4 0 S p i r i t ua l i t y S t u d i e s 5 - 2 Fa l l 2 0 1 9 we are not thinking. In this short period of time we are aware of what the senses are showing us – we just perceive [4]. It seems to me that even sensory perception requires a temporary halt of thinking (thinking in the form of inner monologue or comment, or a “typical full-blown thought”). We are coming back to the present moment many times a day (it seems to me that this “return to the present” happens in most cases at least every few seconds), just because of the need to be aware of the sensory perceptions of the outer reality and of our body [5]. Thus, the experiential focus is never wholly forgotten and replaced by narrative focus, because of the necessities of life, and our ability of momentary self-reference does not wholly die out. In contemplative life, this seed can be then picked up and nourished by various methods (and also without methods), like are different kinds of meditation and contemplation. The interesting aspect of the study of Farb et al. (2007) is that their findings correlate with some of “knowledge” accumulated in spirituality; we can see that the brain is changed according to our inner and outer experience with ourselves. Inwardly perceived transformation and transformation of behavior is in a certain sense mirrored also in the state of the brain. We should note that this transformation of behavior is also available for scientific study, although we can see these changes without the aid of science too – and use this experience and knowledge in the spiritual domain directly. Farb et al. (2007) also found areas of the brain, which had greater association with narrative condition (Posterior Cingulate Cortex, Dorsomedial Prefrontal Cortex) and those that had greater association with experiential condition (Posterior Parietal Cortex, Lateral Prefrontal Cortex) in the “novices”. They also report changes in the brain due to meditation practice: “Following an intensive eight week course in mindfulness meditation, during which individuals learn to develop the capacity to monitor moment-to-moment experience, EF resulted in a pronounced shift away from midline cortices towards a right lateralized network comprised of the ventral and dorsolateral PFC [Note: Prefrontal Cortex], as well as right insula, SII [Note: Secondary Somatosensory Cortex], and inferior parietal lobule” (Farb et al. 2007, 319). They describe their findings as consistent with the concept of two modes of self-reference (Farb et al. 2007, 319): Consistent with a dual-mode hypothesis of self-awareness, these results suggest a fundamental neural dissociation in modes of self-representation that support distinct, but habitually integrated, aspects of self-reference: (i) higher order self-reference characterized by neural processes supporting awareness of a self that extends across time and (ii) more basic momentary self-reference characterized by neural changes supporting awareness of the psychological present. The latter, represented by evolutionary older neural regions, may represent a return to the neural origins of identity, in which self-awareness in each moment arises from the integration of basic interoceptive and exteroceptive bodily sensory processes […]. In contrast, the narrative mode of self-reference may represent an overlearned mode of information processing that has become automatic through practice, consistent with established findings on training-induced automaticity. From the evolutionary standpoint, the momentary self-reference seems to be older and narrative reference newer, more connected with specifically human traits. In this connection, we can point out that in many spiritual teachings, nature and beings other than humans are said to live in the present, while humans are described as beings that lost this primordial state. But the return to the life in present can maybe be united in some way with thinking and its advantages. Based on the experiences from spirituality it seems that we humans can be more present than we typically are and at the same time let go of at least those forms of thinking which are not productive and cause more suffering and which generally bring more harm than good. In this regard I would like to again point out that there also exist contemplative practices which use thinking and speech in order to reach transformation. It seems that thinking also can facilitate awareness; we, as humans, maybe can use also our thinking and our concepts, as well as our feelings and other experiences, to penetrate deeper. Consider various mantras and prayers which use words or sentences: human concepts themselves seem to be filled with meaning from deeper inner knowledge, transcending formal symbols, and thus they perhaps can be used in order to know that inner realm whose knowledge they contain [6]. The concept of the difference between the Ego and the Presence seems to be supported, at least in part, also by the research of the so called the Default Mode Network. This network consists of brain centers which support self-referential processing and its activity correlates with mind-wandering (Mason et al. 2007; Andrews-Hanna et al. 2010). In their study, Killingsworth and Gilbert (2010, 932) concluded that “human mind is a wandering mind, and a wandering mind is an unhappy mind. The ability to think about what is not happening is a cognitive achievement that comes at an emotional cost.” Their conclusion is based on the study, which used experience sampling. Using this method they accumulated a database that contained a quarter of a million samples from about five hundred people of different age and occupation from 83 countries (Killingsworth and Gilbert 2010). They found that
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