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Buddhist scholars suggest that the "Self" is an illusion and that awakening to the revelation of "No Self," leads to greater happiness and peace-of-mind. Just what are they talking about? 

The idea of No-Self makes more sense to me if I put the idea in the context of the hemisphere hypothesis, the recognition that the two hemispheres of the human brain provide us with two, radically different ways of relating to life.  The right hemisphere  gives us direct experience in the moment. The left hemisphere creates virtual simulations of life including, importantly, our sense of self,  our "ego." 

I believe our ego - the story we tell about ourself - is the "Self" that Buddhists feel is illusory.  We can be  happier, therefore, if we spend less time caught up in the illusory stories about life and  more time simply experiencing life.  

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I’m interested in mystical and psychedelic experiences because they seem to evoke radically altered states of mind that are akin to spiritual awakening. They enable people to feel more at peace with the flow of existence and are often a portal to feelings of bliss. What's not to like about all that?  So, mysticism and psychedelics could be seen as forms of mental management that can help us to flourish as we age.  

In this episode I summarize previous episodes, discuss a couple of my own experiments with psychedelics and evoke Aldous Huxley’s characterization of psychedelics trips as journey’s to the “antipodes of the mind.”

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Mystical experiences have a core set of characteristics that seem to promote mental wellbeing and flourishing. People who have mystical experiences, including psychedelic trips, report feeling a profound unity with something vast and deeply meaningful. This unity with “the divine,” (or whatever you want to call it) is accompanied by a diminished focus on ego-centric concerns.  

The minds of people who have had a mystical experience seems to be altered for the better. What can mysticism teach us about flourishing and mind management? Can we train our minds to be more open to mystical revelations? 

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A while back I wrote an article for 3rd Act Magazine that explored how equanimity is a key to flourishing as we age.  In this podcast I revisit the article and add some   perspective. 

I suspect that aging will be much easier for me if I adopt an even-minded attitude towards the challenges and opportunities of my aging process.  Even better, I am more likely to flourish if I can cultivate what I call "transcendent equanimity," which is a blissful embrace of the wonders of existence.  

Transcendent equanimity seems to occur during mystical and psychedelic experiences, which evoke a sense of unity with existential forces that diminishes individual self-absorption. I suggest that you pay particular attention conditions associated with transcendent equanimity that also promote flourishing. These include mysticism, letting go, intellectual humility, "presencing," and awe,

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Learn two suggestions for getting into the flow state. 

In the previous episode we suggested that the state of flow could be a good measure of qualty-of-life. The more time we spend in the flow, the greater our quality of life. So, how can we find more flow in our lives? 

Mihalyi Csikszentmihalyi, the father of flow, found that the flow state arises when there is a dynamic interplay between challenge and resources (skill).  We need to challenge ourselves and we need to develop the skills and resources needed to meet those challenges. 

Steven Kotler, who studies peak performance in the flow state, has found that finding flow is a process that has four stages. Two stages, struggle and release, come before the actual flow state. And one stage, the involves recovery and renewal, comes after the flow state. 

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My "Qualongevity" goal is to flourish and enhance my quality of life as I age.  But, what do I mean by quality of life? How will I know when I am flourishing?  How will I measure the quality of my life.?

In this episode, I suggest that the state of flow - that state when we are so absorbed in an activity that time stands still - might be a good measure of quality-of-life. My life will be worth living if I can still engage in activities that activate a flow state. The more time I spend in the flow state, the higher my quality-of-life. 

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Neuroscientist Richie Davidson 's research on well-being indicates that positive plastic changes to our brain occur around four dimensions of experience, each of which contributes to our ability to flourish. 

AWARENESS, CONNECTION, INSIGHT AND PURPOSE

in this episode I review Davidson's definition for each dimension and explore how they can aid us to flourish as we age. 

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Dr. Richie Davidson 's work offers a framework for the cultivation of well-being. 

Davidson's extensive research  suggests there are four key domains that are central to the subjective experience of well-being. Further, and importantly, each area  can be strengthened through training. 

We can learn flourish by learning to enhance our: 

• Awareness
• Connection 
• Insight 
• Purposed 

Dr. Richie Davidson is best known for his groundbreaking work studying emotion and the brain. His research is broadly focused on the neural bases of emotion and emotional style as well as methods to promote human flourishing, including meditation and related contemplative practices. He is a friend and confidante of the Dalai Lama, has studied the brains of highly Buddhist monks, and is the worlds leading expert on how meditation makes both short-term and long-term changes to our brains.  

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In the previous episode I introduced the hemisphere hypothesis put forward by British scholar Iain McGilchrist. The hemisphere hypothesis posits that the two hemisphere of our brains have unique, largely incompatible, ways of relating to the world.

The right hemisphere can be characterized as our sensual mind and the left hemisphere as our conceptual mind.  We get confused, conflicted and alienated when our conceptual mind dominates and makes us lose our connection with our sensory mind.

In this episode I want to share my version of a story that McGilchrist uses to illustrate the relationship between our two hemispheres. It dramatizes his observation that things go wrong when collaboration between the hemispheres breaks down and the conceptual mind (LH) dominates.  McGilchrist's  story is called The Master and His Emissary, which is also the name of his 2009 book that introduces the hemisphere hypothesis.  

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Why do we struggle with life, and with old age in particular?  

I believe that the hemisphere hypothesis, as explained by British scholar Iain McGilchrist, offers a fertile framework for thinking about why we suffer mental conflict and confusion. Just as important, it offers guidelines about what we can do to limit our suffering. 

The basic idea of the hemisphere hypothesis is that the two hemispheres of our brain  provide us with two very different ways of relating to the world. One perspective can be characterized as direct experience (sensory) and the other perspective as conceptual.  One experiences the world as it is, the other creates ideas and concepts about the the reality we experience.

When the two perspectives collaborate with each other, our minds work magnificently.  Too often, however, our conceptual mind dominates and suppresses the perspective of the sensory mind. When this happens we live in a world of concepts and lose direct touch with reality. To flkourish, we need to restore collaborative balance between these two perspectives

Learn more about the hemisphere hypothesis and how it influences our ability to flourish in this episode.  

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