THE : A SCIENTIFIC APPROACH

By

ALLAN R. SUSOEFF, JR.

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of

MASTER OF METAPHYSICAL SCIENCE, M.MSC.

On behalf of the Department of Graduate Studies of the University of Metaphysics

this thesis has been accepted by

Thesis Advisor

IMM President

July 24, 2017 TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter 1: Introduction ...... 1 Chapter 2: Review of Literature ...... 3 Definitions ...... 3 History and Background ...... 6 Types of ...... 7 The Mind - Body Connection ...... 8 The Energy - Body Connection ...... 11 Chapter 3: Discussion ...... 17 Is it all in our Genes? ...... 18 Brainwaves, High Beta, and Addiction ...... 19 Breath IS Life ...... 21 Emotion and Intent ...... 23 Tying it all Together ...... 25 Conclusion ...... 30 Works Cited ...... 32

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Chapter 1: Introduction

“The difference between science and faith is a measuring tape”. Although this statement in

1979 got me an hour of detention from Fr. Stout, my earth science teacher in my freshman year at

Bellarmine College Preparatory, it is a statement that has defined my life and I believe defines the difference between mankind and all other forms of organic and inorganic life on this planet.

Always the question in our minds is “why”. It is the driving force for technology, medicine, religion, and our civilization in general. When we find a limitation in our understanding and come to an impasse, it is tempting to provide answers such as, “Because God made it that way”. This may be a fine response on a certain level, but there are always deeper levels of understanding to be had if one wishes to comprehend the greater truths of our existence.

My life in general, and this thesis in particular, aims to look at these deeper levels of understanding through the lens of empirical science. Within the rigors of the scientific method we can demystify the mystical, dispel ignorance, and bring that which is in the realm of faith into the realm of fact.

Old habits die hard. Although Pythagoras, the Greek philosopher first proposed a spherical earth around the 6th century BC, it was not until 330 BC that Aristotle was able to show empirically that the earth was indeed a sphere. Many other scientists did experiments that showed a spherical earth over the following centuries. Regardless of this evidence, flat earth theories persisted. It is said that in 1492 when Columbus discovered the Americas that it was proven that the earth was indeed spherical, but the real proof came when Magellan circumnavigated the globe in 1519. From 330 BC to 1519 AD; it took nearly 1900 years, but that which started in the world of religious faith, became science fact eventually.

Regarding the Chakras, or psychic centers as he calls them, Dr. Leon Masters states, “The knowledge that these psychic centers exist comes from the INTERNAL PSYCHIC vison of their existence during meditation in expanded states of consciousness” (Master’s Degree Curriculum 1:1:4). While this answer to the question, “What are the chakras” is perfectly acceptable if one only wants to understand and accept at the faith level, as a scientist and engineer, I am compelled to look deeper. I believe the information exists and some of the peer reviewed experimentation has been conducted to show empirically that the present-day chakras system not only exists, but that these so-called chakras can be used by us through the tool of meditation, to further our health, creativity, and prosperity and therefore improve our lives, the lives of others and ultimately the overall balance and evolution of this planet we call home.

2 Chapter 2: Review of Literature

The history of the system has its roots in the early Upanishads which were written around the 7th or 8th century BCE. As with anything that old, these concepts have morphed and evolved and the seven-chakra system currently accepted in western culture bears little resemblance to some of the earlier versions. Because of this long history, we must first come to an agreement about what a chakra is. In order to properly discuss the chakras from a scientific perspective it is paramount to first give a definition of a chakra as well as understand at least the basic history and background of the current chakra system.

Dr. Leon Masters points out that, “The main practice in mysticism is that of Meditation”,

(Minister’s/Bachelors Curriculum. 1:1), and there is no doubt of that truth from the tremendous body of evidence showing that meditation is a healthy addition to any lifestyle. The question more specific to this thesis however is which meditation is the right meditation to effect change in a person’s health, fiscal prosperity, creativity, and general well-being, particularly as it relates to the chakras?

Definitions

What follows are a few definitions in order to have the reader and the author not necessarily agree, but at least be on the same page for both ease of explanation and succinctness in presentation.

We will not delve into the philosophical argument of whether this chakra system is more or less correct than any other system that one may choose to use or follow in terms of a belief system. What we are interested in within the pages of this thesis is whether there is scientific evidence for the existence of chakras and if so, what knowledge can we glean from that evidence in order to better our lives and the lives of those around us. In the spirit of that, most of the definitions adopted in this text will be taken from either Anodea Judith’s “Wheels of Life”, Charles Webster Leadbeater’s “The Chkaras: A

Monograph” or my own combination of the two.

3 Chakra, चाक्र, is a Sanskrit word which literally means “wheel”. Anodea Judith reports that

“Chakras are organizing centers for the reception, assimilation and transmission of life energies” (4).

Leadbeater referred to them as the “wheel-like vortices which exist in the surface of the etheric double of man” (5) Simply put, a chakra is an Energy Center.

In the system we are exploring there are seven chakras, each corresponding to a particular area of the body, specific nerve ganglia, glands, organs and each governing a particular set of emotions, and manifestations. I will mostly be referring to them by their corresponding area of the body. From the root chakra, known in Tantric traditions as Muladhara, मलू ाधार, which literally means “root” to the crown chakra referred to as Sahasrara, सहस्रार, which means “thousand-spoked”.

Starting at the perineum, the first chakra or “root chakra” physically corresponds to the coccygeal nerve plexus. It is the foundational chakra and is emotionally oriented toward survival and spiritually to grounding. Here it will be called the perineum.

The second chakra is Svadhisthana, स्वधधष्ठान. Also known as the spleen chakra by

Leadbeater, it physically corresponds to the sexual organs, the sacral nerve plexus, the bladder and kidneys and is located just below the navel. Emotionally, this chakra governs sexuality. In this text it will typically be referred to as the sacral center or “sacral chakra”.

