APRESENTAÇÃO

DE APOIO

NEUROCIÊNCIA E ESPIRITUALIDADE
DA DISCIPLINA

Estudo da relação entre neurociência e espiritualidade.

DA DISCIPLINA

1º ENCONTRO 2º ENCONTRO 3º ENCONTRO

Jaderson Costa Jaderson Costa André Palmini

da Costa da Costa
CONVIDADO
JADERSON COSTA DA COSTA
Graduado em Medicina pela Universidade
Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) (1972), mestre em
Ciências Biológicas (Fisiologia) pela UFRGS (1979),
Research Fellowship — Children's Hospital Harvard Medical
School (1979), mestre em Neurociências pela UFRGS
(1986) e doutor em Ciências Biológicas (Fisiologia) pela
UFRGS (1993). É professor-associado no Programa de
Treinamento de Alunos e Professores da América Latina —
University of Miami, professor titular de neurologia da
Faculdade de Medicina da Pontifícia Universidade Católica
do Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS) e Diretor do Instituto do
Cérebro do RS. Tem experiência na área de Medicina, com
ênfase em Neurologia, atuando principalmente nos
seguintes temas: epilepsia, cirurgia da epilepsia, distúrbios
neurocomportamentais e terapia celular em doenças
neurodegenerativas. Tomou posse em 9 de dezembro de
2016, do cargo de vice-reitor da PUCRS.
PUCRS
ANDRÉ PALMINI
Graduado em medicina pela Universidade
Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) (1984), residência
médica em neurologia pelo Hospital de Clínicas de Porto
Alegre (1987), Clinical and Research Fellowship em
Epileptologia e Neurofisiologia Clínica pelo Montreal
Neurological Institute, McGill, University (1991), doutor em
Neurologia pelo Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciências
Médicas da Universidade Estadual de Campinas (1996) e
pós-doutor em neuroimagem funcional e epilepsia pela
Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, em Leuven, na Bélgica e em
Epileptologia Clínica pelo University College London.
Neurociência e Espiritualidade
O Cérebro Espiritual

Jaderson Costa da Costa

 O Cérebro Espiritual
The Spiritual Brain. A Neuroscientist’s
Case for the Existence of the Soul
Mario Beauregard & Denyse O’Lear

“The brain, however it is not the mind;

it is an organ suitable for connecting a mind to the
rest of the universe”

RSME – Religious, Spiritual,

and/or Mystical Experienced
 Epilepsia do Lobo Temporal – ELT
Epilepsia Temporo-limbica

Jefferey Saver & John Rabin – UCLA, Reed Neurologic

Research Center, sugerem que a epilepsia e RSME estão
intimamente relacionados e que o sistema límbico tem
papel fundamental

Vylayanur Ramachandran argumenta que a ELT pode

ser o gatilho para RSMEs

Síndrome de Geschwind: ELT – hiperreligiosidade e

interesse filosófico e cosmológico, hipermoralidade,
emotividade, circunlóquio, falta de humor...
Fyodor Dostoevsky e Vincent van Gogh
Epilepsia do Lobo Temporal
 Síndrome de Geschwind

Epilepsy
&
Behavior
Epilepsy & Behavior 4 (2003) 76–77
www.elsevier.com/locate/yebeh

Classics in Epilepsy and Behavior: Commentary

Religious experiences and epilepsy

Orrin Devinsky*
New York University, New York, NY 10016, USA
Received 26 November 2002; accepted 26 November 2002

The web formed by superstition, bias, anecdotal ob-
servation, and clinical studies linking epilepsy and reli-
gion is tangled. Hippocrates, in 400 BC, refuted the
association between epilepsy and religion [1]. He dis-
counted epilepsy as a curse from the gods as well as the
prophetic powers of patients with epilepsy. However,
the association of epilepsy and religion persisted
throughout the next two millennia, taking various
forms. In the Middle Ages, possession, magic, and
predominantly postictal, he also reported interictal and
possibly ictal religiosity. One of Howden!s patients had
a conversion experience following a convulsive seizure.
In the 19th century, psychiatrists stressed the religiosity
of epilepsy patients [3,4,7,8], while Siberian medicine
men preferred epileptic pupils because they were felt to
have greater mystical powers [8] Leuba!s classic
monograph on religious mysticism noted that ‘‘among
the dread diseases that afflict humanity there is only
Epilepsias Refratárias: ~ 30%
> Epilepsia do Lobo Temporal
Mapeamento Funcional do
Córtex Cerebral Humano
 A.M – Estimulação Elétrica Extra-operatória:
Uma resposta inesperada

