Do you stimulate your "G" spot?

by Etude 8 Replies latest jw friends

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  Etude

  I’m sure that this has been talked about before on this forum, but I have no way of searching. Just in case, I’d like to bring up the issue from my perspective.

  The discovery of the “G Spot” (so called God Spot) in the brain is indeed a curious thing. My exposure to how this was certified consists of an experiment I saw on a Catholic nun (80 plus years old) whose brain was scanned while she was deep in prayer. What they found was activity in a part of the brain located on the right-rear parietal area. Since, they have been able to confirm that, when you are in a “spiritual” mood, that part of the brain is activated. Conversely, they have been able to artificially (via electrodes) stimulate that area of the brain and produce in the person those feelings of “spirituality” such as: a sense of being part of something greater; feeling one with the universe; feeling peace and reverence. The discovery is attributed to a group of neuroscientists at the University of California at San Diego . The work stemmed from a study on individuals with Epilepsy. However, I’m familiar with the work of Vilayanur S. Ramachandran who studies general brain anomalies. The guy is a freeking genius and has achieved tremendous advances about how the brain works and he appears to head that team in UCSD. It’s becoming so popular that I found a web site once that was selling a helmet to “help” you achieve a spiritual state. I can only find this one now.
  

  
  

  Recently, it has been suggested that the use and development of this center of the brain may be responsible for extended life and health. The fact that it is a spiritual center does not necessarily infer that “God” must be its focus. It is also responsible for the state of peace that is achieved under meditation and other trance-like states that are peculiar in Eastern disciplines. So, the question for those here who have come out of the “collective” is: “Do you vote for the existence of this brain area as confirmation that it is an “antenna” to God and that such is its purpose or do you believe that the existence of this brain area is simply some vestigial center that simply gives us the illusion that there’s something greater than ourselves?

  Mind you, it would be nice if you try to explain logically why you believe as you do. For example: If you think that it is an antenna to God, its existence would justify its purpose and vice versa. But that is rather circular in logic. At least explain why it couldn't be anything else. If you believe that it’s merely an evolutionary trait, at least explain why and for what purpose would a blind, unintelligent process in Nature find the necessity to fabricate this center in us and for what purpose. Lastly, you may want to address how much influence did your sense of “spirituality” have on your decision to join the JWs or to go to another religion or not after you left. Have at it!

  Etude.
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  stillajwexelder

  I thought this ws going to be a sex thread!!!
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  ballistic

  It's interesting, but I can't help thinking of the guy selling time machines and mind reading helmets on ebay. Wish I could find a link now.
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  LouBelle

  I did't know I had another G spot
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  Sad emo

  I'm not good at explaining technical stuff but I'll try and explain how i think it might work.

  I don't see the particular part of the brain as being an antenna to God. It's just another part that gets electrically more active by carrying out a particular action. For example, in the same way that feeling fear will stimulate the brain into 'fight or flight' mode, so whatever mode of prayer you engage in will increase activity in another part of the brain. In the nun's case, it was probably contemplative prayer which explains the similarity of results with the eastern religions.

  It's generally accepted that 'peaceful, calm' people may have an increased life expectancy, usually due to the reduced strain on the heart etc, so it shouldn't be surprising that to stimulate this 'calm centre' in the brain would have the same effect.

  At the same time, I don't believe its there purely to give us an illusion of something bigger out there. It's simply another part of the brain doing its own job.

  So, now to my answers to your questions!

  Because I believe it is just part of the 'evolutionary process' the only logical answer I could give as to why it is there, (and maybe this answer might apply to everyone, religious or not) is because 'We are fearfully and wonderfully made'. Some things just can't be explained but its all part of what makes us human beings, whether we are created by God or not.

  My spirituality did have some influence on me leaving the RC church and going to another (never been JW), I couldn't accept all the teachings and in a way, my sense of 'deep calm' was being disturbed because I knew I was in the wrong place - hope that makes some sense!
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  Terry

  
  
  The brief way to explain this would be this way. (Actually, there is no brief way.)
  

