Currently, vitalism stands as a discredited theory in the Western empirical sciences. However, the Indian analytical traditions, specifically the Jaina, Bauddha, Sankhya-Yoga, and the Vedanta, unanimously propose a vital energy “prana” or “jivitindriya” to bridge the explanatory gap between internal conscious states and physical states in the body. The philosophical development of vitalism both...
Previous cross-sectional studies reported positive effects of meditation on the brain areas related to attention and executive function in the healthy elderly population. Effects of long-term regular meditation in persons with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease dementia (AD) have rarely been studied. In this study, we explored changes in cortical thickness and gray matter...
The chapter reviews a classical Indian model of consciousness found in the Abhidhamma, a collection of seven treatises in the Pali Canon Tipitaka. The model was based on observations made during advanced vipassana practice, a first-person method taught by the Buddha. The climax of the model consists in the elucidation of 24 'Bridging Relations' causally linking the stream of consciousness, its...