Arthur Mandel, Filósofo e Neurocientista

Toward a Psychobiology of Transcendence:
God in the brain (1980). Reducionismo
“O reino dos céus pode ser encontrado no
lobo temporal direito”

“Sensação Agradável; Deus está comigo”

“Sensação muito ruim (medo), sensação de morte”

“Sensação muito ruim (medo)- CPC”

Base hemisfério cerebral direito
Estimulação Magnética Transcraniana

■ Técnica não invasiva e indolor

■ Gera pulsos magnéticos curtos de

100-300 ms e de baixa
intensidade 1,5 - 2 Teslas

■ Área cortical estimulada de 2-3

cm de diâmetro
EXPERIMENTAL FACILITATION OF THE SENSED
PRESENCE IS PREDICTED BY THE SPECIFIC
PATTERNS OF THE APPLIED MAGNETIC FIELDS,
NOT BY SUGGESTIBILITY: RE-ANALYSES
OF 19 EXPERIMENTS

L. S. ST.- PIERRE
M. A. PERSINGER
Beh avioral Neu roscience Research Laboratory
Lau rentianUniversity
Su dbu ry, Ontario, Canada

If all experiences are g enerated by brain activ ity, th en experiences of God and
spirits sh ou ld also be produ ced by th e appropriate cerebral stimu lation. Du ring
th e last 1 5 years experiments h av e sh ownth at th e sensed presence of a “Sentient
Being ” can be reliably ev ok ed by v ery specific temporal patterns of weak (<1
microT) transcerebral mag netic fields applied across th e temporoparietal reg ionof
th e twoh emisph eres. Recently Granqv ist et al. (2 0 0 5 ) attribu ted th ese effects to

The God’s Helmet

su g g estibilityand exotic beliefs. Re-analyses with additional data for 4 0 7 su bjects
(1 9 experiments) sh owed th at th e mag netic config u rations, not th e su bjects’ exotic
beliefs or su g g estibility, were responsible for th e experimental facilitationof sensing
a presence. Onth e oth er h and, th e su bjects’ h istories of sensed presences befo re
exposu re toth e experimental setting were moderatelycorrelated with exotic beliefs
and temporal lobe sensitiv ity. Sev eral recent experiments h av e sh ownth at th e side
attribu ted toth e presence at th e time of th e experience is sensitiv e toth e temporal
parameters of th e fields, th e h emisph ere to wh ich th ey are maximized, and th e
person’s a p rio ri beliefs. Th e importance of v erifying th e specific timing and
temporal patternof th e software-g enerated fields and following aneffectiv e protocol
is emph asized.
Pegadas
Leitura da mente
Como ler o Processamento Cerebral?

SINAL
ELÉTRICO

ATIVIDADE RESPOSTA IMAGEM

CEREBRAL METABÓLICA “FUNCIONAL”

RESPOSTA
VASCULAR

Eletro-magneto-fisiológicos (EEG, MEG)

Metabólicos/Vasculares (PET, SPECT, fMRI)

 PET – metabolismo
SPECT – perfusão

Material
radioativo
Entrevista
tendo como
tema a
Cocaina ou
assunto
Neutro
Ressonância Magnética Funcional
 Base Molecular da Imagem
Funcional por RM

Mazzola, A.A – Ressonância magnética: principios de formação da imagem

E aplicações em imagem funcional. Rev Bras. Física Medica, 2009, 3(1): 117-129.
 188 M. Beauregard, V. Paquette / Neuroscience Letters 405 (2006) 186–190

Table 1 Table 2
Mystical condition Control condition
Region Brodmann area Talairach coordinates (mm) Z-statistic Region Brodmann area Talairach coordinates (mm) Z-statistic

