The Dalai Lama has allowed scientists to study 8 of his monks, long-term Buddhist meditation practitioners
in the Tibetan Nyingmapa and Kagyupa traditions for 10,000 to 50,000 hours, to help in their study of brain science.
One of the hottest topics in current brain science is neuroplasticity. Neuroplasticity refers to the
brain's ability to change structure and function, especially by expanding or strengthening circuits that are used
more frequently and by shrinking/weakening those circuits that are rarely used.
In the past, studies have concentrated on exploring the relationship of external stimuli and the effects
on the brain. The experiments with the Buddhist monks allowed the scientists to explore the effects of internal
stimuli. Brain activity of the monks was compared to that of novice meditators while doing "compassion" meditation (sending
compassion to all sentient beings), without other thoughts.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging was used to map brain activity in the participants. While the
novice meditators showed some gamma wave activity, the monks showed a tremendous increase in gamma waves, which underlie higher
mental activity. The greatest changes were produced in the monks with the most hours of meditation. This would
suggest that mental training could bring the brain to a greater level of consciousness and may induce both short-term
and long-term neural changes.
For more information on this study, see the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, November,
2004.
