Arun Shourie has recently published a book called "Two Saints", which deals with the dynamics of the experience of typical sincere devotees around a great spiritual master and also on the experiences of the masters themselves. The lives of two renowned spiritual gurus of India have been used as case studies - Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa and Ramana Mahashi. Naturally, pains have been taken to look into the details of whatever information is publicly available about the lives of these gurus, but even greater efforts have been made to look into records of various scientific and medical experiments made over the past several decades so that the experiences of the masters and their devotees can be understood better in light of available evidence regarding what the human mind is capable of. At the very least, by subjecting the stories to scientific scrutiny, an attempt has been made to make readers aware of possible alternative theories which help explain parts of the experiences, so that readers can approach the issues involved with greater rationality. Yet, the book is not about "doubting" the experiences which the masters and devotees are said to have had or an attempt to deny some great personality traits both displayed in their interactions with disciple and devotees. It is also not an attempt to deny the possibility of a "higher" spiritual experience. It is mainly an extremely informative book, based on painstaking work, which tries to empower the devotee with a better rational apparatus with which to approach the subject. Here, I do not attempt to list out all the studies Shourieji has quoted or summarize every argument made in the book. However, I hope I am capturing the salient points he is trying to push for in the book.
1. Impact of austere penances on the mind
There is a saying in Hindi about how even the stone slab on the walls of a well gets marked (or cut) when a rope made of simple threads works on it incessantly, and therefore, how even a fool can become wise by constant practice. How do we then expect the great masters who are known to have been immersed in "God" almost all day for years together to not have had any special experiences? Even if we put aside sensory deprivation (as part of spiritual practice), simply lack of sleep (to discuss spiritual matters with devotees and disciples) can have the most profound effects on the human brain and the neurons that fire inside it. Peter Tripp, a recognized disc jockey in New York who stayed awake 8 days straight to raise funds for an event in 1959, was abusing and cursing by the second day, and started seeing spiders in his shoes soon
afterwards. Doctors noticed that he had started "dreaming" and hallucinating even though he was awake and records mention that he had turned "crazy as a loon" by the
end of it. After all this ended, he slept and finally felt normal again, but according to his wife, he was never really the same again after that. This record was later broken by one Randy Gardner, who went without sleep for 11 days to create his record. He too started hallucinating, seeing visions and experienced speech problems within a few days and frequently could not complete his sentences by the 9th day. Sleep replenishes glycogen levels which helps repair cells and generate new ones in the body. It also helps increase the production of a hormone called cortisol, which helps the immune system. By available accounts, the masters had very little sleep for prolonged periods. Yet, they somehow pulled along. This could have been because of the efficiency of yoga-nidra (yogic sleep exercise), or due to micro sleep (like a power nap which gives some rest within a few seconds), or due to hibernation-like states which reduced the need for sleep, or due to "sleep-state misperception" or yet other reasons including insomnia of some kinds. However, it seems rational to suppose that sleep-deprivation could have had some effect on their minds and bodies too.
Similar is the case of physical / mental exhaustion. Dozens of mountaineers have reported feeling a helping "presence" just when they were at the "breaking point" due to exhaustion or due to the sheer difficulty of the task at hand, but knew that they only way to survive or succeed was to somehow get through the situation. Spiritual aspirants are also known to go through similar exhaustion - although in their case the strain might be more mental and emotional.
Several other studies support the idea that the brain, when stimulated in different ways, creates impressions which are similar to experiences reported by yogis and mystics. In particular, studies where different parts of the brain were stimulated by electrodes have consistently reported participants experiencing "out-of-body" states, visions of "other worlds", etc. It has also been observed that mortal challenges, schizophrenia, sudden drops in sugar levels, and other tough conditions can break the harmony between the two hemispheres of the brain, thereby causing a feeling of a "presence". On the more negative side, there are benign forms of epilepsy mentioned by Shourieji in which the patient experiences a "certainty" of feeling, and an ecstasy or joy which is so great that they want to have that experience as often as possible. Perhaps there are still some differences between these forms of epilepsy and the mystical states - for example, the epileptics often go into passive states where they "lose consciousness", so to speak, although they are quite awake throughout. In samadhi, on the other hand, bliss is not said to be accompanied by temporary loss of consciousness. While some details of this kind may still require investigation, the other similarities - particularly the ecstasy and the feeling of knowing something deeply and with certainty - are themselves quite noteworthy.
