Unusual Spirit Theories

[herme3]

I am taking a college course in yoga to meet the Physical Education requirement for my degree in Computer Science. My yoga teacher emphasizes a lot on spiritual beliefs and often teaches them as fact. She teaches a lot about spirits and the "astral plane" but never provides scientific evidence to support these lessons. She says that these beliefs are known to be true and have been proven by science. Whenever I ask her for evidence, she often says that I need to practice meditation and go there myself.

 

I do practice meditation as she has instructed, but I sometimes have blurry vision whenever I open my eyes again. I told her that I was concerned about this, but she replied that it just meant my mind was leaving the physical world and going into the spiritual realm.

 

Has anybody heard of the "astral plane" or spiritual realm? Is this some type of new religion, or is there actually some scientific backing to some of this? Being a skeptic, I'm a little concerned about how it is being taught as fact in a public college without supporting evidence.

[Cap'n Refsmmat]

If Adam was still around, he'd love to answer your question.

 

As he isn't, I'll say this: no, there is no evidence for an astral plane. Any "spiritual realm" is up to your religious beliefs to decide.

[Fred56]

People who get into yoga (especially Westerners), often start to believe in things like that, things that can't be illustrated except by "going there". I wouldn't get too into what your instructor is saying though, it sounds a lot like a Westerner's ideas of what it's all about (so it's her own explanation -to herself).

 

Read some good yoga books by practitioners, the earlier ones are good. There are supposed to be different levels you can get to with meditating, but then yoga is actually quite a broad subject (not just exercises and breathing).

[Dak]

at a guess, your brain is just shutting down a bit, hence your vision isn't working properly.

 

I 'enter the astral plane' (i.e., blurry, distorted visions and seeing things that aren't there) whenever i've been awake for more than 30 hours

[Klaynos]

Yoga has recently started to really annoy me as alot of practicers claim you can change the electromagnetic frequency of the brain with some of the positions... fine do it but don't claim science.

[YT2095]

actually it`s quite True!

 

that`s how an EEG works, the brain Does operate at different electrical frequencies depending on what you`re doing.

 

Alpha Beta Theta Delta rythms etc...

all have specific frequency ranges.

[insane_alien]

yeah and they change all the time, heck i can alter mine just by getting drunk

[iNow]

actually it`s quite True!

 

that`s how an EEG works, the brain Does operate at different electrical frequencies depending on what you`re doing.

 

Alpha Beta Theta Delta rythms etc...

all have specific frequency ranges.

 

Exactly. Blood flow in the brain and body is also important. Meditation does change one's thoughts and body chemistry a bit. The thing to remember is that your teacher's training is in Yoga, so "astral plane" is just her way of describing things she knows little about.

 

 

She understands the "art," but not the way the paint which makes it is composed and sourced. Does this analogy help? If not, take your kundalini and stick it in your third eye.

[YT2095]

I guess it all depends upon what you Define as the "Astral plane" too.

there seem to be Many and varied (sometimes conflicting opinions about this term).

 

to ME for instance the "Astral plane" is exactly that, I look up at the sky on a clear night (with hopefully no light pollution) and what meets my eye is the Astral plane, although it`s 3D I see it as a plane.

(a ~10cm gap between eyeballs doesn`t do much to resolve items 1,000`s of light years away as 3D objects).

[Mr Skeptic]

Yoga has recently started to really annoy me as alot of practicers claim you can change the electromagnetic frequency of the brain with some of the positions... fine do it but don't claim science.

 

You can change the brain wave patterns of your brain. Usually, the changes are involuntary, but they can be purposefully changed via meditation. Just like some people can learn to control their heart rate and such.

 

It is easier to control your brain wave patterns if you use biofeedback, but that will freak out your yoga teacher

[insane_alien]

yeah, but it doesn't have the effects that the yoga teachers say it will(i've even heard them claim it cures cancer.

[YT2095]

Whoa! slow down, now were going WAY of topic, I know a Yoga teacher that claims to have a Red car too, it`s about as Relevant here!

[Glider]

It's been known for a long time that changes in psychological state induces changes in physiological function. That's what the area of Psychophysics studies. There's no need for spiritual or other supernatural explanations.