Evidências Empíricas: Ativação de áreas cerebrais

x y z x y z

Mystical vs. Baseline Control vs. Baseline

R MOFC 11 2 46 −14 6.60 R SPL 7 12 −64 39 3.93
R MTC 21 49 −12 −14 6.24 L caudate −6 17 6 3.79
L IPL 7 −32 −79 38 6.06 L SPL 7 −22 −64 41 3.75
R IPL 40 36 −76 30 5.46 R IOC 18 28 −96 −3 3.74
R SPL 7 26 −67 46 5.38 L ACC 32 −11 20 40 3.53
L caudate −6 8 3 5.17 L brainstem −3 −32 −42 3.52
R MOC 18 26 −96 0 5.15
Control vs. Mystical
L MOC 19 −35 −91 8 4.67
L putamen −19 8 5 3.61
L MPFC 10 −11 52 13 4.50
R caudate 7 5 8 4.25 IOC: inferior occipital cortex.
R LG 18 2 −88 3 4.17
L brainstem −3 −38 −42 3.90
Neuroscience Letters 405 (2006) 186–190
L insula 13 −35 20 3 3.88
L ACC 32 −1 40 7 3.69
dorsal ACC (BA 32), right MTC (BA 20), left IPL (BA 40), and
left SPL (BA 7) (Table 1).
Mystical vs. Control
Control versus Baseline: Significant loci of activation were
R MOFC 11 4 43 −14 4.91
measured in the right SPL (BA 7), right inferior occipital cortex
Neural correlates of a mystical experience in Carmelite
−51
47 −15nuns
−56 36
−14
L IPL
R MTC
40
21
4.33
3.79 (IOC) (BA 18), left dorsal ACC (BA 32), left SPL (BA 7), left
L SPL 7 −35 −56 55 3.58 caudate, and left brainstem (Table 2).
Mario Beauregard a,b,c,d,e,∗ , Vincent Paquette a,c,e
R MPFC
R ACC
10
32
4
2
46
43
10
5
3.41
3.34
Control versus Mystical: A significant locus of activation was
a
noted in the left putamen (Table 2).
Département de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada The present results suggest that several brain regions and sys-
L: left; R: right.
b Département de Radiologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
c Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition (CERNEC), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
tems mediate the various aspects of mystical experiences. This
duringdeboth
d Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques (CRSN), Université the Mystical
Montréal, Montréal,and
Que.,Control
Canada conditions. In addition, conclusion should not come as a surprise given that these experi-
the subjects
e Centre de Recherche, Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal experienced
(CRIUGM), Montréal,aQue.,
feeling of unconditional love during
Canada ences are complex and multidimensional, that is, they implicate
the Control condition.
Received 23 March 2006; received in revised form 8 June 2006; accepted 26 June 2006
changes in perception (e.g., visual mental imagery), cognition
Mystical versus Baseline: Significant loci of activation were (e.g., representations about the self), and emotion (e.g., peace,

Basal Meditação
noted in the right medial orbitofrontal cortex (MOFC) (Brod- joy, unconditional love) [41]. The results of the Mystical versus
mann area [BA] 11), right middle temporal cortex (MTC) (BA Baseline comparison and the Mystical versus Control compar-
Abstract 21), right IPL (BA 40) and SPL (BA 7), right caudate, left medial ison suggest that there was some specificity in terms of the
The main goal of this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study was prefrontal cortex
to identify (MPFC)
the neural (BA 10),ofleft
correlates dorsal anterior
a mystical cingulate
experience. The brain regions activated in the Mystical condition relative to the
brain activity of Carmelite nuns was measured while they were subjectively in a state cortex (ACC)with
of union (BAGod.
32),This
left IPL
state(BA
was7), left insula
associated (BA
with 13), left
significant Control condition. Interestingly, when the Control and Mysti-
caudate,right
loci of activation in the right medial orbitofrontal cortex, right middle temporal cortex, andinferior
left brainstem. A few
and superior loci oflobules,
parietal activation
rightwere also
caudate, cal conditions were contrasted against Baseline, the recall and
seen inleft
left medial prefrontal cortex, left anterior cingulate cortex, left inferior parietal lobule, the insula,
extra-striate visual cortex
left caudate, and left(Table 1, Fig.Other
brainstem. 1). loci of reexperiencing of two distinct types of socioemotional memo-
Mystical
activation were seen in the extra-striate visual cortex. These results suggest that mystical versus Control:
experiences Significant
are mediated loci of
by several activation
brain regionswere
and ries were associated with relatively different regional patterns of
systems. detected in the right MOFC (BA 11), right MPFC (BA 10), right brain activation. This finding is very intriguing since one could
© 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Carmelite nuns; Mystical state; Functional magnetic resonance imaging; Temporal lobes; Prefrontal cortex; Parietal cortex; Spiritual neuroscience

