Of Nadis and Neurons — a Prologue

Science and Spirituality.

For centuries these two worlds — that of the mystics and that of the microscopes — appear to have been at war with each other.

Science demands objective measurements, hard facts, and “evidence” to make any claims about the nature of the world we live in.

Spirituality, on the other hand, relies on feelings, inner perception, intuition, and yes, even faith to guide the sincere seeker down the path of spiritual unfoldment and understanding of the laws of the universe we inhabit.

Though at first glance it may seem that these two realms have little in common, when one compares the latest findings in nearly any science with the assertions of the world’s spiritual giants, we find a beautiful convergence between Ancient and Modern, East and West.

Both Science and Spirituality are driven by a deep desire to uncover the Truth of Existence.

While science approaches Truth from the outside in, spirituality proceeds from the inside out, both arriving at the same conclusions in the end.

When we compare the latest scientific research in meditation and neuroscience with the wisdom of Yogis such as Swami Vivekananda, Ramakrishna Paramahansa, Paramahansa Yogananda, Ram Chandra of Shahjahanpur, and many others, it is a marvel to observe how closely correlated the two domains are.

Everywhere we turn, we can notice how the latest research seems to echo the teachings of the sages of the past.

While mystics speak about their findings in the abstract through parables, poems, and allegory, science speaks concretely through percentages, p-levels, and other quantifiable, objective ways of expression.

Spirituality and Science must come together, not as foes, but as allies on a common mission to uplift and unite humanity in the pursuit of general well-being, peace of mind, and expansion of consciousness.

Spiritual teachings carry an innate wisdom, intelligence, and sensibility that naturally appeal to our hearts. Science, on the other hand, offers the objectivity and proof that can penetrate through the resistances of our analytical minds and help us understand things logically. What we need now is not a war between science and spirituality, but instead an intense love affair.

Combined, Science can be the universal language that can take spiritual teachings beyond the fetters of religion, culture, dogma, and doctrine, to appeal to the masses and usher in a new Golden Age of happiness, peace, and love on Earth.

Of Nadis and Neurons aims to kindle this “love affair” and inspire readers to move forward in their lives towards joy, lightness, and peace of mind by looking back to the wisdom of the Yogis, with the confidence that this wisdom is supported by the evidence of modern science.

Why “Of Nadis and Neurons” you ask?

According to Yogapedia, “Nadi is a Sanskrit word that can be translated as “tube,” “channel” or “flow.” It refers to the network of channels through which energy travels through the body.” In modern language, we could translate nadi to mean neuron or nerve. Pretty clever name, isn’t it?

In each post, we will pick a theme and draw from modern day science as well as the Yogic Sciences to demonstrate that Science and Spirituality are, in fact, not eternal foes, but instead enduring lovers destined to dance forever in unison with one another as they leaven a new and beautiful future for humanity.

Today, let’s start with a simple example — neuroplasticity.

According to Medicine.Net, neuroplasticity can be defined as “The brain’s ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity allows the neurons (nerve cells) in the brain to compensate for injury and disease and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to changes in their environment.”

Until fairly recently, people thought that the adult human brain lacked plasticity and could not change much. Essentially, by the time a person became an adult, their brain’s “wiring” was finalized for life, defining their personality, habits, behavior, etc. and there was very little chance of making any significant changes — a rather depressing prospect.

According to Paramahansa Yogananda, one of the most famous Spiritual Teachers of the 20th century, however, there is hope for those looking to improve themselves and rid themselves of their bad habits. He said:

“Each of your habits creates a specific “groove,” or pathway, in the brain. These patterns make you behave in a certain way, often against your wish. Your life follows those grooves that you yourself have created in the brain. In that sense you are not a free person; you are more or less a victim of the habits you have formed. Depending on how set those patterns are, to that degree you are a puppet. But you can neutralize the dictates of those bad habits. How? By creating brain patterns of opposite good habits. And you can completely erase the grooves of bad habits by meditation.”

In scientific terms, this idea is commonly referred to as “Hebb’s Rule”, which is often summarized by the phrase, “Neurons that fire together, wire together.”

Donald Hebb, considered to be the father of neuropsychology, wrote:

“When an axon of cell A is near enough to excite a cell B and repeatedly or persistently takes part in firing it, some growth process or metabolic change takes place in one or both cells such that A’s efficiency, as one of the cells firing B, is increased.” (The Organization of Behavior: a Neuropsychological Theory)

Essentially, what this means is that our nervous system adapts to become more efficient at executing patterns of thoughts and actions that we continue to engage in. This is why activities such as driving become like second nature to us and we don’t have to remember how to drive every time we get in a car!

The opposite of this is also true. As we stop engaging in certain patterns of thought and action, our nervous system adapts to become less efficient at executing these — “neurons that fire apart, wire apart.”

In order to break our bad habits, we have to avoid those things — be they people, activities, places, or anything else, that stimulate us to engage in those habits, and instead actively cultivate good habits, mingle with positive company and take part in wholesome activities that take our attention away from our negative thoughts.

Gradually, the wiring of our brains and nerves will adapt and the “grooves” that compel us to engage in bad habits will fade away and be replaced by new grooves that make positivity and joy our second nature!

There is always hope to change for the better!

We hope you enjoyed this brief introduction to the concept of neuroplasticity. This was just a small taste of what we hope to accomplish with “Of Nadis and Neurons”.

We welcome any comments, feedback, or critique below and look forward to hearing from you!

Until next time!