Is Religion all in one's head (right hemisphere)

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fltcoils

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How many have driven miles alone, listening to NPR, fetching washers/dryers/dishwashers etc?

I was on the road Sunday bringing back a KUDS22, and listened to a Fresh Air segment that had me spell bound

Jill Bolte Taylor was a Harvard neurosurgeon. AT 37 she had a left hemisphere leaking stroke. After 8 years of recovery she discusses the insights her stroke has produced, as a specialist in neurology. WOW is all I could say. And pass on the link.

She specifically experienced a nirvana as her left hemisphere shut down. It is her story of that experience which prompts me to ask, Is religion all in one's head? or How much of our spiritual experience is really random fumbling with the left vs right hemisphere dominance/operation?

Listen or browse the synapsis and you'll know what I mean.

best to all.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=91861432
 
I believe religion is a result and artifact of self-consciousness. We don't see religion in any of the lower animal species, and even the Bible for that matter doesn't say anything about Adam and Eve initially having any religious beliefs. It wasn't until they ate the apple (or the mushroom, or whatever) that they became self-conscious and started worrying about their nakedness and invoking God by name.

Look at a month-old baby and you'll get to the truth. Is the baby Christian or Islamic? Is he a patriotic American? Is he liberal or conservative? Gay or straight? What race or nationality does he identify with?

The baby simply IS, without regard for any dualities. This is the true reality IMO, the natural situation of man. All the rest (including religion) is just delusion and cultural conditioning.
 
good point,

Except, Jeff, if that baby is male, he is already gay or straight, just not yet evidencing much besides hunger and the need to be cared for.

The anatomical evidence alone, if not the studies and statistically valid correlations makes any consideration of "nurture versus nature" obsolete. We can still argue the triggers for a woman producing heterosexual or homosexual children, but at least in the case of males, the science is clear: you are born that way.
 
True. My point was, the baby has no conscious awareness of these dualities, even regarding his own gender.
 
In the other post I talked about all my Relgious feelings I have because I have Epilepsy centerd in the God center.I could never explain it but its the most wonderful feeling in the world.I have had this all my life and when a Aura comes on I feel a out of body where my is soul pulled to another realm of light and Love and feel like God is near I have the most wonderful feeling in my chest and my hair stands str8 up .I have had many other feelings that have no words but its the most beautiful feeling and also Scary cauz if I dont pop a Valium under my tongue I will have a Violent sezure.Here is a link that talks about it.I can understand this because you haved to go through it but I could never put it in words.Here is a link that talks about it I also talked more in the other post.http://www.bbc.co.uk/science/horizon/2003/godonbrain.shtml
 
I know exactly what you are describing volsboy. Mine wasn't related to a medical condition that ended in seizures, though. During my rave and dance party years, I used to get these epiphanies on the dance floor all the time. They made me hug and love everybody, give me the most intense tingles, acute sensory perception, boundless energy, a great feeling of well-being and anticipation in the pit of my stomach, and my hairs would stand up. Of course I never related these to God, but the vitamin 'E' that helped me find a new level of (un)consciousness. 'Ahh, the fun I used to have' (drifts off...).

During the early nineties I had a friend who was then a devout 'born again' christian. He was always very vocal about his religious beliefs, righteousness, sin and all that other stuff that went with his belief system. He wanted me to come to his bible meets and I always declined. Until, one day I struck a deal with him. I agreed to go to a bible meet, if he agreed to come to a dance party with me. Long story short, I went to bible study with him and later took him to a (Bacchanalia) party. At first he was apprehensive, seeing all those buff, depraved, almost nekkid bods writhing to devlish tunes. Then, half way through the night I offered him a vitamin 'E' - which he surprisingly accepted. Shortly after he disappeared and I didn't see him again until daylight. He was sitting up in the stalls taking in the scene of depravity with the biggest kick-arse smile I'd ever seen. The first thing he said to me was 'this is better than Jesus.' I was floored, in stitches and replied with 'I'm glad you're enjoying this party.' After that his priorities somewhat changed and he spent more time doing worldly things.

I guess for him everything started with an 'E'.

 
The point

If we become more aware of how our minds work, I think we'll be better able to care for ourselves. I think that's Dr. Bolte Taylor's point.

It isn't that the estatic experience is a substitute for a spiritual connection with God (She experienced this as the left hemisphere shut down). But knowing more about how our flesh operates makes us better people. It should help us be more whole, and thus more receptive to God's voice.

Do you see what I mean, there's a challenge there - to know more is to be more.

(one does think of Dicken's Scrooge "you're probably a piece of undigested cheese..." etc)
 

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