort will be required however the benefits start right away and the growth seems to be exponential. Good luck
Hi Gary, I’m a psychology undergrad and I want to pursue a research career in clinical neuropsychology. I’m especially interested in doing research on psychedelics and their neural/psychological effects. In your opinion, is there a need for more research like that? Would that be a sustainable line of research for me? Thanks, David
Hi David. As you no doubt know, there has already been a lot of work on psychedelics and how they operate in the brain to temporarily shut down the default mode network (DMN), which is where all of the problematic "blah, blah", self-referential thoughts are processed.
The early, excellent work on psilocybin/'shrooms at Johns Hopkins by Roland Griffiths for cancer pain remediation has now been broadly accepted and expanded to other institutions and if any of the serotonergic psychedelics are going to be "rescheduled" it will be psilocybin.
There is now also much work with ayahuasca and LSD demonstrating similar functionality in the U.S. and UK as well as a constantly evolving stream of different serotonergic psychedelics like 5 MeO-DMT with different psychoactive and psychological impact profiles.
If you include "cannabis" in the "neuropsychology" category, it is important to recognize that the new strains are stronger, more "tailor-able" and more addictive than earlier versions.
It is also important to recognize that cannabis operates to strengthen the DMN which is the direct OPPOSITE effect from what the serotonergic psychedelics, and nondual meditation produce.
With the dramatic recent changes in the national legal climate towards these psychoactive agents, particularly cannabis, but also some psychedelics for things like pain remediation as well as other maladies, this should be a fertile ground to build a sustainable line of research around.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
I have done enough psychedelics and mindfulness to know that psychedelics do not end thought. they may accelerate it. That being said, I honestly believe you are the only arahat I have seen in recent times. Thank you for existing.
Hi ishaan sadhanand. What manifested was not "my" doing, so the "thanks" go to The Universal Field of Consciousness/She who does it all. It was an unlikely outcome, but She danced it, just so. stillness
@@GaryWeber can't believe you replied, sir. ( as I'm Indian, the devotional side to me is overwhelmed right now), but sir I'm in constant physical pain. I have been a vipassana practitioner for years but my issue with bassui, nisargadatta maharaj, and Shankara's work remains the same. the question who am I? or who is listening points to a Sensate object in the body. like the chest or head , but mostly the sensation in the heart. but it doesn't make me feel like there is no self. its almost like a GPS. I ask where am I? and it points to somewhere in the body. Another issue is the chronic pain I have, as practicing with chronic pain is difficult as one cannot look at the pain as " not mine".
I had an overactive DMN, it was over 4 deviations from the norm (2 deviations from the norm being acceptable/OK) and 20 sessions neurofeedback has helped to calm it down. I want to have 12 more sessions after a 3-6 month break as the EEG brain map is still showing a slightly higher activity in DMN than there should be, but i already feel a significant difference! I will never want to trade this feeling of calmness and decreased anxiety! The effect of psychodelics is of interest, but i think i would lean towards regular meditation first to further dampen the DMN
Hi Sierra. Interesting that you've taken this sophisticated neurofeedback approach to an overactive DMN. Sometimes this is a delaying tactic by the egos/Is/Sierras (there are hundreds of them) to delay doing self-inquiry.
The blogpost "self-inquiry vs the egos/Is - How it works - the neuroscience" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2018/05/self-inquiry-vs-egosis-how-it-works.html shows how this works as well as how ALL of our decisions are made off-line.
The blogpost "What is the 'Direct Path' to nondual awakening? What is self-inquiry?" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/08/what-is-direct-path-to-nondual.html gives guidelines on self-inquiry.
Psychodelics only delay the self-inquiry process.
stillness
@@GaryWeber thank you for the links. I will certainly read the blogposts. I'm only one sharing my experience. I was in a very bad and low place, very neurotic and unable to cope with it, and neurofeedback has helped to calm down my nervous system. I'm in a better place and certainly calmer now to explore more and learn more and would love to experience the non-dual awakening!
I have suffered my whole life with the blah blahs and am currently struggling with an acute bout of anxiety. It would be nice to know what benefit, if any, a meditation practice of much fewer than 10k hours (50, say) has on those with debilitating anxiety. It’s not very motivating to think that you have to be practicing for 20 years to get relief.
Hi maremacd. Those times are only to get to a state of persistent "no thoughts"...few reach that point, but that doesn't mean than there is no relief after even a short time practicing self-inquiry.
