Brain activity and conciousness

[J J]

Hello everyone, 

I'm new here, so, first of all, nice to meet you, I am really excited!  The question I am droppning here may be too "basic" for most of you, so I honestly appreciate your time to help me out.

I'm actually struggling to make a distinction between brain activity and conciousness. The way I see it, injuries or drugs, for example, have a remarkable impact on the brain and our whole perception of reality, so, undoubtedly, there is correlation (yet not necessarily causation). But when the brain shuts down (when we are deeply asleep or even dead), conciousness stops, there's no more perceptions, no more reality. It doesn't matter if it's 8 hours or 5 minutes, you cease to be aware. I am also very triggered by that emotion occasionally, to the point where I even loose my mind whewn thinking about my non-existence. I has hit me really, really hard sometimes, 8 times or so in my life (I'm 23), and is unchained as easily as watching a movie. The rest of the day I am OK with my own mortality, so I just can not grasp the singificance this rare and uncommon psychotic attacks. 

On the other hand, I have seen the "Why brains do not exist", but I just can not see through. Conceptually, I feel like I'm missing some essencial point.

I think the following video explains, more or less, my point of view (just don't watch the whole thing, from 4:50 - 6:35 is enough). 

So the quiestion arises... Doesn't that brain-conciousness relation prove that? Doesn't consciousness emerge from matter? 

I'd appreciate if you could clue me in. Thanks a lot!

[Leo Gura]

Everything is imaginary, including brains, atoms, planets, science, logic, and your life.

Brains seem to exist from your POV because that is what you're stuck imagining without being aware that you are imagining it.

Consciousness imagines a brain. Your entire paradigm is backwards.

[Nahm]

Welcome to Conundrumville.

The question I am droppning here may be too "basic" for most of you, so I honestly appreciate your time to help me out.

Basic yes, but this is perhaps the most important, most fundamental contemplation one could undertake. Good for you man. Enjoy the coming metadventure. 

I'm actually struggling to make a distinction between brain activity and consciousness.

As I’m sure you’re aware, that’s because it is the brain, or rather the duality of thinking, which is trying to assess itself. That can get loopy. A thought can not think a thought, much like a sensation can not sense a sensation, and perception can not perceive a perceiver. Contemplating those can bring some realizations about, of direct experience vs indirect ‘experience’ - actuality vs ‘sneakery’. With a daily meditation practice, those three facets become calm and quiet, and the space ‘in between’ the thoughts and activities of the body begins to be directly experienced and realized as ‘prior to’.  

A thought about this will not do, as ‘this’ is prior to thought (prior to duality). There definitely is ‘experience’ - without thought activity, referred to typically as, being, or knowing. 

The way I see it, injuries or drugs, for example, have a remarkable impact on the brain and our whole perception of reality, so, undoubtedly, there is correlation (yet not necessarily causation). But when the brain shuts down (when we are deeply asleep or even dead), conciousness stops, there's no more perceptions, no more reality. It doesn't matter if it's 8 hours or 5 minutes, you cease to be aware.

That is a very convincing and understandable perspective, but it’s not entirely accurate ime. Your post cuts right to the heart of the personal and impersonal nature of absolute. I would begin to be very critical in questioning anything and everything, with the strict filer of direct experience. As in, if you have not directly experienced death, nor been without thought activity, just notice anything about it, is a belief and or assumption. Ultimately, this is critically important to not only continuing your self exploration, reaching the ultimate satisfaction, but also to knowing the actuality of reality. Some would say that when every belief is inspected - they disappear, and all that can remain without belief - is the actual truth. Wether you actually want to know it, is something to do a serious gut check about. 

I am also very triggered by that emotion occasionally, to the point where I even loose my mind whewn thinking about my non-existence. I has hit me really, really hard sometimes, 8 times or so in my life (I'm 23), and is unchained as easily as watching a movie. The rest of the day I am OK with my own mortality, so I just can not grasp the singificance this rare and uncommon psychotic attacks. 

