Science of Samadhi

There is often a distinction made between science and, for the lack of a better word, spirituality. In recent decades, the scientific community has become more open and aware of the clinical benefits of meditation and yoga. The benefits of mindfulness are no longer dismissed as useless techniques and are increasingly being recognized as healthy practices for the mind and body. Though the integration of these two worlds has begun, there is an elephant in the room that is rarely addressed. Yoga and meditation hold a deep connection to eastern philosophies regarding consciousness and the experience of enlightenment. In yogic philosophy, there is the term Samadhi which can be difficult to describe in words as it is a form of consciousness that is experienced after dedication to practice. The experience may generally be described as an experience of oneness with all existence and can be seen as a form of enlightenment. What is this experience? What is Samadhi? Is it real? These are questions that one may initially believe that science has no capability of answering. However, is this truly the case? Samadhi and enlightenment are concepts far older than science, perhaps there is a truth to them. On that same note, science aims to observe the truth of reality from an objective viewpoint. Perhaps science can help us understand Samadhi in some small way.

Samadhi is impossible to fully describe in words, it is an experience over anything. In Buddhist teachings, the path to Samadhi involves progression through the jhana (Hagerty et al., 2013; Yamashiro, 2015). The jhana include (Yamashiro, 2015):

• Vitakka – Movement of the mind onto the object
• Vicaara – Retention of the mind on the object
• Piiti – Joy
• Sukha – Happiness
• Upekkha – Equanimity
• Ekaggataa – One-Pointedness

In the beginning, all the jhana are present. As one progresses down the path, they go away until there is nothing but one-pointed awareness of Samadhi. In 2013, a group of researchers aimed to observe these stages of progression from a scientific lens. A 53-year-old Sri Lankan Buddhist practitioner was connected to both fMRI and EEG to observe the status of the brain during each stage of jhana (Hagerty et al., 2013). As consistent with the idea that Samadhi brings about the dissolution of the egoic-self and replaces the sense of identity with a larger identification with everything, the researchers observed a decrease in parietal lobe activation which is involved in receiving sensory information to determine the special orientation of the body (Deshmukh, 2006; Hagerty et al., 2013). In other words, it is a brain area involved in the identification of the self because it determines where the self is in space. The measurement of blood flow to this brain area decreases during the progression to Samadhi, giving neuroscientific support to the notion that gaining a sense of unity with the surrounding environment is a part of the enlightened experience.

A great distinction exists between western and eastern thought when it comes to the ideas of thought itself. Western philosophy considers thought to be the fundamental derivative of consciousness. However, the opposite seems to be the case. Western science seems to support the more eastern idea that the removal of thought is what manifests a deeper and wiser form of consciousness. For example, researchers in 2006 showed that self-related processes are not required for the conscious experience of sensory information (Goldberg et al., 2006). Additionally, both Broca’s and Wernicke’s areas in the brain are deactivated as one progresses through the jhana (Hagerty et al., 2013). Broca’s area is involved in language production. Wernicke’s area is involved in language comprehension. Both areas are major language areas of the brain, suggesting that the path to Samadhi involves the sensation of internal dialogue and linguistic thoughts. Instead, there is an orientation of the mind toward the sensations of the body and eventually beyond.

Every tool has its uses and limitations. Good science is objective and therefore is trustworthy in that regard. Spiritual truths are inherently subjective in the sense that they can only be experienced by the self. It is only possible to understand Samadhi once it is experienced. No ancient texts or spiritual teacher can analytically explain it to you. For this same reason, scientific research will never describe what it means to experience Samadhi. However, due to the personal nature of spiritual experiences, it can be very difficult to trust a more enlightened person that there is such an experience. If someone with no experience in practising mindfulness was told that quieting the egoic mind would grant altered consciousness with immaculate wisdom, they would shrug their shoulders in disbelief. This is where science becomes useful. Science is slowly providing evidence that the mechanism to obtain Samadhi is real, and the practices can change the mind. Science further supports that this practice is mindfulness meditation and yoga. The egoic mind enjoys creating dualities: science and spirituality. They are two sides to the same whole. One pursuit of one truth.