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Study: No ‘God spot’ in the human brain
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Study: No ‘God spot’ in the human brain on Thu Aug 31, 2006 9:39 pm

pepsiboy

Joined: 25 Jun 2006
Posts: 562

http://msnbc.msn.com/id/14587036/

The human brain does not contain a single "God spot" responsible for mystical and religious experiences, a new study finds.

Instead, the sense of union with God or something greater than the self often described by those who have undergone such experiences involves the recruitment and activation of a variety brain regions normally implicated in different functions such as self-consciousness, emotion and body representation.

The finding, detailed in the current issue of Neuroscience Letters, contradicts previous suggestions by other researchers that the there might be a specific region in the brain designed for communication with God.

"The main goal of the study was to identify the neural correlates of a mystical experience," said study leader Mario Beauregard of the University of Montreal in Canada. "This does not diminish the meaning and value of such an experience, and neither does it confirm or disconfirm the existence of God."

In the study, 15 cloistered Carmelite nuns, ranging in age from 23 to 64, had their brains scanned while asked to relive the most intense mystical experience they had ever had as members of the religious order.

The nuns were not asked to try and actually achieve a state of spiritual union with God during the experiment because, as the nuns put it, "God cannot be summoned at will."

Nevertheless, the researchers believe their method was justified because previous studies have shown that actors asked to enter a particular state activated the same brain regions as people actually experiencing those emotions.

As a control, the nuns were instructed to relive the most intense state of union with another human ever felt in their lives while in the Carmelite order.

The study found that mystical experiences activate more than a dozen different areas of the brain at once. One of the regions, called the caudate nucleus, has been implicated in positive emotions such as happiness, romantic love and maternal love.

The researchers speculate that activation of this brain region during mystical experiences is related to the feelings of joy and unconditional love the nuns described.
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Posted on Thu Aug 31, 2006 9:53 pm

Tankdown

Joined: 10 Aug 2006
Posts: 688

First to say I hope this don't get off the science topic of the forum.

Some of the information is good, I thought there be more of a reaction in the center of the brain (the thing that controls the breathing and what not) to be talk about because of the stun you mite get from...errr.....whatever I hope you get it. The love and such wasnt a real big surpise to me. But what about the seaction that controls human senses? What about the mathical and learning secations? And Most importent what about the fortal lube of the brain that controls judgement?I sort of want to read more about this but it donest give much about it.

Anyhow nice ariticle
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