Why God Won't go Away: Brain Science and the biology of Belief

by Andrew Newberg, Eugene D'Aquili, and Vince Rause

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New York: Ballantine/Random House 2001.   15pp. references

Newberg and D'Aquili studied four Tibetan Buddhists and four Franciscan nuns during meditation, using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging. They found that the left orientation association area (OAA) of the brain is more quiet during meditation, relative to the right side. They interpret this to mean that incoming sensory information may be blocked, leaving the brain unable to identify its ordinary boundaries. The authors ask, "What would the brain make of that? Would the orientation area interpret its failure to find the bordeline between the self and the outside world to mean that such a distinction doesn't exist? In that case, the brain would have no choice but to perceive that the self is endless and intimately interwoven with everyone and everything the mind senses. And this perception would feel utterly and unquestionably real."

I have to admit that my initial response to these introductory words was to sigh and shake my head, interpreting the authors' views to be that mysticism is all in the brain. My worries were quickly dissipated, as they range into interesting discussions of brain, psychological processes, and spiritual awarenesses.

While this book is based on a limited series of observations, the discussion ranges across a broad spectrum of neurophysiological and neuropsychological observations, with fascinating discussions on neurospirituality.

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