  
  
  We humans need to keep track of WHEN something happens and WHERE.
  

  
  
  If we don't we can't repeat behavior that is pro survival and avoid behavior which threatens us.
  

  
  
  There are regions in the brain where time and place are co-ordinated.
  

  
  
  However, certain stimulus can detach the connection between Space/Time and When/Where.
  

  
  
  When this happens we lose our sense of self as a SEPARATE entity within the universe. The result is a sense (false sense) of ONENESS with all things.
  

  
  
  If you stop and think about it, that is just another way of saying you've lost track of who you are and where you are and when.
  

  
  
  Now, if you are still with me....let us continue.
  

  
  
  Our brain operates on the basis of two functions mainly.
  

  
  
  1.Involuntary action
  

  
  
  2.Voluntary action
  

  
  
  We are truly conscious only when we pay attention to our senses. Only two of our senses can give identity to entities: Sight and Touch. The other three senses give clues that something has flavor or smell or sound but doesn't identify precisely as sight and touch do by actual reference.
  

  
  
  Still with me?
  

  
  
  We can only do two things with entities:
  

  
  
  1.Identify them as having existence and then proceed to abstract all the qualities which define that existence.
  

  
  
  and
  

  
  
  2.Infer the existence of something by seeming "hints" and logical deductions which provide clues which may or may not pay off.
  

  
  
  In view of the above we go to the next level.
  

  
  
  All this time we rely on the correctness of our sensory data, the non-degradation of the input and the interpretation as well as the deductive process of our mind. IF ANY OF THESE are interrupted we lose track of our data. That leaves us only with the after-effect of trying to paste together some........meaning......from what we "think" we have on hand.
  

  
  
  Our self is an entity identified by its nature (i.e. what it does). From our own self we can abstract qualities which are not in themselves EXISTING (qualities are not entities but descriptions of things produced by the entity. i.e. flavor, justice, freedom, etc)
  

  
  
  We can then use our imagination to project the qualities of our own nature onto a model of our self GREATER THAN WE ARE or WORSE.
  

  
  
  Presto! We create a place in our mind where we model GOD and SATAN. If we lose track of the fact this is a mock-up and not a reality we can be fooled into talking to it (prayer) or being affected by it (fear, love, worship, entreaty, etc.)
  

  
  
  The G-spot is the busy intersection where all these confluences intersect.
  

  
  
  When there is a wreck in the middle of the intersection we cannot use the pathway we normally use to determine time and place and where and when. It is all equally plausible.
  

  
  
  People who exercise FAITH deliberately choose to ignore any data which clues them to the irrational/unreality of the model of God or Satan.
  

  
  
  In effect, what we find possible within ourselves is what we find plausible for God or Satan.
  

  
  
  The "oneness" we can feel comes from that detachment from the warning label that says "Caution you are interacting only with an imaginary inference created by plausible projections of your own personality and your deepest psychological belief terrain."
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  Etude

  Hi Sad emo and Terry:

  I realize that I sort of abandoned the thread a bit. I've been busy with visitors here. However, I'd like to make some comments on your comments and hope that someone will still pick up the thread again and reply.

  Sad emo: You said: "It's just another part that gets electrically more active by carrying out a particular action." While many people think "Parts is parts", the peculiarity of the brain is that its "parts" are highly specialized. At the same time, the brain is flexible enough to adapt and actually take over a part that is no longer used. For example, if one were to lose one's sight, near-by areas can take over the optic region which is no longer being stimulated by any input. But what makes the brain unique is that each area has a specific function and it's usually (99% of the time) common to all of us, unless there's some sort of decease of congenital anomaly.