Sensation within you is like an infinitely intelligent guide, the ‘higher self’, or, ‘inner being’. It’s important to tune into sensation, and to listen to it, above all thinking. Sensation is nondual, one, a direct ‘link’ to the source of all that is. Thinking is twoness; the same one, but diluted by duality. In a way, Thinking is like a paper thin smokescreen, covering up the actuality of reality.

Psychosis is, roughly speaking, the inability to distinguish a thought accurate of what has or is transpiring, and a thought which is not indicative of what has or is transpiring. Without alignment with sensation, that can be a rabbit hole I’d wish on nobody. I’ve worked with people heavy lost in psychosis, and I’ll just say, it is rough. The reason you are having those ‘psychotic attacks’, is because sensation is saying, to your thinking of non-existence...”that’s not true!”. But, you are ignoring the sensation, believing your thinking, and then essentially mislabeling sensation - the very ‘thing’ which is guiding you to truth. Do the counter logical thing here, and tune into the sensation, not away from it - assuming you have to suffer because you’ll die one day, or cease to exist. Take notice of the very word - non-existence. It actually points to - that which does not actually exist. So, there simply is no such thing, as, non-existence. It’s initially hard to grasp, but, look for the humor of this, and you will find the relief undoubtably. Feel for the actuality, the truth of this, in your heart, in your bones, in your very being. Let it really wash over the body, releasing a lot of past misconceptions you’re holding. Choose - set the intention - to know this truth, and to let thoughts about go. Feel the ‘answer’ which arises from deep in the body, not the ‘head’ / thought. 

On the other hand, I have seen the "Why brains do not exist", but I just can not see through. Conceptually, I feel like I'm missing some essencial point.

No offense, I say this in love and and helpfulness...but it’s like you are standing in Peru, talking about the top of Mt. Everest. There’s a very big slice of humble pie we all eat when we get on the path. The realization that everything we think we know, is, pretty much, well, entirely, not true, or, not grounded in what is actual. It feels like we got duped, and there’s no one to blame. It’s difficult, but imo, most worthwhile. Absolutely worthwhile. 

I think the following video explains, more or less, my point of view (just don't watch the whole thing, from 4:50 - 6:35 is enough). 

So the quiestion arises... Doesn't that brain-conciousness relation prove that? Doesn't consciousness emerge from matter? 

That’s the greatest question there is. This is going to take (most likely) a lot of meditation, contemplation, and self exploration. I like to frame this up as the metadventure - regular life being the adventure, the journey - and the metadventure being the simultaneous undertaking of discovering the real, actual, truth. At times these jive perfectly, and at other times the meta can basically blow up your life. Again though, most worthwhile imo. 

Some suggestionS of what you might contemplate, to begin opening up the mind to the actuality... I’d use a pad of paper, just to jot down realizations that arise, which are felt - beyond just thought. This helps ‘tune in’ to being, to sensation, and to life’s greatest delight, the intuition. This is later known as and referred to as that ineffable childlike nature & joy, we all seem to have lost along the way....

What, in your direct experience, has ever occurred - outside of - your own consciousness / awareness?

Make a list of ‘things’, “matter”, ‘objects’ - which you, or any human being ever, has found to be outside of, and more specifically, prior to - consciousness. 

Find the actual proof - that consciousness is separate, in any way. 

Find the actual proof, that consciousness arises from your brain, in your direct experience. 

Contemplate and write down, a list, in order, of how you think the population prioritizes the expereince of being human. What is valued the most, what is valued the least, etc. 

Research, contemplate, research, contemplate, etc....the substrate of matter, quantum mechanics, and the intimate & most personal implications of the findings.  

Be open minded, very open minded, so much so, that you allow for the  possibility that you might discover a truth, which reveals that pretty much everyone on the planet, is “wrong” about matter & consciousness.

