Heliyon
May 14, 2024
Winson F.z. Yang, Terje Sparby, Malcolm Wright et al.
30 citations
Advanced concentrative absorption meditation, such as the jhanas, involves volitional mental absorption that can be scientifically studied. This paper argues that these states represent a distinct category of meditative experience characterized by deep, effortless focus and profound well-being. It proposes a scientific framework for understanding these measurable states of consciousness, drawing on existing research to outline how absorption, concentration, and positive outcomes like well-being can be systematically investigated. The authors suggest that developing a rigorous scientific approach to jhana and similar practices could bridge contemplative traditions and consciousness research, offering new insights into the nature of deep meditative states and their potential benefits.
Human Brain Mapping
May 1, 2024
Saampras Ganesan, Winson F.z. Yang, Avijit Chowdhury et al.
23 citations
In an adept practitioner performing jhana meditation over 5 days inside a 7 Tesla MRI scanner (27 runs), the thalamus and several cortical networks—somatomotor, limbic, default-mode, control, and temporo-parietal—showed good within-subject reliability across all jhanas. When fMRI measurements were adjusted for variability in self-reported phenomenology, other networks such as attention and salience showed noticeable increases in reliability. The findings provide a preliminary template of reliable brain areas likely underpinning core neurocognitive elements of jhana meditation and highlight the value of neurophenomenological designs for characterizing neuronal variability in advanced meditative states.
Biological psychiatry. Cognitive neuroscience and neuroimaging
April 1, 2025
Ruchika S Prakash, Anita Shankar, Vaibhav Tripathi et al.
13 citations
Network neuroscience examines brain organization by mapping connections between its elements. This review describes how mindfulness meditation may alter structural and functional brain networks. Although evidence is preliminary, studies suggest mindfulness shifts connector hubs—the anterior cingulate cortex, thalamus, and mid-insula—and reduces intraconnectivity within the default mode network. Global connectivity findings are mixed. The authors call for rigorous study designs, open science, and diverse samples to better understand mindfulness's impact on brain networks.
Neuroimage
January 1, 2025
Winson F.z. Yang, Avijit Chowdhury, Terje Sparby et al.
12 citations
The stages of insight (SoI) are a series of psychological realizations experienced during advanced investigative insight meditation (AIIM). In a case study of one adept meditator who underwent 4 hours of 7T functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) across 26 runs with concurrent phenomenological reports, distinct whole-brain activity patterns were identified for specific SoI, differing from non-meditative control states. SoI consistently deactivated brain regions involved in self-related processing, such as the medial prefrontal cortex and temporal poles, while activating areas linked to awareness and perception, including parietal and visual cortices, caudate, brainstem nuclei, and cerebellum. Patterns of brain activity related to affective processing and SoI phenomenology were also observed. This provides the first neurophenomenological evidence that SoI shifts and deconstructs self-related perception and conceptualization, increasing general awareness and perceptual sensitivity.
Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991)
February 5, 2025
Ruby M. Potash, Winson F.z. Yang, Brian Winston et al.
11 citations
Advanced concentrative absorption meditation produces distinct, distributed brain-wide activity patterns that differ from ordinary consciousness, as shown by ultrahigh-field 7T fMRI in a single expert meditator. Using geometric eigenmode decomposition, the study found elevated global brain state power and energy during meditation compared to control tasks, with mid-frequency brain state power and energy following a non-random, cubic trajectory across the meditation sequence. These brain state differences correlated with subjective reports of attention, meditation quality, and sensations. The findings reveal similarities and differences between advanced meditation and psychedelic-induced states, offering insights into refined conscious states and their implications for well-being.
Network neuroscience (Cambridge, Mass.)
January 1, 2025
Isaac N Treves, Winson F.z. Yang, Terje Sparby et al.
6 citations
Advanced meditation involves states and stages that develop with experience. A case study using 7-T fMRI and dynamic functional connectivity analysis of a meditator practicing jhāna advanced absorptive concentration meditation (ACAM-J) identified three distinct brain states: a default-mode network (DMN)-anticorrelated state, a hyperconnected state, and a sparsely connected state. The DMN-anticorrelated state was more prevalent during ACAM-J than control conditions and increased with deeper meditation. The hyperconnected state, marked by elevated thalamocortical and somatomotor connectivity, was also more common during ACAM-J but decreased over the session, corresponding to reports of wider attention and reduced physical sensations. This suggests that functional neuroimaging can track the dynamics of altered states of consciousness in advanced meditators.
bioRxiv Preprint Server
September 6, 2025
Winson F.z. Yang, Akila Kadambi, Kilian Abellaneda-Pérez et al.