Yearning for God almost every moment is another characteristic of penances. With the brain, expecting is seeing. At the University of California, research into auditory illusions show that the brain has an enormous capacity to fill in gaps in actual sensory inputs. Four words taken out of a speech, when played repeatedly, start sounding like a song. A person coughs and speaks a word completely unrelated to what the speaker is talking about - yet the brain connects the dots and creates a story of its own relating the two events. Clearly, there is no end to what experiences the brain might have created for aspirants/devotees whose mind was completely immersed in their ideas and who expected connections of a particular kind due to their beliefs.
2. Suggestibility and Excitability of the mind
Intense longing and expectation could also have put the minds of seekers and devotees in a state where they would be extremely excitable, nervous and vulnerable to suggestions. Here, Shourieji describes in details the typical mindset of the devotee in an ashram - where experience is the final proof and where one's life may be considered to be a waste if the cherished experience did not actually materialize. Or, where the measure of one's success is based on how true the guru's powers are. Or, the "need" to explain one's failures by something lacking in one's own practice, rather than in the method recommended. It is very plausible that the anxiety of not "reaching the goal" and the excitement of the "glorious possibilities" would make people hypersensitive and cause "experiences" of some kind. This is not to suggest that all spiritual experiences are delusions of an excitable mind, but it is surely possible that otherwise normal events could be blown out of proportion in people's memory just because of such an excitable state of mind. Experiments have shown that when words associated with age, weakness and slowness were read out, participants in the test tended to walk more slowly down the hallway! When words associated with rudeness were read out, participants were more likely to behave rudely, as opposed to when words pertaining to respect and politeness were read out. In another experiment, participants were asked to mark the closest estimate of the length of a line. One of the choices was the correct one and others were not even close. When not influenced externally, most answers turned out to be correct, but when subjected to an external influence - someone who was asked to read out an erroneous estimate before the others marked their answers - the error rates were clearly higher. Suggestibility can play a very big role in shaping one's behavior in a particular situation - consciously and unconsciously.
3. Miraculous cures versus natural explanations
Recent studies have shown how many diseases have a natural progression and may get cured with or without medication,simply in due course of time. This is particularly true of some types of cardiac problems, but is also true of some other diseases. In fact, studies have shown equal percentages of cures amongst the control and test groups for some types of illness, provided that the participants were not sure whether they were part of the test group or the control group. In other words, as part of the experiment, some patients were given the required dose of medicine, while others were given only a placebo, and yet, the percentage of people cured in both groups was almost the same.
These studies have led to two kinds of theories/explanations. One theory is that those diseases follow a natural course over time, so some patients get cured with or without medicine. This branch then asks whether medicine should at all be considered necessary for these types of illness. The second theory places emphasis on the faith of the patient. Since the patient does not know whether he/she is in the test or the control group, he/she tends to believe in the best, and strong belief works its magic in some percentage of cases. There are some other examples of faith producing "miraculous cures" too. In particular, Shourieji documents the case of an old man who kept in touch with journal articles pertaining to his illness - which was considered critical enough for doctors to give him only a week to live at one point. Records show that when the publications he followed suggested that research was arriving at some effective medicine for his type of illness, his health parameters improved significantly. This is how he survived for several months / years after doctors once gave him only a week to live. On the other hand, when published work showed that science was still far from a real cure for his illness his physical parameters would show a clear deterioration. In fact, he died after one such period during which the journal publications were more dismal than positive. Such cases show that the brain may have exceptional powers over the body - manifestly influencing the outcomes in at least these rare cases. In light of these studies, we may need to review our understanding of cases of "faith healing" and similar miraculous cures, which are often attributed to saints and mystics.
Similar caution is needed in discussing out-of-body experiences in near-death situations. A large percentage of patients in near-death conditions have reported similar experiences of "travelling through a light", meeting higher beings and then returning. However, the details of who they meet, etc., are governed by local culture (i.e., the patients' own backgrounds). Therefore, it seems quite plausible that the experiences were caused by some injury to the brain and other vital organs, and the interpretation of the visions was through the cultural attitudes inherited by the patients. In rare cases, patients have reported seeing what was happening while they were clinically "dead" or near-dead. Some of this is a mystery, and it is possible that the trauma actually helps the brain experience something more than what is normally possible, but even here, scientists have suggested that some of it could be be because patients saw a few things correctly before going into the unconscious state, and from there on, the subconscious mind simply put together a plausible story in a vision seen by the patient. In such cases, they argue, we should be able to find evidences of guesswork and filling of gaps in the narratives of the patients. This is not to suggest that the patients are lying - only that the subconscious mind is capable of creating such images and stories.