The turn of the new millennium has seen the emergence of
“Spiritual neuroscience”, a field of scientific investigation at the
crossroads of psychology, religion and spirituality, and neuro-
science. The main objective of this novel domain of research is to
explore the neural underpinnings of religious/spiritual/mystical
experiences (RSMEs). These experiences relate to a fundamen-
tal dimension of human existence and are frequently reported
across all cultures [18,19]. One of the basic assumptions of
spiritual neuroscience is that RSMEs are brain-mediated, as
are all other aspects of human experience. With respect to
this issue, it is of paramount importance to fully appreciate
that elucidating the neural substrates of these experiences does
not diminish or depreciate their meaning and value, and that
the external reality of “God” can neither be confirmed nor
disconfirmed by delineating the neural correlates of RSMEs
[40].
It has been hypothesized that RSMEs are evoked by tran-
sient, electrical microseizures within the temporal lobes [36].
Anecdotal evidence indicates that RSMEs sometimes occur in
conjunction with ictal, peri-ictal, and post-ictal seizure expe-
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +1 514 343 7651; fax: +1 514 340 3548.
E-mail address: mario.beauregard@umontreal.ca (M. Beauregard).
riences linked to temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) [14,30,40]. In
particular, ictal RSMEs have been associated with interictal
intensification of spiritual and mystical feelings [34,43] as well
as religious conversion [15]. Moreover, in a previous study [37],
two patients with TLE along with a group of highly religious vol-
unteers and a non-religious group were shown a list of words,
which included sexual, violent, religious and “neutral” terms.
Galvanic skin response was used to measure the emotional
arousal induced by the various categories of words. The non-
religious group showed galvanic skin responses when presented
with sexual words. The two patients with TLE responded more
strongly to Fig.
the1.religious
Statistical activation
words mapsthanduring
to thethe sexual
Mystical condition.
and violentImages are sagittal sections for the data averaged across subjects. L: left; R: right.
words.
The parietal cortex may also be involved in RSMEs. A recent
single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) study
has measured regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) in Francis-
can nuns at prayer involving the internal repetition of a particular
phrase [33]. Compared to rest, the prayer state showed increased
rCBF in the prefrontal cortex (PFC), the inferior frontal lobes,
and the inferior parietal lobule (IPL). In addition, the rCBF
change in the left PFC showed an inverse correlation with that
in the ipsilateral superior parietal lobule (SPL). Changes in SPL
activity were interpreted as reflecting an altered sense of the
body schema experienced during the prayer state [32,33].

0304-3940/$ – see front matter © 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.
doi:10.1016/j.neulet.2006.06.060
SPECT e
Meditação
SPECT durante a Meditação
Basal Meditação

Lobo Parietal Posterior-superior

 SPECT durante a Oração
Basal Oração

Três freiras
Franciscanas:
oração
“centrada”
para abrirem-se
a presença de
Deus

Lobo Parietal Posterior-superior

Áreas Associativas do Cérebro

Lobo Parietal Póstero-Superior:

Imagem Tridimensional do Corpo permitindo-nos realizar
a distinção entre o nosso próprio “eu” ou “self” e os outros “eus”.
LPPS Direito: Local. Somática em geral e Coord. Espaciais
LPPS Esquerdo: Informação de objetos palpados
Supressão da atividade do LPPS Direito: perda do sentido do “eu”,
Absoluta transcendência
 Consciousness and Cognition xxx (2010) xxx–xxx