4 citations
preprint
An advanced meditative state called extended cessation (EC), where consciousness is voluntarily suspended and later resumes with heightened clarity and equanimity, provides a natural model for studying consciousness. Using ultra-high-resolution 7T fMRI with dense sampling of three individuals, the research mapped whole-brain activity, connectivity, gradients, and eigenmodes during EC, linking them to brain chemistry and cognitive maps. EC increased activity in sensory regions, reduced activity in higher-order association areas, subcortex, and brainstem, expanded the principal cortical gradient, and decreased low-order global eigenmodes.
bioRxiv Preprint Server
September 19, 2025
Kenneth Shinozuka, Winson F.z. Yang, Ruby M. Potash et al.
3 citations
preprint
Advanced meditators can enter a state called extended cessation (EC) in which they intentionally suppress consciousness and later emerge with clarity and equanimity. In the first electrophysiological study of EC, five meditators were recorded with EEG and MEG. EC markedly reduced alpha power and tended to increase neural complexity, unlike sleep, anesthesia, or disorders of consciousness. The findings indicate that the neural correlates of EC are distinct from other unconscious states and that complexity alone is not sufficient for consciousness, offering new insights into advanced meditation and human flourishing.
March 2, 2026
Andrea Grabovac, Nickolas Grabovac, Winson F.z. Yang et al.
preprint
A new theoretical framework called the Insight Development Process (IDP) describes how propositional insights—brief shifts in perception that align with transience, self-lessness, and incongruence—can become durable changes in perception, cognition, and behavior. The framework distinguishes momentary insights, which are brief pre-reflexive perceptual shifts, from integrated insights, which are more lasting intuitive understandings. Drawing on Buddhist meditation traditions and first-person accounts, the IDP outlines eight stages of insight, each with characteristic patterns of momentary insights and experiential features. The framework is designed to generate testable hypotheses about the cognitive, affective, and neural mechanisms underlying insight and how advanced meditation shapes consciousness and well-being.
bioRxiv Preprint Server
February 10, 2026
David Zarka, Winson F.z. Yang, Abel Rassat et al.
preprint
Extended cessation (EC) is a rare meditative state in which conscious experience temporarily stops, followed by heightened perception and emotional balance. In five highly trained meditators, electroencephalographic microstate analysis revealed that EC altered brain activity patterns linked to self-referential processing. Specifically, microstate B occurred less often and for shorter durations, while microstate C occurred more often and for longer durations. Transition probabilities also shifted, with more transitions from A and B to C and fewer from A to B. These changes appeared across delta, theta, and beta frequency bands, with additional band-specific effects for microstates A and D. The findings suggest EC involves a reweighting of self-referential and sensory processes.
Imaging Neuroscience
January 1, 2026
Hagar Tal, Winson F.z. Yang, Matthew D. Sacchet
Neurofeedback (NF) has been proposed as a tool to support meditation practice, but a systematic review mapping the field across clinical and non-clinical contexts reveals that most studies are proof-of-concept and vary widely in design, implementation, and outcome measures. While NF consistently modulates neural activity, evidence for corresponding improvements in behavior, phenomenology, or transferable meditative skills remains limited. The review concludes that additional research is essential to determine whether NF can help practitioners overcome common meditative barriers, such as anxiety and self-doubt, and accelerate meditative development from novice to advanced meditators.
bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology
November 13, 2025
Winson F.z. Yang, Ruby M. Potash, Grace Mackin et al.
preprint
Advanced concentration absorption meditation (ACAM-J) produces a distinct, structured mode of awareness characterized by stable positive states and reduced narrative thought. In the first ultra-high-field (7T) fMRI study of jhana meditation, neural trajectories across eight successive states showed reorganization from anterior to posterior brain regions, flattening of cortical hierarchies, and nonlinear changes in global brain harmonics. These brain changes were tightly linked to equanimity, attentional stability, and behavior. Brain activity patterns associated with ACAM-J related more to attentional monitoring than to suffering-related processes. The findings suggest advanced meditation offers a framework for understanding psychological transformation and supporting human well-being.
bioRxiv
September 25, 2025
Jakub Vohryzek, Edmundo Lopez-Sola, Winson F.z. Yang et al.
preprint
Advanced concentrative absorption meditation (jhāna) produces a shift in brain dynamics toward near-criticality, a state of heightened flexibility and integration. Using 7T fMRI and whole-brain modeling, the study found that later absorption states, considered minimal phenomenal experiences, show increased large-scale functional integration and a shift of the default mode network from a noise-driven regime to near-critical dynamics. This near-critical regime is interpreted as a form of openness, where constrained brain activity gives way to greater flexibility, correlating with broader attention and reduced narrative thought. The trajectory of these states is non-linear, with major reconfigurations at key meditative milestones.