The third chakra governs the solar plexus ganglia of nerves, digestive systems, pancreas and adrenal glands. It governs our will, our assertiveness and our power but is also the seat of those “gut feelings” we get. Its Sanskrit name is Manipura, मधि प ूर, which means “navel”. Here it will be referred to as the solar plexus, or gut chakra.

4 The heart chakra is the fourth of the seven. It is the middle chakra and all below it are considered the more physical chakras while those above it are considered to be more spiritual.

It’s Sanskrit name, Anahata, अनाहत, literally means unstruck, unbeaten, or unwounded. How interesting that as humans our heart many times seems to be struck repeatedly by ourselves and others and constantly in a state of feeling beaten and wounded. The cardiac nerve plexus, respiratory and cardiac systems and thymus glands correspond to this chakra. Here it will be simply called the heart chakra.

Moving up, we next come to the throat chakra, Vishuddha, धधशद्धु , meaning very pure, clean, virtuous, and cleansed. The laryngeal nerve plexus is physically responsible for this area and the thyroid gland is perhaps its most important physical aspect. While this chakra’s function is communication, it is not limited to communication just in the physical realm. As Anodea Judith points out, “psychologically” and I add spiritually, “the fifth chakra opens us to higher wisdom, our guides and our own souls (263). In this text it will be called the throat chakra.

Anja, आज्ञा, means “command” and will be called the third eye in this text. The medulla plexus governs this area of the body. According to Wikipedia, “It is a part of the brain which can be made more powerful through meditation, & other spiritual practices just as a muscle is”. The pineal gland is located in this area and governed by this plexus of nerves. Emotionally, this is where perception, intuition and Self-realization occur.

Finally, the Sahasrara chakra, सहस्रार, is the “thousand spoked” seat of spirituality. It is our connection to the Universe, Source, God or whatever you choose to call it. When one thinks of the Universe in terms of quantum physics and sees that we are beings with infinite potentials living in a universe with limitless potentials, it is easy to see how the ancients described this

5 connection as a wheel with one thousand spokes. The pituitary gland is regulated through this chakra.

Here is will be simply called the crown chakra.

History and Background

Dr. Christopher Wallis, Ph.D. reports that the current seven chakra system is relatively young compared to the many chakra systems which developed out of the Tantric Yoga, (more properly spelled,

Tantrick Yoga) traditions which flourished in and around India from about 600-1300 CE. There are five- chakras systems, six-chakras systems, seven, nine, ten, fifteen, twenty-one, twenty-eight and more, depending on which Sanskrit text one is studying.

According to Dr. Wallis, there are only a few areas of the physical body that correspond to all charka systems and they relate to emotional and spiritual experiences; these are the lower belly, the heart, and the crown of the head. He refers to the chakras as prescriptive, not descriptive; meaning,

“they tell what you ought to do to achieve a specific goal by mystical means”(Wallis, n.p.).

That being said, we should not simply discount this more recent version of the chakra system as false simply because it is the youngest. Life is all about evolution and change and growth. Perhaps this more recent version can be proven or disproven through the help of scientific method.

The seven-chakra system used in western yoga and referred to by Dr. Leon Masters in the Hatha

Yoga section of the Masters Curriculum comes from a Sanskrit text known as the Shat-chakra-nirūpana or “Explanation of the Six Chakras” by Pūrnānanda Yati. It was written in 1526. It describes the chakras both in terms of subtle energies and in terms of physical locations in the body. For example, using the translation from Sanskrit of Sir John Woodroffe in The Serpent Power, we see in the first verse,

“In the space outside the Meru, placed on the left and the right, are the two Siras, Sasi and Mihira. The Nadi Susumna, whose substance is the threefold Gunas, is in the middle. She is the

6 form of Moon, Sun, and Fire; Her body, a string of blooming Dhatura flowers, extends to the middle of the Kanda to the Head, and the Vajra inside Her extends, shining, from the Medhra to the Head.” (320)

Note the mention of Nadi. This can mean “pulse”, “vein”, “nerve” or any tubular organ of the body. Susumna refers to an artery or vein of the body, in this case the one which carries “the form of the Moon, Sun and Fire” which are all great sources of energy. On a more metaphysical level the threefold Gunas (sattva, rajas, tamas) also refer to balance/harmony, activity/aggressiveness, and inertia/passivity. Meru literally means “mountain”, but moreover refers to the vertebral column of the human body. Sira refers to veins or lines which cross like veins. Mihira and Sasi are the Sun and the moon. Here we see a text both metaphysical and physical; both technical and poetic. Could it be that the author was able to bring together the esoteric knowledge of those who came before and match it to our physical bodies?

Types of Meditation

Virtually all meditation practices involve some level of breath control and mindfulness. Whether one recites a mantra, holds the body in a particular posture or simply concentrates one’s energy on an area of the body, how one breathes is of paramount importance. To this end there are many ways to accomplish the altered state of meditation. According to Tamera Lechner, an author and meditation instructor with The Chopra Center, meditation falls into five basic categories; primordial sound meditation, mindfulness-based stress reduction, Zen meditation, kundalini yoga, and transcendental meditation.

Primordial Sound Meditation has its roots in ancient Vedic traditions. As a student of this meditation one receives a mantra or vibration that according to the tradition was present at the time of the meditators birth. This mantra is calculated through Vedic mathematic formulas and is then provided

7 to the meditator who silently repeats the mantra in their meditation. The idea is that this mantra helps the student to enter the inner silence of their mind within the meditation.

Zen meditation comes from Buddhist traditions and uses a combination of breathing techniques and observation of one’s own mind, all accomplished through the interaction of an instructor to attain an enlightened state.

Transcendental Meditation makes use of mantras for purposes of focus. There is still breathing and awareness of the breath involved, but there seems to be a large degree of emphasis on the mantra itself.

Mindfulness based Stress Reduction (MSBR) is a type of meditation started by Jon Kabat-Zinn in

1979. This meditation uses both breath awareness and body scan and is primarily used by medical centers to help patients with relaxation. MBSR does not require the use of a mantra.