Contents lists available at ScienceDirect

Consciousness and Cognition

journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/concog

Cerebral blood flow differences between long-term meditators

and non-meditators
Andrew B. Newberg a,b,*, Nancy Wintering a,b, Mark R. Waldman b, Daniel Amen c,
Dharma S. Khalsa b,d, Abass Alavi a
a
Division of Nuclear Medicine, Department of Radiology, University of Pennsylvania Medical Center, United States
b
Center for Spirituality and the Mind, University of Pennsylvania, United States
c
Amen Clinics Inc., Newport Beach, CA, United States
d
Alzheimer’s Research and Prevention Foundation, Tucson, AZ, United States

a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t
 line compared to non-meditators. Regarding our initial hypotheses, the first was that we expected to observe a higher level
of activity in the frontal cortices in long-term meditators. There have been several studies that have examined the effects of
the complex neurocognitive task of meditation on brain activity. Several brain imaging studies have shown changes in fron-
tal lobe activity during meditation practices (Herzog et al., 1990–1991; Newberg, Pourdehnad, Alavi, & d’Aquili, 2003; New-

Meditação: Frontal e Assimetria Talâmica

berg et al., 2001; Lazar et al., 2001; Lou et al., 1999).
In this SPECT study, the results support the hypothesis that long-term meditation is associated with higher activity in the
frontal areas, particularly in the PFC and middle frontal cortex. Davidson et al. (2003) showed that there were significant
changes over time in the brain’s electroencephalogram. In particular, they observed that an eight week mindfulness based
meditation program resulted in increases in left-hemispheric anterior activation. Our finding of marginally increased left
frontal lobe activity in long-term meditators supports this earlier EEG finding. Lazar et al. (2005) used structural MRI to find
that long-term meditators had thicker cerebral cortexes in the right anterior insula, right middle and superior frontal sulci,
left superior temporal gyrus than in controls. This finding was supported by several other studies that also demonstrated

A - Não meditador

B - Meditador

Fig. 1. This figure shows three transaxial slices of SPECT scans (Z levels 16, 8, and 0 respectively; with CBF represented as red > yellow > green > blue) from a
non-meditator (A) and a long-term meditator (B). These images demonstrate increased CBF in the frontal lobes bilaterally (thin arrows) in the long-term
meditator compared to the non-meditator. Also, there is a marked asymmetry in the thalamic activity (thick arrows) in the long-term meditator rather than
relatively symmetric thalamic activity in the non-meditator. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the
web version of this article.)
Avaliação Funcional
Ressonância Funcional

BOLD
Consumo de oxigênio
 Neuroscience Letters 405 (2006) 186–190

Neural correlates of a mystical experience in Carmelite nuns

Mario Beauregard a,b,c,d,e,∗ , Vincent Paquette a,c,e
aDépartement de Psychologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
bDépartement de Radiologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
c Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition (CERNEC), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
d Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques (CRSN), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
e Centre de Recherche, Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), Montréal, Que., Canada

Received 23 March 2006; received in revised form 8 June 2006; accepted 26 June 2006

Abstract
fMRI: Carmelitas
The main goal of this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study was to identify the neural correlates of a mystical experience. The
brain activity of Carmelite nuns was measured while they were subjectively in a state of union with God. This state was associated with significant
loci of activation in the right medial orbitofrontal cortex, right middle temporal cortex, right inferior and superior parietal lobules, right caudate,
left medial prefrontal cortex, left anterior cingulate cortex, left inferior parietal lobule, left insula, left caudate, and left brainstem. Other loci of
activation were seen in the extra-striate visual cortex. These results suggest that mystical experiences are mediated by several brain regions and Experiência
mística
systems.
© 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Carmelite nuns; Mystical state; Functional magnetic resonance imaging; Temporal lobes; Prefrontal cortex; Parietal cortex; Spiritual neuroscience

The turn of the new millennium has seen the emergence of riences linked to temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) [14,30,40]. In
fMRI – Estudo 1 QEEG – Estudo 2

15 freiras Carmelitas com idade entre 23 e 64 anos

(média de 50 anos) originadas de conventos ao
redor de Quebec e que concordaram em
desenvolver o estudo, utilizando fMRI (estudo 1) e
EEG quantitativo – QEEG (estudo 2). As avaliações
foram feitas durante a “união mística”