  The point of the study shows that the "G" spot is specialized for humans as a "spiritual" center and that it is located in the same place for everyone. It is not the "fear" center and may not be the same place where we conceive such things as the "Devil". While you may not think that its sole purpose is to "give us an illusion of something bigger out there", that is the strange thing that was discovered. That is the commonality that persists in our species. Of course, just like any other area of the brain, it stands to reason that this one may be more or less developed from one individual to another due to the influence of environment and/or genetic influence.

  So, if "It's simply another part of the brain doing its own job", what is the significance of that job and why did nature need to "invent" such a thing when we already have "fear" and "flight" centers to protect us from danger? We may not be able to explain it, but we can certainly speculate on it. For scientists, it's a bit more than casual. What makes science progress is the insatiable quest to find answers, even if answers are not readily forthcoming. So, I think that takes us back to the original poser. What do you think?

  Terry:

  You said: "When this happens we lose our sense of self as a SEPARATE entity within the universe. The result is a sense (false sense) of ONENESS with all things." The "G" spot appears to have the opposite effect. There doesn't seem to be a loss of self. There is instead a togetherness and oneness with all things without loss of awareness of the rest of the "being". In fact, it is inclusive, taking in the sum of the being, as if all that one has been is before ones eyes. In a state such as the one that people have experienced, both under artificial stimulation of the "G" spot and via meditation or deep spiritual sessions, the person "feels" in a different state, a state that allows the person to see above everything. There's a feeling of "universality" with the world. However, I see that what you imply is that a "separateness" from our other "senses" or regions of the brain is what can cause the feeling of oneness with everything else. Hmmm. I don't know how that can be accurately ascertained. What your description seems to approximate is "de ja vous", not in that one thinks he's reliving the moment, but in the sense of time and space displacement. I'm not sure that this has been shown to occur in association with the "G" spot.

  The problem with the senses is that they can fool us. At times, it is better to rely on logic in order to achieve some degree of certainty. A good deal of scientific knowledge is deduced rather than observed. Observation confirms the deduction but only subsequently. Unless the process is flawed, there's no reason to doubt ideas that simply originate in the brain. Of course, I'm referring to precise postulates. In the case of the "G" spot, it's contribution is not of a precise nature. It seems to create a "sense" which appears to evoke feelings from the corresponding emotional centers of the brain (the Limbic System).

  "Presto! We create a place in our mind where we model GOD and SATAN." If I follow your process correctly, actually, it seems to work the other way around. Our "G" spot, by its independent presence, is causing a state in us that induces a sense, which in turn induces "feelings" and imagery in us regarding an entity, perhaps, or a place in the universe. The imagery does not always coincide with a "supreme being".

  "People who exercise FAITH deliberately choose to ignore any data which clues them to the irrational/unreality of the model of God or Satan." I'm not sure I buy that, unless you define exactly what "faith" is, and I don't mean credulity. Scientists exhibit "faith". It is by "faith" that scientists assume that there was some sort of "primal atom" which gave birth to the Big Bang. However, there's data to make that a plausible assumption. That is what I call "faith". Again, the "G" spot is not necessarily the source of the concept of Satan. Tenuously, it simply gives feelings of awareness of self on a different plane, inner peace, oneness with the universe and a sense that there's "more". Satan and evil are not things that have been identified with the "G" spot.

  I've tried to be as accurate as I can about what I understand regarding the research on this subject. So, what do you think? The specific "sense" that the "G" spot creates is common and should not be confused with other cognitive or sensory functions of the brain. Given what it does, what do you think is its purpose, whether one thinks there is a God or not?

  Etude.
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  Apathy

  They can find the one in the brain, but not the one down south? o_o;
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  AllAlongTheWatchtower

  Hmph! Next thing you know, Falwell, Swaggart, Robertson, and others of their ilk will be offering them for donations on tv.

  On a more sinister note, I can't help but get a mental image of some wheedle-voice type with an accent saying "Oh, you'll pray...Ve haf vays of making you pray".