Shooting From The Hip - 13 - Tummo Meditation, Brainwaves

Tummo - Tibetan Buddhism, tummo is the fierce goddess of heat & passion. Tummo is also a tantric practice for inner heat- practice is a kind of pranayama which is an ancient breath technique that originates from yogic practices in India, that generally involves sitting with a straight back, visualizing the channels, holding the breath deep in the abdomen for extended periods (called "vase breath", kumbhaka), then applying visualization of a fiery short stroke 'AH' syllable on the navel.
Glenn Mullin, tantric scriptures state that the tantric bliss experienced -is "a hundred times more intense than ordinary sexual orgasm, & gives rise to a special state of consciousness." This ecstatic state of mind is then used to contemplate emptiness. This "ecstasy conjoined with (the wisdom of) emptiness" is what is referred to as Mahamudra ('Great Seal').
Scientific investigation-Studies on Tibetan monks & a Western control group have demonstrated the effect of increased thermal power output using the forceful breath technique that depends in part on meditative visualization.
-1981, Herbert Benson, then a physician at Harvard Medical School, travelled to the Himalayas to research 3 Buddhist monks -3 monks had been practicing tummo for 6 years on a daily basis. On top of that, they lived in barely insulated, unheated stone sheds.
The results showcase that the practice of tummo can lead to large increases in extremities temperature.
The Harvard Gazette Meditation changes temperatures By William J. Cromie Gazette Staff April 18, 2002 -In a monastery in northern India, thinly clad Tibetan monks sat quietly in a room where the temperature was a chilly 40 degrees Fahrenheit/4.444° Celsius. Using Tum-mo, they entered a state of deep meditation. Other monks soaked 3-by-6-foot sheets in cold water (49 degrees) & placed them over the meditators’ shoulders -untrained people, such frigid wrappings would produce uncontrolled shivering - removed the sheets, then covered them with a second wet wrapping. Each monk was required to dry 3 sheets over a period of several hours. The heat they generate during the process is just a by-product of Tummo meditation.”
Benson & his team studied monks living in the Himalayan Mountains who could, by Tummo meditation, raise the temperatures of their fingers & toes by as much as 17 degrees. They were astonished to find that these monks could lower their metabolism by 64 % To put that decrease in perspective, metabolism, or oxygen consumption, drops only 10-15 % in sleep & about 17 percent during simple meditation.
In 1985, the meditation team made a video of monks drying cold, wet sheets with body heat. They also documented monks spending a winter night on a rocky ledge 15,000 feet high in the Himalayas. The sleep-out took place in February on the night of the winter full moon when temperatures reached zero degrees F. Wearing only woolen or cotton shawls
Science Of Brainwaves - EEG (electroencephalograph) measures brainwaves frequencies to detect & record the electrical impulses within the brain-frequency is the number of times a wave repeats itself within a second-cycle per second is a once-common English name for the unit of frequency now known as the hertz (Hz)
-Brainwave frequency bands: Gamma greater than 30-100 (Hz), BETA 12.5-30 (Hz), ALPHA 8-12 (Hz), THETA 4-8 (Hz), DELTA 4 or less (Hz).
-DELTA 0.1 - 3.5 Hz: deep, dreamless sleep, non-REM sleep, trance, unconscious - occur in deep sleep - increase Delta waves in order to decrease our awareness of the physical world - also access information in our unconscious mind through Delta
-THETA (4-8 Hz): underlies various aspects of cognition & behavior, including learning, memory & spatial navigation in many animals - connected to creativity, intuition, daydreaming & fantasizing & a repository for memories, emotions, sensations, deep meditation. Theta waves are strong during internal focus, meditation, prayer & spiritual awareness. Reflections of the state between wakefulness & sleep - relates to the subconscious mind
-ALPHA (8-12 Hz): physically & mentally relaxed, enhances overall sense of relaxation - appears to bridge the conscious to the subconscious - is a common brain state & when a person is alert, but not actively processing information
-BETA (12.5-30 Hz): state associated with waking consciousness - alertness, agitation, excitement - active conversation, decisions making & problem solving, task focused
-GAMMA (30-100 Hz): increased cognitive enhancement, heightened perception, learning, attention to detail, problem solving, assist memory recall
Altered Traits: Science Reveals How Meditation Changes Your Mind, Brain & Body - 2017 book by science journalist Daniel Goleman & neuroscientist Richard Davidson - the authors conducted a literature review of over 6,000 scientific studies on meditation, & selected the 60 that they believed met the highest methodological standards