PINEAL GLAND (2)

[Peter Howie]

Dear Adam and Connie,

Good response Adam. I was thinking how the purpose and function of the  
brain was for many millenia mistaken and thinking and all these  
processes we associate with the brain were thought to come from the  
heart . At least since Aristotle the brain was thought of as a useless  
mushy bit.

Adam my Japanese accupuncturist, and I am not advocating accupuncture,  
however I have been around it for a while and he taught me that the  
language of accupuncture is entirely figurative. So when he says "Your  
liver is low" he doesn't mean my actual liver but a type of body  
response that he interprets as a type of energy which is titles  
"Liver". Or "wood" or any of a number of other titles. Now I know a  
number of other accupuncturists who actually believe that "a low  
liver" means that the actual liver is low. What do they think it means  
when there is not enough "wood"? Unintended pun here.

I think the pineal gland hangs around 1) because we are relatively  
more ignorant about it than other parts of the brain and 2) we  
(generalisation of many but not all people) have a great desire to  
find physical correlates for god and spirituality. There are fantastic  
arguments about faith while at the same time a great desire for  
miraculous proofs and the like. One very familiar one is the idea that  
the human body is the machine that experiences god so we don't need to  
create a machine/process/proof of god because we are that machine/ 
process/proof.

Also Connie, with the pineal and Descartes, he had the philosophy that  
there was a person behind our thoughts - the controller idea of how  
are thoughts are controlled - and that the pineal was the most likely  
place for it for similar reasons you wrote. From memory it regulates  
melatonin and we are only beginning to understand what role that plays  
apart from skin colour and body rhythms. And while some of the cells  
appear similar to light sensitive ones, the regulation of rhythms via  
melatonin from the pineal from ambient light takes place via another  
pathway. The pineal is well and truly in the dark.

Cheers for now


Peter Howie B.Sc, TEP
Managing Director
The Moreno Collegium for Human Centred Learning, Research and  
Development
0411 873 851
www.morenocollegium.com.au

On 15/01/2009, at 2:07 AM, Adam Blatner wrote:

> Dear Connie, you may be right! However, there are different levels  
> of evidence-based thinking in general discourse, and many people get  
> confused. Anything called a "theory" seems to have equal status, so  
> there are state governments who, being ignorant of this simple fact,  
> are intimidated by the word (ah, semantics) and feel obliged to give  
> creationism an equal status to the theory of evolution in the  
> teaching of science in the schools.
>      When you mention that the mystery traditions and esoteric  
> schools have long known...". though, I have reservations: That word  
> "know" must be put on "pause" and examined. A great deal---almost  
> all---that was known for sure by authorities, schools of thought,  
> and such over the last three thousand years, upon careful  
> examination and testing, has been proven repeatedly and in many ways  
> to be flat wrong. This has been the cultural impact of science for  
> three hundred years. So the key question to ask is:  "But is it so?"
>
>        I have no objection to figurative or symbolic language, and  
> use it freely in my conversations. I think there is an important  
> place for poetry and myth-making, but I am also committed to a  
> sharper level of critical thinking that differentiates myth from fact.
>
>       I think there are some things that myth speaks to with greater  
> usefulness in our lives than mere fact, such as the construction of  
> romance or the sense of significance of oneself or one's movement,  
> or the construction of meaning in general. However these  
> constructions are then subject to the reality of "paradigm shift,"--- 
> the recognition that new perspectives can change the way we view the  
> world in rather basic ways. So I hold on to what I think I know  
> rather gently.
>
>      Thanks for noting what has been scientifically shown about the  
> pineal gland---in fact, though, we still know very little, other  
> than some of the things you pointed out. Then again, for all the  
> advances in neuro-science, again we should recognize that for every  
> advance, two or more questions come into view, and that's the  
> definition (by Huston Smith) of a mystery.
>
>        So this is aimed really more for our general grouptalk  
> community. I appreciate your pioneering in many ways the interface  
> of spirituality and the use of action methods. Warmly, Adam
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: Connie Miller
> To: Edward Schreiber ; Grouptalk Listserv
> Sent: Wednesday, January 14, 2009 7:34 AM
> Subject: Re: PINEAL GLAND    Here is what I have;
> The pineal gland was the last endocrine gland to have its function  
> discovered. Its location deep in the brain seemed to indicate its  
> importance. This combination led to its being a "mystery" gland with  
> myth, superstition and even metaphysical theories surrounding its  
> perceived function. The pineal gland is occasionally associated with  
> the sixth chakra (also called Ajna or the third eye chakra in yoga).  
> It is believed by some to be a dormant organ that can be awakened to  
> enable "telepathic" communication. In the physical body the eye  
> views objects upside down. It sends the image of what it observes to  
> the brain which interprets the image and makes it appear right side- 
> up to us. But the human body has another physical eye whose function  
> has long been recognized by humanity. It is called the 'Third Eye'  
> which in reality is the Pineal Gland. It is long thought to have  
> mystical powers. Many consider it the Spiritual Third Eye, our Inner  
> Vision.
>
> It is located in the geometric center of the brain. This correlates  
> to the location of the great pyramid in the center of the physical  
> planet. The Pineal Gland is about the size of a pea, and is in the  
> center of the brain in a tiny cave behind and above the pituitary  
> gland which lies a little behind the root of the nose. It is located  
> directly behind the eyes, attached to the third ventricle. The true  
> function of this mysterious gland has long been contemplated by  
> philosophers and Spiritual Adepts. Ancient Greeks believed the  
> pineal gland to be our connection to the Realms of Thought.
>
> Rene Descartes called it the Seat of the Soul, believing it is  
> unique in the anatomy of the human brain in being a structure not  
> duplicated on the right and left sides. This observation is not  
> true, however; under a microscope one finds the pineal gland is  
> divided into two fine hemispheres. This gland is activated by Light,  
> and it controls the various biorhythms of the body. It works in  
> harmony with the hypothalamus gland which directs the body's thirst,  
> hunger, sexual desire and the biological clock that determines our  
> aging process.
>
> When the pineal gland awakens one feels a pressure at the base of  
> the brain. This pressure will often be experienced when connecting  
> to higher frequency. A head injury can also activate the Third Eye -  
> Pineal Gland.
>
> While the physiological function of the pineal gland has been  
> unknown until recent times, mystical traditions and esoteric schools  
> have long known this area in the middle of the brain to be the  
> connecting link between the physical and spiritual worlds.  
> Considered the most powerful and highest source of ethereal energy  
> available to humans, the pineal gland has always been important in  
> initiating supernatural powers. Development of psychic talents has  
> been closely associated with this organ of higher vision.
>
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