If you can do self-inquiry, as described in the blogpost "What is the 'Direct Path' to nondual awakening? What is self-inquiry? @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/08/what-is-direct-path-to-nondual.html
, you can see change in your "debilitating anxiety" with a simple daily practice of 35 to 50 minutes of asking "Where am I?", "What hears?", "What is this?", "When am I?" etc. in a few weeks.
It is also helpful to put those questions into your day 5 to 7 times for 2 minutes.
The playlist "Guided Meditation" @ ua-cam.com/play/PLuH37Fyz9VEMrD8dcreiCNKGROGlOENhL.html gives several examples of how to construct a practice.
The benefits will last, and grow, but only if you do the daily practice.
If you look under "Show More" in any of my videos, you'll see links to many resources including my first book "Happiness Beyond Thought", downloadable for free, which many folk have found useful.
Trust this is helpful.
stillness
Absolutely amazing!! Thank you. Do you know if there is any research about psychedelic use resulting in a decrease in the activation of the Default Mode Network after the user has stopped taking psychedelics?
Hi Woke Bloke. Yes, there is a lot of research from Johns Hopkins showing that there are long term positive effects, particularly focused on psilocybin/mushrooms.
One month after taking 'shrooms, they rated the experience as having sustained personal and spiritual significance and positive changes in attitudes, mood and behavior.
These ratings were the same at 14 months and were confirmed by interviews of their "community", i.e. friends and associates.
stillness
@@GaryWeber thank you I will have to look into that!
best way to prove your defualt mode network is to watch ur thoughts when u go to sleep, sometimes after 20-30mins of laying still eyes closed breathing slow you will see ur thoughts run like a computer, youll want to be in a state where ur not thinking of the outside world just your present moment stimuli
did it for just a few minutes and randomly had this day dream of a gorrila in a motercylce suit with glasses about to go down a ski lift, itll be the randomest stuff that i see also u feel calm
Is reducing the activity in the DMN the key to finding the true self?
This appears to be the case, yes
wait so what do i do to achieve the silence?
Hi Jae. Read my first book, "Happiness Beyond Thought: A Practical Guide to Awakening". If you look under "Show More" in any of my vids, you''ll see free download links to all my stuff.
Gary, thank you so much for your work. The Sufi chant is too distracting for me; I'm having a hard time concentrating on what you are saying. Is it possible to post a version without the distracting noise?
Hi Randy Scharlach. Yes, a few others have found it distracting...others are curious about it...some others like it. There haven't been that many comments about it. There are 416 likes and only 9 dislikes over 23K views.
i didn't know that it was going to be recorded by Studio 2012 with that background. The Studio 2012 folk are great friends of many years and are Sufis. That background is part of their tradition. Respecting that, and not being bothered by it, i didn't ask for it to be removed.
Consequently, it is what it is. It is a useful practice to be "mindful" of one's resistance to bothersome sounds of any kind, and feel into them, and see if they can be let go of.
There is a good description of this process in Robert Wright's current NY Times Bestseller "Why Buddhism Is True: The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment" in which Bob describes his experience with a chain saw during a meditation retreat. As a disclaimer, i am featured in the book.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
@@GaryWeber, thank you for your thoughtful reply. I am the 416th "Like." Your work has been very influential for me, so thank you. I have read Robert Wright's book three times and have shared it with several friends. It is indeed wonderful. :-)
One question: Does mediation help people with adhd to overcome their symptoms?
I can't speak for ADHD specifically, but I can speak for neurodivergence generally, as I am myself autistic. I have found mindfulness singly the greatest and best intervention for my issues, and believe me I've tried a lot - pills, therapists, books, visualisations, you name it. Mindfulness makes me more aware of my body, and where in my body my negative feelings are manifesting. I'm not saying it solves anything - it doesn't. What it does is, it increases my awareness of when things are becoming hard. That way, instead of masking my way through life, forcing myself to be uncomfortable the whole time, I know when I need to take some time, or ask for help, or whatever.
Really recommend it. Hope it can help you as it has me.
Are there any case studies on people who've had brain damage and their DMN has been damaged in such a way that they experience life "outside" of time?
Hi Bonstrum. It is almost impossible to damage the DMN without damaging other functions of the brain so it's not simple to separate them.
The DMN was created evolutionarily about 75,000 years ago when we were struggling as a species to survive, so we created the ego/I concept and all that goes with it. we broke off from the chimpanzees about 6,000,000 years ago, so this is a very recent change.
To do it, we had to evolve this system out of "pieces and parts" of what was already in place. Many of the core parts are actually only small areas in very important centers, like the Posterior Cingulate Cortex.