One other reason to re-investigate stories of miraculous healing is that the stories may be affected by selectivity bias. Hundreds of people may have been blessed by the saints on a daily basis - some ended up cured and some did not. After dozens of years, there is no way to go back in time and count how many of each kind were there. True, the masters did not bless everybody explicitly with a cure or reassure everyone that they would be cured in due course - but the point remains that maybe only those stories were passed down over the years which led to a favorable outcome. While we cannot prove that the saints did not have a "higher" power, this is another reason to be vigilant and not give in to the tendency to accept supernatural explanations without considering more natural ones.
To believe or not to believe?
The different studies put together by Shourieji of course make the book worth every penny it costs. As if that wasn't enough, he has delved deep into available records of the lives and spiritual practices of both great saints and has not tried to reduce the importance of their extreme humility as human beings and their loving and caring attitude towards one and all. Nor is their spiritual practice considered to be easy or their devotees' accounts doubted as being unscrupulous. Only, a case is made for a more careful consideration of rational alternatives, so that mankind may improve its understanding of what is "normal" and what is "paranormal" in light of the marvelous capabilities demonstrated by the human brain under different conditions. Each such case requires deep investigation, and it does not behoove us to fall prey to pseudo-scientific suggestions simply because we are excitable and want something to be true.
This brings me to the puranic story of the "demon", Hiranyakashyapu, and his son Prahlaad. According to the story, Hiranyakashyapu prayed to Lord Brahma, successfully, and asked for the boon of immortality. Since that could not be given, he asked for the boon that he would not be killed by man or animal, that he would not die inside or outside his palace, on the earth or in the heavens. This boon was granted, and Hiranyakashapu then became a terror for one and all, including the King of the Gods, Indra, who probably had to leave his throne and run for his life, so to speak. Hiranyakashyapu's son, Prahlad, though, was a devotee of Lord Vishnu, and continued to faithfully pray to the Lord although his father did not like it. Worship of Gods (including the Trinity Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva) was probably banned in the kingdom and Prahlad was among the few to have the courage to pursue his practices. Prahlad was punished often, but nothing could make him deviate from his practice. One fine day, in a spurt of anger, Hiranyakashyapu threatened Prahlad with death and asked if his "all-pervading" God was also present in the pillars of the palace. Prahlad calmly replied that that was so. Hiranyakashyapu abused Lord Vishnu and kicked the pillar, only to find a half-man, half beast appear from the pillar, carry him to the doorstep of the palace, place him on his thigh and rip him apart. It was neither inside, nor outside, neither on earth, nor in the heavens, neither man nor animal. Hiranyakashyapu was thus annihilated by the "Narasimha Avatar" of Lord Vishnu.
My humble thesis is that both the Prahlad model and the Hiranyakashyapu model are "required" in today's world - but by that, I do not mean to say that evil is necessary. Hiranyakashyapu is a name for risk management. We may give emphasis to children's education, but art and entertainment cannot be ignored either. We want to go to the moon, but hunger and deprivation cannot be ignored either. We want to believe that all around us are good, but we cannot do away with the police or the army either!
Thus, management of the world is essentially an application of the Hiranyakashyapu model - he can't be killed by man or beast, neither inside nor outside, and the list goes on. In all this, it is but natural that the independent worker feels pulled into too many directions, and realizes that to get anywhere in terms of results, he/she has to focus on one and push forth despite the seemingly lucrative profits which may accrue by changing. In fact, it is not even clear that jumping from one taxi to another produces the desired results - it often leads to stagnation and resulting despair. Hence is born the Prahlad model - focus on one, knowing in your heart that to get any results worth the name, you have to be persistent in your practice. These two models, seemingly contradictory in method, are actually both well-accepted and essential models today.
Shourieji has played Hiranyakashyapu by forcing us to re-evaluate our beliefs in these contexts and he is a role model. So also are modern-day teachers and yogis like Sri M, who spent crucial years of their youth in the Himalayas trying to find a true guru and learning the truth about spiritual practices and how best to use them in the world. The only difference is that the latter are examples of the Prahlad model - where we focus on expertise in one area rather than managing everything on every dimension. Both these models need to work together today. The truth is that Prahlad's victory is part of Hiranyakashyapu's plan and Hiranyakashyapu's reign is an integral part of Prahlad's vision.
Sadanand Tutakne
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