3/30 Enlightenment as system resting states

Another angle on "what is enlightenment?" is different resting states in the brain than the ones we usually experience.

Again, enlightenment isn't a binary yes or no. It's a continuum of different states of consciousness - but for right now I'll talk a bit like its a yes or no.

Complex systems are dynamic but generally not just chaotic. They tend to fall into resting states where there is equilibrium. If you take a highway as an example, there are a few clear resting states. There's rush hour. There's sparse and fast-flowing traffic in the middle of the night. There's denser but still flowing traffic mid-day. If we take a two party congress as an example, there tends to be cooperation between the two parties, or cautious game-theory tit-for-tat (perhaps post-election? I'm not an expert here), or a total moratorium on cooperation. You can think of any system you know well and probably identify the equilibrium states it tends to fall into.

The brain is the most complex system we know. Like other complex systems, it's not like brain firing patterns are just a random mess. There are networks active at any time. Networks are defined as predictable coordination of activity between brain regions that are distant from one another. Our usual state of consciousness involves a few networks, like the default mode network that's self-referential and related to mind-wandering, and the central executive/task positive/dorsal attention network that's active during problem solving and other focused tasks (aside: one problem in neuroscience is lack of standardization for terms). But even though there's dynamic shifting, we still feel like a continuous person with a pretty steady experience of consciousness.

With enlightenment, the shift in resting states is a qualitative shift - it feels different to just be. there are notable overlaps with psychedelics (again!), because both enlightenment and a deep psychedelic experience reduce if not eliminate default mode network activity (that mind wandering/autobiographical network I mentioned, which will soon get its own entry).

But while it's in some ways impossible to describe or anticipate before you've experienced it, in another way, it feels like coming home to a feeling you know from childhood - it's deeply familiar and very comforting. This is probably because it is very similar to how we felt as babies or very young children, before we really bootstrapped a sense of self (the default mode network is totally absent in babies, and doesn't fully stabilize until age 9-12.) Enlightenment is often described in terms that also characterize childhood consciousness - curiosity, wonder, and amusement. That's why the Dalai Lama is often giggling. And, consciously or not, I think it’s a state we all long for on some level - a break from the heaviness of the thinking mind and return to childlike experience.

In future entries, I'll get a bit more specific about how the brain bootstraps all of these layers and networks, and about how they're deconstructed with awakening.