Mario Beauregard & Paquette, 2006; M Beauregard & O’Leary, 2007

Escala de Intensidade Subjetiva

0 - Sem experiência de união com Deus

1 - Muito fraca experiência de união com Deus
2 - Fraca experiência de união com Deus
3 - Experiência de união com Deus de intensidade media
4 - Forte experiência de união com Deus
5 - A maior experiência de união com Deus já experenciada.
Condição Mística 188 M. Beauregard, V. Paquette / Neuroscience Letters 405 (200

Table 1 Table 2
Mystical condition Control condition
Region Brodmann area Talairach coordinates (mm) Z-statistic Region Bro

x y z

Mystical vs. Baseline Control vs. Baseline

R MOFC 11 2 46 −14 6.60 R SPL 7
R MTC 21 49 −12 −14 6.24 L caudate
L IPL 7 −32 −79 38 6.06 L SPL 7
R IPL 40 36 −76 30 5.46 R IOC 18
R SPL 7 26 −67 46 5.38 L ACC 32
L caudate −6 8 3 5.17 L brainstem
R MOC 18 26 −96 0 5.15
Control vs. Mystical
L MOC 19 −35 −91 8 4.67
L putamen
L MPFC 10 −11 52 13 4.50
R caudate 7 5 8 4.25 IOC: inferior occipita
R LG 18 2 −88 3 4.17
L brainstem −3 −38 −42 3.90
L insula 13 −35 20 3 3.88
L ACC 32 −1 40 7 3.69
dorsal ACC (BA
left SPL (BA 7) (
Mystical vs. Control
Control versus
R MOFC 11 4 43 −14 4.91
L IPL 40 −51 −56 36 4.33 measured in the r
R MTC 21 47 −15 −14 3.79 (IOC) (BA 18), le
L SPL 7 −35 −56 55 3.58 caudate, and left
R MPFC 10 4 46 10 3.41 Control versus
R ACC 32 2 43 5 3.34
noted in the left p
L: left; R: right. The present re
tems mediate the
 the subjects experienced a feeling of unconditional love during
the Control condition.
Mystical versus Baseline: Significant loci of activation were
noted in the right medial orbitofrontal cortex (MOFC) (Brod-
Mapas estatísticos de Ativação
mann area [BA] 11), right middle temporal cortex (MTC) (BA
21), right IPL (BA 40) and SPL (BA 7), right caudate, left medial
durante experiência mística
prefrontal cortex (MPFC) (BA 10), left dorsal anterior cingulate
cortex (ACC) (BA 32), left IPL (BA 7), left insula (BA 13), left
caudate, and left brainstem. A few loci of activation were also
seen in the extra-striate visual cortex (Table 1, Fig. 1).
Mystical versus Control: Significant loci of activation were
detected in the right MOFC (BA 11), right MPFC (BA 10), right
Fig. 1. Statistical activation maps during the Mystical condition. Images are sagittal sections for the data averaged across subjects. L: left; R: right.
ences are complex and multidimensional, that is, they implicate
changes in perception (e.g., visual mental imagery), cognition
(e.g., representations about the self), and emotion (e.g., peace,
joy, unconditional love) [41]. The results of the Mystical versus
Baseline comparison and the Mystical versus Control compar-
ison suggest that there was some specificity in terms of the
brain regions activated in the Mystical condition relative to the
Control condition. Interestingly, when the Control and Mysti-
cal conditions were contrasted against Baseline, the recall and
reexperiencing of two distinct types of socioemotional memo-
ries were associated with relatively different regional patterns of
brain activation. This finding is very intriguing since one could
Resultado do estudo 1

Lobo Temporal, Córtex orbitofrontal medial direito, no

córtex temporal médio direito, no giro parietal superior e
inferior direitos, no caudato direito, no córtex pré-frontal
medial esquerdo, córtex do giro do cíngulo anterior
esquerdo, no giro giro parietal inferior esquerdo, na
insula esquerda, caudato esquerdo e tronco cerebral
esquerdo e córtex visual extra-estriado.
Resultado do estudo 2

Maior atividade teta (4-7 Hz) durante a experiência

mística quando comparado com a condição basal , na
insula, giro parietal inferior direito e giro parietal
superior direito e giro temporal inferior e médio
direitos; além disso houve significativo aumento na
atividade teta na condição mística quando comparado
com a situação controle, na giro do cíngulo anterior e
córtex pré-frontal medial.
Considerações