There are obviously chemical ways to temporarily produce experiences of "life outside of time" in the DMN, like with serotonergic psychedelics which have been broadly studied.
The blogpost "the latest psychedelic research...new meditation +/- psychedelics studies" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-latest-psychedelic-researchnew.html discusses some research. Work in this area has expanded greatly.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
@@GaryWeber Thank you for your reply
Ramana Maharishi and Nisargadutta Maharaj are just a few who achieved liberation while living. It is amazing that neuroscience can measure their blissful state. Can someone help me understand how we can train ourselves and our teenagers to achieve this state ? If anything the electronics are driving more blah blah than ever. Ancient Indians observed 6000 thoughts a day, a recent usc study had college students at 10X that. The entropy of thoughts is exploding.
Mr. Weber thank you for your video. I have a question. I am a Mindfulness Meditation Enthusiast as well as a yoga teacher/practitioner. I stumbled upon you and your video and am so intrigued. Only in the last few days have I come across this term Default Mode Network. I 'd like to learn more can you refer me to articles/books on subject. I have a question for you. I practice yoga asana, beginning and ending short meditation several times per week. I also have a home meditation practice sitting. My point with the background info is, I believe my mind can easily move into a meditative state. Sometimes within a little while just a couple of moments, I feel my body start to convulse or start to rotate, and other times I feel this strong rising pressure moving up my torso as though it wants to escape, but it never makes it beyond my chest, it's uncomfortable and throws me out of my state somewhat. I am wondering if you have any advice for the physical reactions. Also with regard to your questions such as who am i, where am i, when am i, I have a profound memory of being 7 years old, laying in bed on an early evening summer night, and as a young child asking myself all three of these questions and felt so unsettled as I wanted deep meaning and answers. As i heard the cars and sounds of everyday life outside my window, I had a sick feeling at 7 years old. I wanted answers. We couldn't just be here to exist. There's more. I couldn't understand what more was at that age. I've been searching my whole adult life. I want to achieve this state of peace within the storm of everyday life. Thank you for any advice/answers. With love. Kelly sprague.
Hi +Kelly Sprague. If you go to the blogpost "Three Neural Networks Dancing - 'blah, blah', tasking and control" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2014/07/three-neural-networks-dancing-blah-blah.html, you'll see a recent update on the Default Mode Network; the post has many links w/in it as well to other sources. As the blog is on a Google platform, it is keyword searchable from the box in the upper right corner, so you can explore the blog's 270+ posts.
Also if you look under "Show more" in this, or any of my youTube videos, you'll see links to all of my work including free downloads to my first two books, interviews, etc.
On the convulsing and rotation of your body and the rising pressure through your torso wanting to escape but it gets stuck in your chest, that is what is commonly referred to as "kundalini". i had the same convulsing, etc. and went through two different yoga teachers' trainings which had large components of kundalini practices. you are basically getting stuck at your fourth chakra, and there are specific sounds to chant and asanas to do to "open" it.
The key sound for that chakra is "Ya(u)m", like in "yum, yum". The types of asanas which will help open it would be "chest openers", like bridge, camel, wheel, bow, etc. If you get into those asanas, hold and chant yum, yum, yum it should begin to open up that area. you can also just take a few minutes in your meditations and focus on the center of your chest and doing the chant. Don't be frightened by it...some folk get it, some don't and while it can be disturbing, it does mean that your "energy" is trying to get aligned by turning the body to let it flow freely from top to bottom.
There are badzillion videos, websites, etc. if you just google "kundalini". A few of these are trustworthy and useful, but just getting the background will help. my gmail account is the three words of the title of my first book all smushed together w/no spaces. If you have any further questions, don't hesitate to contact me directly.
stillness
+Gary Weber I have heard this described as Kundalini. Is there a next step? Do I ignore it? Do I focus on moving it ? Is it important? Is it a distraction ? Should it rise ? Should I try and tame it ? Are you familiar w the work of Dr Joe Dispenza? He facilitates workshops around the world literally 50 weeks a year teaching meditation w the hope of personal breakthroughs and spontaneous remissions in his third level 5 day workshop he brings brain scan equipment and documents the brain activity during these meditations of individuals who have a regular practice and a knowledge base it is quite interesting when 500 are gathered at once in a meditation to see the brain scans of those that have endured a incredible change in the speed of the electromagnetic impulse. Do u have a comment on this ? I've seen the scans and they are amazing . I will read all the a riches you referred it's tough without the background to keep up with the language I will try. I'm fascinated!