Kundalini Yoga Meditation uses breath, mantra, and mudra (which is hand position) as well as focus. This type of meditation has both the largest depth and breadth of styles within it as it’s founder,

Yogi Bhajan created hundreds of very specific and teachers who followed have added to the discipline.

The meditation I will be discussing in this thesis will be a combination of Mindfulness-based meditation and kundalini yoga meditation. I was first exposed to it through the work of Dr. Joe Dispenza in his live seminars.

The Mind - Body Connection

All empirical evidence aside, we should first consider the Holy Books of antiquity which, though they do not contain much in the way of hard science, still tell us that there is no separation between

8 mind and body. After all, if one reads the New King James Version of the Holy Bible one will find that, when a centurion asked Jesus to heal his servant, Jesus replied saying “Go your way and as you have believed, so let it be done for you" (Matthew 8:13). A,C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, the translator and editor of Bhagavad-Gita: As Is tells us, “The material body of the indestructible, immeasurable and eternal living entity is sure to come to an end; therefore, fight, O descendent of

Bharata” (Bhagavad Gītā 2:18). Further, The Holy Qur’an states “But He fashioned him in due proportion, and breathed into him something of His Spirit” (Al-Sajda, 32: 9). And finally, Buddha has said, “We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world” (Byron, 3).

The concept that the mind and the body are in no way connected has been around since

Aristotle but in the 17th century, René Descartes, proposed a theory that “the human body may be considered a machine so built and composed of bones, nerves, muscles, veins, blood and skin that even if there were no mind in it, it would not cease to move in the way it does at present when it is not moved under the direction of the will” (Descartes, 60). With that thought, the schism between body and mind and indeed between eastern and western medicine was born. Conversely, Dr. Leon Masters points out in the Minister’s/ Bachelor’s Degree Course Study Modules that “Your physical brain is merely a vehicle that is used by your true mind, which is a field of energy” (1:8). In order to empirically show the existence of the chakras, it seems a logical first step that one must show a connection between the mind and the body. Thanks to advancements in neuroscience, quantum physics, epigenetics and the biological science of signal transduction, we can now dispel the myth that the mind and the body are not intimately connected.

Dr. Candace Pert, Ph.D. tells us in her 1997 book, Molecules of Emotion that, “Recent technological innovations have allowed us to examine the molecular basis of the emotions, and to begin to understand how the molecules of our emotions share intimate connections with, and are indeed

9 inseparable from, our physiology. “ It is the emotions, I have come to see, that link mind and body” (19).

Her work with neurotransmitters, steroids and peptides originally paved the way to finding the “opiate receptor” which is the part of the surface of cells within the brain’s limbic system that respond to enkephalin, endorphin and dynorphin which are naturally created “feel good” drugs originating from the pituitary gland and distributed throughout the body via the central nervous system. She and her associates found that when a body is stressed or in pain, stress being an emotional stimulus while pain is a physical stimulus, the pituitary gland secretes these chemicals which travel to receptors on the surface of the cells of the brain and cause a chemical reaction at the cellular level which makes the pain and stress abate, or at least decrease.

Dr. Bruce Lipton, Ph.D. in his book, The Biology of Belief found that, “Thought ‘energy’ can activate or inhibit the cells function-producing proteins via the mechanics of constructive and destructive interference" (95). What this means is that there seems to be an ingrained, perhaps even genetic hierarchy at the cellular level which responds to our thoughts and beliefs. What we believe is typically what we think; if we did not believe it then it would never enter our mind. Simply put, what we think, is what we get. Enter the placebo effect. The placebo effect is the phenomenon wherein a patient receives a false treatment, a placebo, however their belief is so strong in the treatment that they recover anyway. This has been well documented starting in 1955 by anesthesiologist Henry K Beecher.

Beecher found that an average of 35.2% of patients responded to placebo. (Beecher 1606).

I do not plan to spend an inordinate amount of time discussing placebos but I want to further point out what Dr. Joe Dispenza said regarding recent neurological research: “If a person keeps taking the same substance, his or her brain keeps firing the same circuits in the same way-in effect, memorizing what the substance does. The person can easily become conditioned to the effect of a particular pill or injection from associating it with a familiar internal change from past experience. Because of this kind of

10 conditioning, when the person then takes a placebo, the same hardwired circuits will fire as when he or she took the drug. An associative memory elicits a subconscious program that makes a connection between the pill or injection and the hormonal change in the body and in the program automatically to make the related chemicals found in drug” (39).

The Energy - Body Connection

While it is important to establish a connection and relationship between the mind and body; it is equally important for our discussion of the chakras and meditation to establish a connection between energy fields and the body. In her book, The Subtle Body: An Encyclopedia of Your Energetic Anatomy,

Cyndi Dale describes two types of energy fields veritable which is that the can be measured and putative or subtle which cannot be measured directly given the technology we have at this time. Perhaps before we get into the energy – body connection we should discuss a bit about these energy fields.

Veritable energy fields are measurable and consist of electromagnetic energy and sound energy.

There are seven major types of electromagnetic radiation in each of them varying in frequency and wavelength. The seven types that we are most familiar with are "radio waves, microwaves, infrared waves, visible light, ultraviolet light, x-rays, and gamma rays. Radio waves are the lowest frequency and have the longest wavelength while gamma rays have the highest frequency and shortest wavelength."

Sound energy also called sound waves are considered mechanical. Cyndi Dale states, “they are defined as a disturbance that transports energy through a medium via the mechanic mechanism of particle interaction, which means that sound waves are generated by some sort of interaction” (98).

Subtle energy fields are substantially more complex. Many have yet to be discovered although there is some evidence as to their existence. “Every cell in the body and every thought generates a field.

Every energy body, Meridian, and chakra pulses its own field. In total, the field emanating from your body alone would occupy more space-or empty space than your physical self. In many ways, you are

11 your fields.” (99). Ms. Dale goes into detail that is unnecessary for purposes of this thesis but for sake of general understanding, several of these fields will be briefly discussed.