Mapas/imagens são formados dentro do cérebro, uma vez que

a anatomia cerebral não foi concebida para os exteriorizar.
António Damásio, O Livro da Consciência, 2010

Os experimentos simplesmente indicam como os seres

humanos percebem este fenômeno? Eugene d’Aquili e Andrew
B. Newberg no livro The Mystical Mind – Probing the Biology of
Religious Experience (D’Aquili & Newberg, 1999)
 L insula 13 −35 20 3 3.88
L ACC 32 −1 40 7 3.69
dorsal ACC (BA 32), right MTC (BA 20), left IPL (BA 40), and
left SPL (BA 7) (Table 1).
Mystical vs. Control
Control versus Baseline: Significant loci of activation were
R MOFC 11 4 43 −14 4.91

Condição Mística
L IPL 40 −51 −56 36 4.33 measured in the right SPL (BA 7), right inferior occipital cortex
R MTC 21 47 −15 −14 3.79 (IOC) (BA 18), left dorsal ACC (BA 32), left SPL (BA 7), left
L SPL 7 −35 −56 55 3.58 caudate, and left brainstem (Table 2).
R MPFC 10 4 46 10 3.41 Control versus Mystical: A significant locus of activation was
R ACC 32 2 43 5 3.34
noted in the left putamen (Table 2).
L: left; R: right. The present results suggest that several brain regions and sys-
tems mediate the various aspects of mystical experiences. This
during both the Mystical and Control conditions. In addition, conclusion should not come as a surprise given that these experi-
the subjects experienced a feeling of unconditional love during ences are complex and multidimensional, that is, they implicate
the Control condition. changes in perception (e.g., visual mental imagery), cognition
Mystical versus Baseline: Significant loci of activation were (e.g., representations about the self), and emotion (e.g., peace,
Neuroscience Letters 405 (2006) 186–190
noted in the right medial orbitofrontal cortex (MOFC) (Brod- joy, unconditional love) [41]. The results of the Mystical versus
mann area [BA] 11), right middle temporal cortex (MTC) (BA Baseline comparison and the Mystical versus Control compar-
21), right IPL (BA 40) and SPL (BA 7), right caudate, left medial ison suggest that there was some specificity in terms of the
Neural correlates of a mystical experience
prefrontal cortex (MPFC) (BA 10), left dorsal anterior cingulate
in Carmelite nuns
brain regions activated in the Mystical condition relative to the
cortex (ACC) (BA 32), left IPL (BA 7), left Mario insula (BA 13),
Beauregard a,b,c,d,e,∗
left , Vincent ControlPaquette
condition. a,c,e Interestingly, when the Control and Mysti-

caudate, and left brainstem. A few loci ofDépartement

a activation were Université
de Psychologie, cal conditions
also de Montréal, Montréal, Que., were
Canada contrasted against Baseline, the recall and
b Département de Radiologie, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
seen in the extra-striate visual ccortex (Table 1, Fig. 1). reexperiencing of two distinct types of socioemotional memo-
Centre de Recherche en Neuropsychologie et Cognition (CERNEC), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
Mystical versus Control: Significant loci of activation were ries were associated with relatively different regional patterns of
d Centre de Recherche en Sciences Neurologiques (CRSN), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Que., Canada
e Centre de Recherche, Institut universitaire de gériatrie de Montréal (CRIUGM), Montréal, Que., Canada
detected in the right MOFC (BA 11), right MPFC (BA 10), right brain activation. This
Received 23 March 2006; received in revised form 8 June 2006; accepted 26 June 2006
finding is very intriguing since one could

Abstract
The main goal of this functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) study was to identify the neural correlates of a mystical experience. The
brain activity of Carmelite nuns was measured while they were subjectively in a state of union with God. This state was associated with significant
loci of activation in the right medial orbitofrontal cortex, right middle temporal cortex, right inferior and superior parietal lobules, right caudate,
left medial prefrontal cortex, left anterior cingulate cortex, left inferior parietal lobule, left insula, left caudate, and left brainstem. Other loci of
activation were seen in the extra-striate visual cortex. These results suggest that mystical experiences are mediated by several brain regions and
systems.
© 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Carmelite nuns; Mystical state; Functional magnetic resonance imaging; Temporal lobes; Prefrontal cortex; Parietal cortex; Spiritual neuroscience

