Quintessence Of Thought

Sage Patanjali has defined yog as 'Chitt vritti nirodh;' nirodh alludes to disconnection. A delinking of neural pathways between conscious awareness and locii that generate impulses to trigger disturbances in this awareness.

Chitt and vritti are highly complex and abstract terms and have no equivalence in the English language or contemporary Freudian or Jung's psychology.

Chitt could be perhaps best defined as the awareness that can be stilled and focused or be in disarray and scattered. It is the cognitive entity that interfaces with the universe. This cognitive entity has been further classified into moodh, khsipt, vikshipt, and ekagra and finally, the disconnected niruddha. This classification is based on the degree of volatility and distraction by sensory indulgences. Moodh is the most distracted and materially inclined; ekagra is the more focused and spiritually inclined whilst niruddha is the one who's achieved disconnect from vrittis.

Contemporary modern psychology discusses 'id'- the primitive, instinctual part of the mind that contains sexual and aggressive drives and hidden memories; the 'superego,' which operates as a moral conscience; and the 'ego,' which mediates between desires of the id and the superego.

Patanjali propounded the most subtle and profound concept: vritti. At best, it can be defined as a ripple that disrupts cognitive fabric, a ripple that propagates along still waters of sentience. This ripple sets in motion a complex sequence of emotions, thoughts, and actions based on pleasure-pain set points referenced in memory - indulgence in pleasure and avoidance of pain.

Vritti has its origins in praman, direct perception by senses; vikalp, imagination; viparya, misconceptions; smriti, memory; and nidra, the sleep-dream state. The fMRI and related technology have identified predominantly seven networks in the human brain. Of these, the Default Mode Network , DMN, is the one that's active in the resting state. It is active during introspective activities such as contemplating the past or future or thinking about another person's perspective. The DMN is the subjective appraisal network that integrates information from the other networks. The one that lends a touch of uniqueness to every sensory experience. The network that addresses the proverbial 'Hard Problem of Consciousness'

The other six networks deal with processing information about the outer world: somatosensory, optic, frontoparietal, dorsal attention, to name a few. They are 'objective' appraisal networks.

A study conducted recently at IIT Delhi confirmed the reduction in activity of the DMN using fMRI in subjects who were scanned while doing Yog Nidra. They found that the DMN behaves differently in meditators and novices; it is a group of interconnected brain regions that are active when we are not focused on the outside world. It's like the brain's 'background mode' that operates when we are introspecting, thinking about ourselves, or letting thoughts emerge spontaneously.

A study in the journal Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral Neuroscience showed that meditation is associated with reduced activity in the DMN. The DMN could be the neural substrate and source of vritti, the generator of ripples that disturb focus and stillness of awareness. Progressive meditative practices effect the disconnection mentioned by Patanjali and insulate neural networks from ripple effects generated by the DMN. This state of awareness is characterised by becoming a Sthithaprajna - possessing unwavering awareness.

The disconnection of the DMN would serve to remove all impediments to introspective pathways that would reveal the Self as pure, pristine consciousness. As technology, imaging and neurotheology make rapid strides, they will provide greater clarity and tangibility to unlocking mysteries of the mind and its spiritual significance, rewiring, disconnecting and modulating neural networks to experience the ultimate truth - Tatvamasi.

Authored by: Deepak Ranade
(The writer is a neurosurgeon, pursuing PhD in study of DMN using fMRI)