Hi +Kelly Sprague. As far as the Kundalini, try the exercises i mentioned in my comment above and see how/if they work for you. The comment also described whether it is important or a distraction, i.e. "Don't be frightened by it...some folk get it, some don't and while it can be disturbing, it does mean that your "energy" is trying to get aligned by turning the body to let it flow freely from top to bottom."
Yes, the goal is to have it rise through all the chakras w/o getting stuck at any particular place. you will find yourself drawn to the next right "teacher" and "practice", as the old saying goes, "you will get the teacher you deserve", and "when the student is ready, the teacher appears". It's too important of a decision to be left up to you - it is really out of your control.
i don't know Dr. Dispenza's work, but if you are deeply drawn to it, try it out and see if it works for you. The video "how do i know i'm on the right path" @ ua-cam.com/video/JG03gz2a_5A/v-deo.html can be a helpful one. Also the "Feeling your way to nondual awakening" blogpost @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2015/04/feeling-your-way-to-nondual-awakening.html can be a good guide.
stillness
So there is actually a practice needed? I need to do meditation and stuff and it's not even guaranteed that I will wake up because of our difference in the brain.
Hi Chanchana Sornsoontorn. Yes, you have to practice for thousands of hours to master any skill, whether it is chess, playing the violin, high jumping, surgery, ballet, etc. or meditation.
The blogpost "Are 10,000 hrs needed for awakening? NO. How to practice "better"..." @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2013/06/are-10000-hrs-needed-for-awakening-no.html shows that it isn't just the total number of hours, but also how you do those hours. One can do thousands of hours of practice and have little result if they don't practice properly.
stillness
i have ascessed these states using the followings, the shakti helmet the 8 coil by todd murphy , you can find online .... using the amygdala hippocampus signals over the temporo and frontal lobe known as the god helmet, the david delight plus light and sound by "mind alive" machine using a theta slide just before i go nap combined with the emwave hrv heart coherence practice used in between sessions to increase brain/heart connections , which also when the heart is coherent it rewires the amygdala with new signals....... device is by heartmath in less then 100 hours practice
Sorry, but the background noise was not helping.
Hi Sam Ann. Yes, that was inserted by the film editor, who is a Sufi. It is a famous Sufi chant/sound that some folk found useful, others didn't notice, and some others didn't like it. Appreciate the feedback. stillness
Dr Weber, I am so glad that I discovered your channel. I am checking your other videos. They're all very interesting & make a lot of sense.
Hi Sam Ann. Great that they are working for you. If you look under "Show More" in any of my youTube videos, there are links to all of this work all free in some format where possible. stillnesss
32:11 This is the reason that is driving me to look in this direction. lol
But I'm thinking that this reason is simply misleading for me. It's the ego trying to find a more pleasurable place to be in.
For me, I don't have the NonDual experience so sex is the strongest pleasure there is. I can't compare that to yours because I don't have the experience.
This means my ego is telling me how could that be true that sex is not the most pleasurable experience especially if it's with people you are most attached with and dreamed to have sex with.
If I have NonDual experience that means I don't want to do sex anymore because it's less pleasurable. My ego can't accept that. I can't grasp this.
Hi Chanchana Sornsoontorn,
The brain compares all of the pleasures that it has in comparison to the pain which is experienced from getting them and wanting to repeat them.
As the blogpost "Which is more pleasurable...psychedelics, the nondual state or sex?" @ happinessbeyondthought.blogspot.com/2012/10/which-is-more-pleasurablepsychedelics.html discusses this in detail.
This pleasure/pain comparison overweights the pain by 3 to 5 X for evolutionary survival purposes, so the pleasure has to be very strong to overcome the pain.
As we have all experienced, sex and most other pleasures are accompanied by fear of not being able to get the pleasure again, longing and craving for it, searching for better versions, fear of losing the pleasurable object, etc.
Nonduality is the only pleasure that has none of these pains, so it always wins out over the other pleasures.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
19：40
Wow incredible presentation. Buddha would be pleased.
Hi A Singh. Great that it was useful for you.
FWIW, however, as Robert Wright pointed out in his recent NYTimes Bestseller, "Why Buddhism Is True" (in which i was featured), we have no idea what Buddha actually said.
Nothing was written down when he spoke, so his followers gathered after he passed, and decided what he said, but didn't write it down for many, many years.
There were many opportunities for it to be "re-interpreted" to fit personal perspectives and agendas of folk who didn't fully experience it.
However, the fundamental Understanding remains, wherever and however it manifests.
Trust this is useful.
stillness
gary
I stopped watching at exactly 16:06.
Rubbish gibberish