Within, and around our bodies we have a plethora of subtle fields. The fields are not simply at the surface or beyond, but permeate our being at a cellular and even sub atomic level. To say they

“permeate” us, is even less than accurate. We know from Newtonian and quantum physics that atoms are really just energy slowed down in terms of vibration or frequency in such a way as to appear as matter. It then logically follows that the atoms which our bodies are comprised of are merely energy, or to look at it a different way, we are comprised of varying degrees of vibration and frequency. This vibration exists in particular planes or fields, and many scientists and mystics hypothesize that the fields are as vast and infinite as the universe itself.

The human energy field is the field we will be principally concerning ourselves with in this paper.

A few fields that we will not be discussing, but merit mention for sake of this paper are geofields which are veritable and subtle earth energies such as the Schumann resonance, the universal light field also called the “zero-point field” in quantum physics, and morphological field which allows psychic communication between those of the same species and information exchange between generations.

“The human energy field is primarily composed of the aura, a set of energy bands that graduate in frequency and color as they move outward from the body. Each of the auric fields opens to different energy planes and energy bodies and also partners with a chakra, thus exchanging information between the world outside and inside the body.” (99)

The human energy field can be further divided into layers. Barbara Ann Brennan, in Hands of

Light explains that within the auric field are 7 “layers” which constitute each of the seven chakras. “Each layer of the aura is associated with a chakra… Thus there are specific locations within our energy system for the sensations, emotions, thoughts, memories and other nonphysical experiences that we report to

12 our doctors and therapists. Understanding how our physical symptoms are related to these locations will help us understand the nature of different illnesses and also the nature of both health and disease.

Thus the study of the aura can be a bridge between traditional medicine and our psychological concerns.” (43).

If the chakras exist within layers of the human energy field, and if humans are in fact dynamic creatures, which is self-evident, then just because we cannot measure these energy fields directly does not mean we cannot prove their existence by measuring them indirectly. This may seem like pseudoscience to some but I would point out that there is a tremendous veritable energy that we know exists, we harness its power on a daily basis, we have observed its effects since the dawn of time, however we have never seen it. That energy is called “wind”. Wind, by definition, is the movement of gases on a large scale. We never see the wind, we only see the effect the wind makes. We do not measure the wind; we measure the change in position of particles moved by the wind, velocity, density of gases involved and the energy exchange based on these properties. There is no reason why we cannot measure the chakras and the related energy fields in the same fashion. And at least one scientist already has.

Hiroshi Motoyama was a Japanese scientist and parapsychologist who did tremendous research and experimentation in the realm of psychic phenomenon, acupuncture and Chi energy from Chinese medicine, chakra energy from yogic traditions and the relationships of each of these systems to one another. Motoyama reasoned that the subtle energies of psi phenomenon, chakra and nadi energies and Chi should all effect measurable changes within the electromagnetic field (EMF) around a subject employing them or around an object that subject may be concentrating his or her subtle energies on. In order to measure such energy ejection from the chakras he constructed a machine which he simply called the “Chakra Machine”. The following is a brief description of his apparatus.

13 “This machine consists of an electrode box (placed inside a lead shielded room), somewhat resembling a telephone booth, with two copper electrodes on the top and bottom (floor and ceiling) and a sliding square panel with electrodes attached on all four sides (left-right, front- back) which is free to traverse up and down the frame structure so as to be positioned at any part of a person’s body. An electromagnetic field is set up between the electrodes, and as the subject stand inside the box without any electrode directly touching his body (30-40 cm from the body), any energy ejected from the body can be detected as a change in this electromagnetic field” (5-6). Dr. Motoyama, placed the movable electrode sensors at various locations while his test subjects concentrated on a particular area of the body which would correspond to a particular chakra in the seven-chakra system. He noted changes in the electromagnetic field when the subjects were concentrating on particular areas and when they were not. He also noted larger changes in the subjects who professed the ability to concentrate on a particular chakra versus those who professed no ability whatsoever to concentrate on said area.

At the very least this experiment proves that a person can change their electromagnetic field simply by changing the way they think about a certain area of the body; concentrating on it or not concentrated on it. This experiment alone does not provide conclusive evidence of the existence of chakras, however, it does show that we can affect a change in our own bodies.

Dr. Motoyama did not stop with this experiment. He produced another machine he called The

Apparatus for Measuring the Functions of the Meridians and the Corresponding Internal Organs (AMI), in order to measure Chi energy from the acupuncture system of Chinese medicine using points on “the tips of the fingers and toes called ‘seiketsu’ points where meridians of acupuncture begin or end.” (9)

These points are thought to be the areas from which Chi energy flows in or out of the body and are located at the end of the meridians. A description of the AMI is too complex for the scope of this thesis however what is important is that in over 2000 test subjects Dr. Motoyama, was able to collect a tremendous amount of data which showed from the sheer numbers involved when an internal organ

14 such as the bladder, kidneys, lungs or heart is functioning normally, and from that information he was able to extrapolate when the same organ functioned either below or above normal.

Dr. Motoyama found that a correlation existed between energy ejection from chakra points, and energy activity in corresponding meridian points. He gives an example of a subject who was able to activate his third eye chakra, which he recorded with the Chakra Machine and also showed high energy on the AMI corresponding to the “Jo-tanden” meridian, which although it is the connecting point of the urinary-bladder and small intestine meridians, (organs located in a completely different area of the body), happens to be located in the same position on the body as the chakra.

Professor Valerie Hunt also did pioneering work on the study of chakras. “She found that when the focus of a person's consciousness was anchored in the physical world, their energy field registered the frequencies in the range of 250 cps (cycles per second). This is close to the body's own biological frequency. Active psychics and healers, however, registered in a band between 400 and 800 cps. Trance specialists and chanellers registered in a narrow field of 800-900 cps, but from 900 cps onwards Hunt correlated what she termed 'mystical personalities' who had a firm sense of the cosmic interconnections between everything. They were anchored in reality, possessed psychic and healing abilities, were able to enter deep trance states, yet had transcended and unified the separate experiences through a mystic, holistic, metaphysical philosophy" (Ozaniec, n.p.).