The turn of the new millennium has seen the emergence of
“Spiritual neuroscience”, a field of scientific investigation at the particular, ictal RSMEs have been associated with interictal
crossroads of psychology, religion and spirituality, and neuro-
science. The main objective of this novel domain of research is to
explore the neural underpinnings of religious/spiritual/mystical
experiences (RSMEs). These experiences relate to a fundamen-
tal dimension of human existence and are frequently reported
across all cultures [18,19]. One of the basic assumptions of
spiritual neuroscience is that RSMEs are brain-mediated, as
Fig. 1. Statistical activation
are all maps of
other aspects during
human theexperience.
Mystical condition.
With respectImages
to are sagittal
this issue, it is of paramount importance to fully appreciate
riences linked to temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) [14,30,40]. In
intensification of spiritual and mystical feelings [34,43] as well
as religious conversion [15]. Moreover, in a previous study [37],
two patients with TLE along with a group of highly religious vol-
unteers and a non-religious group were shown a list of words,
which included sexual, violent, religious and “neutral” terms.
Galvanic skin response was used to measure the emotional
arousal induced by the various categories of words. The non-
religious sections
group showed forgalvanic
the data averaged
skin responsesacross subjects. L: left; R: right.
when presented
with sexual words. The two patients with TLE responded more
Desativação Seletiva Connectividade Aumentada
Córtex Pré-Frontal Dorsolateral
C M M>C

Meditação não é um estado de “não pensar

em nada ou de “pensamentos aleatórios”
mas é uma atividade ativa (PFC)
Experiências Místicas

Experiências místicas ou estados alterados da

consciência associados a ingestão de drogas ou
substâncias naturaisque alteram as funções
mentais, treino autogênico, fenômeno xamânico,
meditação, oração,canalização de transe e
experiências de quase-morte
Experiências Místicas

Experiências místicas são aqueles estados

peculiares de consciência em que o indivíduo
descobre-se em processo contínuo com Deus,
com o Universo, com a essência do Ser, ou
qualquer outro nome que ele possa usar por
condicionamento cultural ou por preferência
pessoal para o Ser supremo (Watts 1970)
Desativação similar da DMN medial durante a
meditação e a experiência com Psilocybin I.V.
§ Dean Hamer geneticista que trabalha no
National Cancer Institute (parte do NIH).

§ Ph.D pela Harvard Medical School.

§ Hamer classificou 1000 indivíduos segundo a

característica de auto-transcedência de Cloninger.

§ Obteve amostra de DNA desses individos.

§ Limitou-se ao estudo de 9 genes envolvidos na

produção de neurotransmissores
monoaminérgicos relacionados com o humor e
recompensa (serotonina, dopamina).
We conclude that research on the effects of religion and
spirituality on health should avoid attempting to validate
God through scientific methods. (Experiments on Distant Intercessory
Prayer. Chibnall et al, Arch Intern Medicine, 2001)
§ O Gene para o transportador vesicular
da monoamina 2 (VMAT2= vesicular
monoamine transporter): alta variação
naqueles individos com a característica
de auto-transcedência.

§ O Transportador Vesicular da
Reducionismo
Monoamina 2 ou VMAT2 é uma proteina
da membrana que atua no transporte
de monoamina – particularmente de
Critica:
neurotransmissores tais como a
Francis
dopamina, S. Collins
noradrenalina e serotonina-
do citoplasma para as vesículas
sinápticas.

§ The God Gene: How faith is hardwired

in our genes
Agenda
1. O processo de investigação experimental altera sua verdadeira
natureza espiritual?
D’Aquili & Newberg, The Mystical Mind – Probing the Biology of Religious Experience, 1999.

2. A invest. empirica simplesmente indica como os seres humanos

percebem este fenômeno?

3. A rede neural já existia ou foi criada?

4. Se já existia, foi (hiper)desenvolvida (metaplasticidade)?

5. Deus Criou o Cérebro ou o Cérebro criou Deus?

(Beauregard, M. &O’Leary, D. The Spiritual Brain. A Neuroscientist’s Case for the Existence of the Sou, 2007)