Beyond the Brain V Conference
Abstracts
Jeff Levin and Marilyn Monk
FRIDAY
Advancing the Boundaries of High-Tech Cardiac Care to Include
Music, Imagery, Touch and Prayer - The MANTRA Project
Dr Mitchell W. Krucoff, MD, FACC, FCCP
Suzanne Crater
While thousands of papers have been published on new technologies for
coronary artery disease, there is no systematic research on the role of intangible elements such as vital energy or the human spirit in coronary revascularization outcomes. In the Monitoring and Actualization of
Noetic Trainings Study Project, the impact of noetic therapies such as music, imagery, healing touch, relaxation and prayer on clinical outcomes in
awake patients undergoing invasive coronary procedures has been explored
using prospective, randomized clinical outcomes study designs. This
presentation will explore the conceptual underpinnings of this research, the results of this research to date, and future directions in this area.
Healing, Prayer and Forgiveness -
Some Neural Correlates
Dr Peter Fenwick
Over the last decade there has been a huge upsurge in medical research
into spiritual medicine. To the surprise of the academic community,
spiritual medicine has been found to be effective, to such an extent that
it is now taught in 80 out of 120 medical schools in North America. Research studies show that involvement in religious practices can lead to
old people living longer and having a stronger immune system. There are
a number of questionnaires which measure spirituality and people who score
higher on these questionnaires can be shown to do better in hospital and
in cardiac rehabilitation programmes. The amount of improvement in coronary blood flow correlates highly with spiritual beliefs and practices. In some cases of carcinoma, regression and extended life expectancy appear to be highly correlated with spiritual practices and those mental states which
provide enhancement of the immune system. The new studies on prayer are most exciting, as they now demonstrate that prayer is significantly effective. In some studies, even when none of the people taking part in the study knew it was being conducted, prayer was still found to be effective. The area of forgiveness therapy and meditation practices have also shown positive results.
SATURDAY
Faith, Love, and Transcendence:
An Epidemiologic Perspective;
Jeff Levin, Ph.D., M.P.H
In this talk, Dr. Levin will provide an overview of epidemiologic research on spiritual determinants of health and illness in human populations; First, he will summarize the history of the study of religion, spirituality, and health; Second, he will describe his own program of research over the past two decades; This includes past research on the epidemiology of religious faith,
current research on the epidemiology of love, and his recent proposal of a new field of study based around the epidemiology of transcendent experience; Finally, he will explore the implications of this
research for public health and medicine.
Love and The Near Life Experience
Dr Andrew Powell
We know from accounts of the Near Death Experience that many
survivors return having been affected by an experience of love so profound
that their subsequent lives are transformed. We often have glimpses of this
love but it is rare to find a person living it to the full. The word love
is used in many different ways, which compounds the problem, and the
question 'What is this love for?' is crucial to clarifying the nature of
love in action. Why does personality development so often obstruct the experience of love and what stands in the way of its expression? Can all this be explained by the psychology of defence mechanisms or can we also learn from the Eastern esoteric tradition that portrays love as a subtle energy?
Inhibition of love leads to the Near Life Experience, with its accompanying
hallmark, the fear of death. In contrast, wholeness and healing arise from
love, the language of the soul. The aim is surely to uncover this treasure,
which is our natural inheritance.
SUNDAY
The Garden of Forgiveness in Lebanon
Alexandra Asseily
"There is a contract between the living and the dead as suggested by the inter-generational cycle of pain and violence present in families, tribes and nations. The dissolution of this bond, or 'contract', comes through focussed compassion and forgiveness." This understanding came to AA in a 'beyond the brain' experience, the force of which transformed AA's life, as she searched for ways to apply this key to the root of conflicts she witnessed first hand in Lebanon's civil war. In her attempt to translate this experience into a concrete idea, she was guided step by step to initiate and help create a Garden of Forgiveness in the destroyed centre of Beirut-connecting three cathedrals and three mosques on an ancient site.
Group Analysis as a Key in Exploring the Spiritual Dimension
Canon Beaumont Stevenson
Spirituality is by its very nature transpersonal. It is something, which is greater than the individual and bonds us with other human beings. It
can enlarge our ego so that identity of "me" becomes transformed into the
collective "we". How do we understand how this process works? Group Analysis can provide some tools to study spiritual phenomena as well
as psychological processes of individuals immersed in a group identity.
The speaker will present some of his findings and experiences as both a
Group Analyst and priest to look at the sometimes fascinating way these two
spheres interact, using both theory and examples
Opening the Heart
Elizabeth Lodge
When I heard the words 'the Sound of One Hand Clapping' my heart started to beat loudly and I felt
as if I had arrived,
it was the essay title on an Oxbridge paper of twenty years ago that I had never understood and
never forgotten,
it is the essence of oneness,
it is the wonderful, beautiful sister of my ex-fiance who was born with one hand,
it is the applause which fills the universe,
it is creativity.
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