Finally, Dr. Konstantin Korotkov, a Professor of Physics at St. Petersburg State Technical

University in Russia, pulled all this research together. He has used the Gas Discharge Visualization technique, which is a form of kirlian photography to show the human energy field, and combined it with computer programs to not just prove the existence of energy centers within the body, but to quote directly from his website give a “direct, real-time viewing of the human energy fields”. Building on the technology discovered by Kirlian, He found that “specific structural-protein complexes within the mass

15 of the skin provide channels of heightened electron conductivity, measurable at acupuncture points on the skin surface” (14). Using this information, he developed a tool he calls the Bio-Well to essentially take pictures of the electron discharge from the fingers. Since the finger tips correspond to certain acupuncture points which further correspond to particular energy centers within the body he was able to create a computer algorithm to build a graphic that shows the relative size, alignment and energy of each center.

16 Chapter 3: Discussion

In 1846, two decades before Louis Pasteur and Robert Koch did their ground breaking work on the theories of bacteria, and four decades before germ theory was accepted, Ignaz Semmelweis, a doctor of obstetrics in Vienna discovered that women treated by the doctors in his clinic had much higher mortality rates than those who worked with the midwives in the same clinic. More perplexing was the fact that the women who did not even go to his clinic but had their babies in the streets and fields of Vienna suffered the lowest mortality rates. He noted that the doctors worked with cadavers as well as pregnant women whereas the midwives still worked in the hospital alongside the doctors but did not work specifically with the dead. Of course, the women who had their babies in the fields had no contact with dead bodies whatsoever. On a hunch, he had his doctors and pathologists wash their hands with a chlorine solution between working with the dead and working with the pregnant women.

Mortality rates fell from 1 in 10 to 1 in 100. Though he could not see, feel, or prove the existence of pathogens, he had not only discovered them but figured out how to kill them and improve the lives of the women who went to his clinic. Sadly, the medical establishment did not embrace his ideas. In fact, they vitriolized him, ostracized him, and ultimately had him committed to an insane asylum where he was beaten by the guards and died of some sort of infection a few weeks later.

As mentioned in the introduction, the purpose of this thesis is twofold. The first is to prove the existence empirically that chakras, or energy centers, actually exist within our physical bodies. The second and perhaps more important aspiration is to use such knowledge to enhance the meditative experience so as to improve our lives and the lives of those around us. One can see from the body of evidence presented in the chapter previous that substantial proof of energy centers of some sort does in fact exist within our bodies. Although it is true that we cannot measure the energy centers directly with

17 the current technology at hand, we can certainly show their effects and thereby show their existence.

Dr. Joe Dispenza is a champion in this regard.

Is It All in Our Genes?

After healing himself from a horrific spinal injury through meditation he began teaching others how to do the same thing. From an mp3 called “Stop Self Imposed Limitations”, in his own words, Dr. Joe says, “From that point, I think, is when the miracles started happening and we started seeing people healing themselves of M.S., and lupus, and cancer, and diabetes, and rare genetic disorders, and traumatic brain injuries, Parkinson’s disease, uterine fibroids, thyroid conditions, other endocrine conditions. This started the journey for me because I was interested in beginning to measure some of those changes and so we brought in a team of scientists and researchers and we teach these events and workshops around the world and our interest is to measure transformation.”

In his book, You are the Placebo, Dr. Joe cites several peer reviewed studies that have been done over recent years showing the health benefits of meditation not just from a stress reduction standpoint but measuring what happens when stress is reduced using this medium on a epigenetic level. For example, a study was done at the Benson – Henry Institute for Mind-Body Medicine at Massachusetts

General Hospital in Boston where they looked at two groups; those who were experienced meditators and those who were novices and had to be taught to meditate.

“At the end of the study period, the novices showed a change in 1561 genes (874 up regulated for health and 687 down regulated for stress), as well as reduced blood pressure and reduced heart and respiration rates, while the experienced practitioners expressed 2,209 new genes. Most of the genetic changes involved improving the body’s response to chronic psychological stress” (101).

18 In the late 70s and early 80s, I was taught in high school that our genes as part of our DNA were

100% set at the time of conception. Basically we were born with a particular “kit” of DNA comprised of a particular set of genes and that was all we got. This study clearly shows that thinking to be false and that meditation affects a physical change in the body. That being said, if we can change our genes then can or will the change can be permanent? It would seem that if we can change our DNA by thought alone then we ought to be a lot more limitless than we appear to be; after all we have thousands and thousands of thoughts every day, surely some of them should cause changes.

The truth is, we are the sum total of all of our experiences. Said another way, we are the sum total of everything that has happened in our past. Each experience we have, neurologically wires the brain. This is not necessarily a good or bad thing, it is simply how we learn. The concept is called neuroplasticity. Anybody who has ever watched a baby play with a puzzle toy and “get it” can see this in action. Once an experience rewires the neurons in our brain that event changes our emotions which in turn changes the chemistry in our body according to the information provided by Dr. Candace Pert.

Once all that chemistry is released into our body it can cause us to experience yet another emotion which causes the brain to rewire yet again and this cycle continues back and forth until the experience results in a mood and then as it is “played” over and over in our lives, that mood becomes a temperament and as the years pass it becomes a personality trait. When the personality trait is one that works for us we call it a lifestyle; when it’s one that no longer works for us we call it an addiction.

Brainwaves, High Beta, and Addiction

When the neurons in our brains fire, electromagnetic fields at various frequencies are created.

These frequencies are what are measured during a brain scan like an electroencephalograph, (EEG). The brain waves fall into five categories. Beta is the category that represents our waking conscious state.

Alpha is a more relaxed state. This is a state where we are able to focus and still relax. Think of it as the

19 place where we are “chilled out and having fun”. We are more creative in this state; more suggestable.