 

Also, because I get the sense you are pretty serious in your investigation, going straight to the heart of the ‘matter’, just some recommendation...as a scientist and teacher of these “matters”, @Serotoninluv Is arguably one of the best people on earth to help you bridge the ‘gap’. If and when you ‘don’t like’ what @Leo Gura says, when it stirs you up emotionally - stop everything - and listen to what he’s saying, and listen to your sensation - not your thinking. A lot of whacky stuff gets said in his regard by a lot of whacky folks, unfortunately, but imo, you will not find a more knowledgeable, nor more honest person on earth to help you in your endeavor. And again, you’re the ultimate filter & authority, direct experience is always king, but at the same time, you can take pretty much anything @ajasatya says straight to the bank. When the well being, health & nutrition comes up, @Michael569 is a living wealth of knowledge and kindness. And for the energy work, the tuning in, that Uber refinement stage... @pluto can’t be topped. (Sorry for the singling out peeps  )

[Inliytened1]

@J J brains exist within consciousness...consciousness does not exist within brains.

This is Descarte's infamous Mind Body problem which has been solved.   Once you have a direct hit of Truth by becoming it, your current paradigm will shatter

Welcome aboard! 

[Forestluv]

11 hours ago, J J said:

I'm actually struggling to make a distinction between brain activity and conciousness.

You can create a distinction if you like. What if you don't create a distinction between brain activity and consciousness? Heck, what if you don't create any distinctions between things and consciousness? What happens?. . . Notice how we start off with Nothing/Everything/ISness - and then create distinctions that split it up. Nothing wrong with distinctions. They come in handy and can be super cool. Yet notice how you want to create distinctions. You can also move in the other direction and deconstruct prior to distinctions. 

[Guru Fat Bastard]

Look to your own experience.
See:
"I am conscious of activity"(brain or mind)
"Being conscious of this activity, I am conscious of my activity:
"Being conscious of my activity,I am conscious of myself"
"Being conscious of myself,I am conscious of my thought of myself"
"Being conscious of my thought of myself, I am just a thought"
"If I am just a thought,then I am empty... (as  all thoughts are empty of self-ness or self-hood.)
Being empty,there is no self,no activity,no this,no that,no here,no there,no being,no non being,no other.

Pure-Empty-Aware.

Edited October 17, 2019 by Guru Fat Bastard

[J J]

Wow, thanks to all for taking your time... Really appreciated.

There are A LOT of profound insights in what you have told me. I've been meditating since September everyday, but just for 10 minutes. I need to spend more time and tol introduce some exercises you have suggested.

@This is the end I have not have any 'paranormal' or mystic experiences, so you can see I'm pretty stubborn when it comes believing this phenomena. I'm not dismissing you though, it's just too radical and unkown for me to accept. But I will do what you say, I will empty my mind and try to not taking things for granted.

@Leo Gura Wow, that is like REALLY unbelievable. It just saddens me. How can I be so decieved? Like SO PERFECTLY decieved?

Thanks a lot, @Nahm, for introducing me to such fantastic people. I'm just keep on reading and reading your words. They are going to be really, really helpful. Appreciated, man. Honestly.

@Inliytened1 I'm on my way to it  Thanks, I am excited for having the oppotunity to meet such interesting people!

@Guru Fat Bastard I will do contemplation work, thank you...

I also want to say that I have had some glimpses when suddenly reality as I know it (my life, this world, my everyday life) stopped making sense, like it was too 'good' to be true, too 'unlikely' to even BE the way it is, that I was too lucky to be alive. How the hell is it possible to just BE...

Can you advice or suggest me any powerful technics to help me in my journey towards enlightment? I am really commited into this work. If I make relevant progress, I will post it here. Thanks to all, from the bottom of my heart.

 

[J J]

@Serotoninluv Thank you, too. As I said, I need to contemplate more... The deconstruction process is pretty hard, I'm afraid...!

[ardacigin]

Watch this: 

 

[Leo Gura]

1 hour ago, J J said:

Wow, that is like REALLY unbelievable. It just saddens me. How can I be so decieved? Like SO PERFECTLY decieved?

How else could "reality" come to be but through deception and illusion?

God had to pull himself out of his own ass. Quite the magic trick