On Jul 8, 2008, at 8:37 PM, curtisdeltablues wrote:
Thanks for the links Judy, I'll check them out.
A recent overview of meditation in The Cambridge Handbook of Science
has this to say about metaphysical speculations such as "pure
consciousness" as often claimed in the TMO and by TM researchers
(emphases mine):
"TM researchers further view this EEG picture as reflecting a single
and original
state of “Transcendental pure consciousness” (Maharishi, 1969; Travis
et al., 2004).
Transcendental state is conceptualized as a “fourth” state of
consciousness”, a “wakeful
hypometabolic state”, that differs from hypnosis and ordinary or
sleep states (R.K.
Wallace, 1970). Although these descriptions might best be interpreted
as metaphysical
assertions rather than first-person descriptions, they do suggest
that this state of
absorption could also involve some form of meta-awareness.
Nevertheless, despite the
possibility of a more sophisticated phenomenological interpretation
and the need to
relate physiological data to subjective data, it is still unclear
whether and how TM
meditation practices produce increased alpha beyond a general arousal
effect or, an
inhibition of task-irrelevant cortical zones. Other relaxation
techniques have led to the
same EEG profile and studies that employed counterbalanced control
relaxation
conditions consistently found a lack of alpha power increases or even
decreases
comparing relaxation or hypnosis to TM meditation (Morse et al.,
1977; Tebecis, 1975;
Warrenburg, Pagano, Woods, & Hlastala, 1980). Similarly, the initial
claim that TM
produces a unique state of consciousness different than sleep has
been refuted by
several EEG meditation studies which reported sleep-like stages
during this technique
with increased alpha and then theta power (Pagano, Rose, Stivers, &
Warrenburg,
1976; Younger, Adriance, & Berger, 1975)."
It's quite clear that this "pure consciousness experience" is mostly
hype and actually, surprisingly, given the tenacious and insistent
repetition of this phrase by TM advocates really just a metaphysical
idea without a whole lot of merit. What I find disturbing is that
such baseless assertions of "pure consciousness" for mere thought-
free states is actually believed by gullible writers like Robert
Forman who seem to have swallowed this idea hook, line and sinker.
Since he is a TMer, such blatant bias is hardly surprising, but worth
noting the source of this idea is most likely from the TM mythos.