Theta is described by Dr. Joe as our “half awake and half-asleep” (Placebo, 153) state; it is where we are most suggestable and the place we are aiming for when we are meditating. Beyond theta is delta which is deep sleep and lastly is gamma which is a brainwave pattern that represents a level of super awareness; a heightened state of consciousness.

Within the beta state, our typical waking state, there are varying degrees of frequency. When we are relaxed and still awake it is called low-range beta and our brain has a frequency of 13 to 15 Hz.

Mid-range beta is between 16 and 22 Hz and this is produced during times where we are focused like when we are learning something. High-range beta is from 22 to 50 Hz. These patterns are seen during stressful situations when our survival instincts kick in. One would think that a high range beta is a rare occurrence but the truth is that for the average American high-range beta has become the norm.

In the ancient past, we may have been being chased by a sabre-tooth tiger who was about to make us lunch. Obviously, that is not time to learn something new in low beta nor is it the time to get into the state of alpha or theta and be suggestible. That is time to figure out one of two scenarios; fight or flee. As our brain kicks in to this level it releases the various hormones necessary in order for our body to deal with whatever the stressful stimulus is in front of us. We don’t have sabre-tooth tigers any longer. But we do have bosses. And bill’s. And mortgages. And mothers-in-law. And college funds for the kids. Here in the United States, we are known to be the highest stress society in the world.

The two chief chemicals being produced when we are in a high beta state are Adrenaline and

Cortisol. Both are necessary chemicals to address survival in a kill or be killed mode, such as the saber- toothed tiger example. Adrenaline increases blood circulation, carbohydrate consumption and increases heart rate. Cortisol increases glucose in the bloodstream. As these hormones are released they cause physiological changes in our body such as eyes dilating, muscles tensing as well as the increase in blood

20 pressure and heart and respiratory rate mentioned earlier. They also cause us to feel frustrated, or angry, or stressed, or helpless, or hopeless. After years of this sort of conditioning we become tolerant to living at a higher beta level. So much so that the receptors on our cells actually increase to make up for the overabundance of chemicals such as adrenaline running through our system. As Dr. Pert points out, “Emotions and bodily sensations are thus intricately intertwined, in a bidirectional network in which each can alter the other. Usually this process takes place at an unconscious level, but it can also surface into consciousness under certain conditions, or be brought into consciousness by intention” (142).

This is the crux of addiction. We put ourselves in situations that cause us to be in high beta. The high beta causes us to feel certain emotions. We become addicted to our emotions because we feel them more and more often. Because we feel them more and more often our cells create more receptors to handle the overload of chemicals being released into our body by the various glands. This sets up the situation where we crave the emotion in order to release the chemical in order to feed the receptors, which creates more receptors, so we need to have more of the same thoughts in order to get more of the same feelings to produce more of the chemicals and so on. How do we stop this downward spiral?

Well, the answer is simple, and it’s one you probably heard from your mom or your grandmother: Take a deep breath.

Breath IS Life

We can quote the Christian’s Holy Bible: “Then the Lord God formed the man from the dust of the ground. He breathed the breath of life into the man’s nostrils, and the man became a living person”

(Genesis 2:7 NLT). We can quote the Muslim’s Holy Qur’an: "When I have fashioned him (in due proportion) and breathed into him of My spirit, fall ye down in obeisance unto him" (Súra Sád 38:72).

We can quote the Tao Te Ching: “Can you control your breath. Gently. Like a baby?” (37). We can quote

Buddhist traditions from the Theragatha: “One who has gradually practiced, Developed and brought to

21 perfection Mindfulness of the in-and-out breath As taught by the Enlightened One, Illuminates the entire world Like the moon when freed from clouds” (119). Regardless of which religious belief system one subscribes to, it seems apparent that breath equates with life, breath comes from Source and breath must be breathed effectively in order to flourish. Meditation is a tool for just that purpose.

Blaise Pascal said in his 1669 book, Pensées, “I have discovered that all the unhappiness of men arises from one single fact, that they cannot stay quietly in their own chamber” (55). This thought still hold true today. In terms of advertising alone, Caitlin Johnson, a writer for a CBS website reports that

Americans are hounded with as many as 5000 bids for our attention each day (Johnson, n.p.). That does not include our responsibilities to our kids, and our spouses, and our bosses and our employees. It also does not add in the small irritations and frustrations of life such as traffic and lines and taxes and politics. Finally, there are physical realities that also serve to keep us in high beta such as fast food and allergy season and medical conditions and the neighbor’s dog that finds our lawn the best place in town to relieve itself. We are constantly bombarded with stimuli, perhaps more than any generation before us. Saber toothed tiger? Heck, our ancestors had it easy. The need for mindful thought, for quiet breathing, and for meditation is more important now than it ever has been. The simple truth however, is that we are all very busy people. So, how can we breathe and meditate and be mindful in the most effective way possible? How can we get the most “bang for our buck”?

According to Dr. Candace Pert, “there is a wealth of data showing that changes in the rate and depth of breathing produce changes in the quantity and kind of peptides that are released from the brainstem” (186). The old computer saying, “garbage in, garbage out” applies here. When we are breathing deeply and naturally in a relaxed and mindful way, we are at peace physically and thus our bodies create the peptides, neurotransmitters and hormones of peace, quiet, joy and love. Conversely, when we are stressed; when we are in high beta and our survival instincts are kicked on, we are in

22 survival mode physically and so our body will produce all the peptides, neurotransmitters and hormones associated with survival.

This thesis asserts that the answer is a two pronged form of meditation which like most all forms of meditation, involves mindfulness and breathing, but also adds two very important elements: emotion and intent.

Emotion and Intent

Dr. Candace Pert has shown us through rigorous experimentation that “consciousness creates reality, mind becomes matter, our thoughts proceed our physical bodies, not vice versa” (250). Let’s look at this a bit more deeply.

You wake up late one morning because you did not sleep well the night before. A bit irritated with yourself, you rush through a shower and a shave just in time to hit the gridlock on the freeway. It is a familiar feeling, seems you are always running late. You were already behind so you just grabbed a

Starbucks on the way in, but so did everybody else which made you even more late. The familiar rush of irritation flows through you. The idiot in front of you is texting while driving and suddenly you have to slam the brakes on to avoid hitting him. You utter a few superlatives regarding his intellect. The coffee spills on your pants and the day, which has barely even started goes downhill fast. Not unexpected.

Pretty much a Monday after all. The boss is more of a jerk than normal. You begin to really get frustrated. The guy really makes your blood boil. You try to go to lunch with a friend but the food is late, the waitress is a pain, and all your friend can talk about is their weekend stuck with the monster-in-law.

You wonder off hand, not really even listening to their babble, why you even hang out with them. Now you are beginning to seethe. There is a wreck on the freeway right where the construction zone is at, further snarling the traffic and so you arrive home late, hot, and armed for bear. Your wife says hello and you bark at her. You have adrenaline and cortisol pushing through your veins like it is going to

23 explode out of you. Thing is, you really are not that pissed. In fact, this is normal. Why? Because it happens every single day like this and not only have your cells, tissues and organs adjusted to meet the onslaught of chemicals, they actually have come to expect it. What would be weird is if you had a GOOD day.

This is an example of feelings and emotions being both the end product of the experience and the experience being what is dictated by the feelings and emotions in one’s life. How in the world can you experience anything different when you have so programmed your body that the feelings and emotions arrive at the same time or even before the event? You expected all this to happen. Traffic on the freeway is a reality for you. So is a boss who is a jerk. You have become so addicted to the feelings and emotions as produced by the adrenaline and cortisol that you really have no way to feel differently.

If that’s true, then it follows that you have no way to change your physical reality either.

The problem with this line thinking is that it simply isn’t true. The reality I have described in the previous paragraph is not reality; unless one chooses for it to be their reality. Whether a stimulus causes us peace or causes us stress is simply the way we react and respond to it. We react and respond in ways that have been hardwired into the neurons within our brains; that is, to feel certain emotions and to release certain chemicals at certain times based on certain stimuli. Since we are seemingly in charge of our thoughts then there is no reason why we cannot react in a different way and thus reengineer these neural pathways in our brain, causing different chemicals to be released and perhaps instead of particular stimuli causing us pain, it might cause us joy. Instead of stress perhaps we could achieve peace.

Dr. Joe Dispenza asks the question in You are the Placebo; “feelings and emotions are normally the end products of experiences, but can you can combine a clear intention with an emotion that begins to give the body a sampling of the future experience before it’s been even manifest?” (105). Ever had a

24 dream that you wondered when you woke up if it actually happened or not? Most of us have had this experience. The way our brains are designed, a thought in our brain is no different than an exterior experience that has occurred for us. Each thought, experience or stimulus is processed based on every other past event in our lives and every other past stimulus up to that point.

And if you think about it, things that occur may or may not be the way that we perceive them anyway. Just because you were standing on one corner of the street viewing an accident, for example, does not mean that you will have the same story as the driver who was hit or the driver who did the hitting or any other passerby who saw the accident. Each will have a different experience, based on where they were standing, what they happen to be feeling at the time, and truly, their entire life’s history up to the point of that accident. All different experiences but all the experiences are true.

So, what if you decided to have an intention about something and attached an emotional quality to that something without the event actually having occurred in your life? Could you change your brain, your body, your health, or your prosperity? Could you do it by thought alone?

Tying it all Together

It is absolutely within our power to create something from nothing, to manifest results from thin air. We Are “co-creators” with God. According to Saint Luke in the New Testament, this is what Jesus was teaching his disciples: “And he called the twelve together and gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to preach the kingdom of God and to heal” (Luke,

9:1-2 ASV).

The “trick” to meditation, if there is one, is to become completely in touch with one’s body from the perspective of one’s spirit, while at the same time letting go of the chatter in one’s mind; in other words, one must become the observer of oneself. This is the core of this type of healing meditation.

25 When I say, “in touch with one’s body”, I do not mean in touch with the fidgeting, fiddling, picking, scratching, non-thinking, constant movement and attention to it, rather the complete opposite. In meditation, we “go within”, or what this author likes to call “drop” within our own physical-ness and embrace it in a mindful way. Without judgement, without movement, and really, the goal is to do it without thought. This is where we are most suggestive. This is an Alpha and Theta brain state. This is where the energy centers; the chakras come into play. And this is where the “magic” happens.

As we drop into our meditation, using our breath to first relax and become centered and then using it to move energy throughout our bodies we can concentrate on each energy center or on a particular energy center to achieve a desired result, based on a particular intent. There are reference guides available to help in locating an emotional or spiritual imbalance by looking at a particular malady or imbalance in an area of the body. Louise Hay’s Heal Your Body is one such reference guide. Allow me to give an example from my own life to illustrate how I and others I know are using meditation in the way I will describe in this thesis to heal our bodies and manifest those things we desire in our lives.

In October of 2015, I was diagnosed with Hashimoto’s Disease. This is a syndrome wherein the thyroid basically dies and in order for the body to continue to work properly, doctors prescribe a thyroid replacement drug which the patient is expected to take for the rest of their life. Prior to this diagnosis, I had been diagnosed with high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I was on two drugs for the BP and another pharmaceutical for the cholesterol. In addition to this I had been on a once a day Omeprazole

(Prilosec) for acid reflux for about 10 years.

Curious as to the mental and spiritual roots of such issues I went to Louise Hay’s book and paged through it. “Gastritis: Prolonged uncertainty. A feeling of doom” (36). “Cholesterol: Clogging the channels of joy. Fear of accepting joy” (24). “High Blood Pressure: Longstanding emotional problem not solved” (19). “Thyroid: I never get to do what I want to do. When is it going to be my turn” (69). Here we

26 see a picture of exactly who I was, a man who had been in an unrewarding career for many years, a bad marriage and had all but given up and come to the point called, “this is the best it gets”. Basically, a typical American. Over worked, under joyed and feeling stuck in it all.

I had recently come across the work of Dr. Joe Dispenza and thought to give it a try for the next few months. Each morning I dropped into deep meditation for about 45 minutes to an hour and a half.

Having recently learned that Melatonin, the natural brain chemical which helps with sleep and therefore our theta brain state, is at its highest concentrations between 2am and 4 am, I rose at 4am to start my meditation. I dropped into meditation by breathing deeply and listening to soft music. Then I raised my energy by starting at the first energy center and squeezing the muscles corresponding to that center, followed by the second center and then the third. I did this to physically push the cerebral spinal fluid up the spinal column. Since this fluid carries the charged molecules that cause electro-chemical changes in the neurons at a cellular level, it acts as a current, thereby creating an electromagnetic field (EMF) sometimes called electromagnetic flux within my body. Also, this action spiritually pushes subtle energy up the prana tube, again, for the purpose of moving energy through my body. I furthered the work by breathing as if sucking air into my lungs like sucking the energy through a straw, up and out. As I did this

I visualized the energy creating a torus shape of movement throughout my body starting at the perineum and pushing through the crown chakra and then out and down to recycle and increase through me. The energy built as I was doing so.

After a bit of time, dictated by the music I was listening to, I stopped this activity, began again to breathe deeply and slowly and became very heart centered. To define heart centered, think of it as

“falling in love with oneself”. From there it was easy to drift into “nothing” and become as Dr. Joe calls it in his seminars, “nobody, at no time, nowhere”. Once that is achieved, I would find myself in a place of infinite potential. I simply picked the potential called “perfectly healthy, thyroid working just fine” and embraced it. Truly, I fell in love with it. I made that potential mine in my body; but more importantly in

27 my heart. I sat in awe and wonder at what my life looked like with this scenario taking place. All the things I would do, feel, see, hear and touch. All the fun and joy in my life just from the simple event of being healthy with a perfectly working thyroid.

There were other intentions attached with other emotions as well. A whole new life. I had recently gotten a divorce and wanted a partner that empowered me rather than one who would hold me back from my dreams and aspirations. I wanted time and money to travel. Even things as simple as having a glass of fine wine from time to time or watching sunsets on the beach. All of these intentions and the related emotions came up as potentials and were embraced. I experienced them. I fell in love with them. And I released them back into the quantum field, knowing that they had already occurred in my life.

When I came out of meditation I was pretty sure I had accomplished what I needed to do as I was a sweaty, crying, slobbery mess. Most importantly, I felt a profound sense of gratitude. According to

Dr Joe Dispenza, “Gratitude is one of the most powerful emotions for increasing your level of suggestibility. It teaches your body emotionally that the event you’re grateful for has already happened, because we usually give thanks after a desirable event has occurred” (Placebo, 135). This was my sign.

From that point, I had the knowing that all was fine and that I was healed. That being said, I took no chances. I did this same meditation for the better part of 4 months from about the beginning of

November through early March 2016. I combined a strong intention with very strong emotions, and I did it daily to change old habits.

In early April that same year, I saw the endocrinologist again and had another ultrasound of my thyroid. The results were, according to her, a “medical impossibility”. My thyroid had decreased in size by 11 percent, and was showing tissue growth where holes had existed six months earlier. The blood work came back showing a working thyroid as well.

28 Since that time, I have done more work specific to my blood pressure and as of the date of this thesis, I am off all medications. My thyroid is working. My blood pressure is lower than it was with two different blood pressure medications and after ten years I have found that I no longer need omeprazole as my acid reflux has completely vanished. Also, I have partnered with a woman in a relationship that I never dreamed possible prior to this work. I travel. I enjoy fine wines and have had many trips to several places where I can watch a sunset while walking on the beach.

29 Conclusion

Effective living is all about tools and tactics. A screwdriver is a tool. So is an impact driver. Both will get the screw into the wood, but one does the job with a lot less work. Tools are important.

Likewise, the screwdriver in the hands of a five-year-old will not likely render the same result that it would in the hands of a seasoned carpenter. The carpenter, through his experience, has learned more tactics. Tactics are equally as important.

St James, the brother of Jesus exhorts us in his New Testament epistle from The Jerusalem Bible,

“What good is it dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions?

Can that kind of faith save anyone”? (James 2:14, JB). Throughout history we have seen the separation of faith and science. That chasm grew deeper and wider during the so called “Age of Reason”, as scientists, politicians and church officials vied for control of the minds and souls of the people they were supposed to be serving. Perhaps the social political and religious model of control was necessary for the times. Those times have changed.

With the worldwide spread of tools such as the internet, a new model is emerging. This model is one of cooperation, not of control. We are finding that the origins of life on this planet were not really random as Darwin and others postulated. We are learning that the relationship between our body, our mind, our spirit and even our world is deeply and intricately connected and requires a more cooperative model. Science is now beginning to back these ideas. More and more we are seeing that a model comprised of competition and conflict will only serve to disrupt the natural cycles and flow of the planet and eventually annihilate us as a species on it.

The ancient practice of meditation has always been helpful to untold generations of people.

Today, in our fast paced, high stress, every changing world we need it more than ever. However, meditation does not need to be just a means of escaping reality for a few minutes per day simply to

30 relax and unwind. Meditation is a powerful tool that when wielded correctly can produce a tremendous change in the lives of its users. I have personally met a woman from Texas who has cured herself from

Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia (ALL). Although we have never met face to face, I have spoken several times with another woman from British Columbia who has come back from stage four ovarian cancer.

She said that since she was so weak and really could do nothing else, she stayed in deep meditation for up to 12 hours per day! I have seen objects made manifest out of thin air. I myself am living proof of this change. Perhaps it is as the French novelist, Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr stated, “the more things change, the more they stay the same”. Sure, we still use this ancient tool, but now, with the new tactics being developed we can use it to better the quality of our lives, and the lives of others.

Finally, we in the world of Metaphysics know that nothing we accomplish comes directly from us but rather through us from Source. With that thought in mind, I end this thesis with the following quote from the Holy Bible. “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous--how well I know it” (Psalm 139:14 NLT).

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