1 00:00:00,366 --> 00:00:02,600 I'd rather be shocked than alone 2 00:00:03,000 --> 00:00:04,433 Brain science tells you why 3 00:00:05,066 --> 00:00:05,866 Here's an experiment. 4 00:00:06,233 --> 00:00:08,133 I think everyone should know 5 00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:11,366 This is Timothy Wilson from the University of Virginia. 6 00:00:11,766 --> 00:00:15,200 Published in Science's top scientific journal in 2014 7 00:00:15,200 --> 00:00:15,700 research 8 00:00:16,500 --> 00:00:20,800 Researchers leave a group of subjects alone in a nearly empty space 9 00:00:20,833 --> 00:00:22,333 In a simple room 10 00:00:22,333 --> 00:00:25,000 Explicitly ask them to be alone and think 11 00:00:25,000 --> 00:00:26,566 The time is 6 to 15 minutes 12 00:00:27,333 --> 00:00:29,000 There was nothing in the room. 13 00:00:29,000 --> 00:00:31,366 No magazines, no books. 14 00:00:31,400 --> 00:00:33,233 And that's really what this is about. 15 00:00:33,733 --> 00:00:34,600 In addition 16 00:00:34,600 --> 00:00:35,800 Later in the experiment 17 00:00:35,833 --> 00:00:38,900 The researchers also designed the electric shock process separately 18 00:00:38,900 --> 00:00:41,066 They had experienced the shock beforehand. 19 00:00:41,100 --> 00:00:43,366 I also confirm that I feel unpleasant 20 00:00:43,366 --> 00:00:46,133 Then he was left alone in the room 21 00:00:46,166 --> 00:00:47,633 Choose whether to self-shock 22 00:00:48,533 --> 00:00:50,333 As a result, 67% 23 00:00:50,333 --> 00:00:52,966 Of men and 25% of women 24 00:00:53,000 --> 00:00:54,333 Rather shock yourself 25 00:00:54,366 --> 00:00:57,933 I don't want to sit there quietly with my brain for a while 26 00:00:58,766 --> 00:01:00,966 It's not that they don't know that electric shocks hurt 27 00:01:00,966 --> 00:01:02,933 They just can't stand doing nothing. 28 00:01:03,700 --> 00:01:05,400 What do you think that means? 29 00:01:05,600 --> 00:01:07,000 Well, most people would say that. 30 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:09,166 This shows that modern people have poor attention 31 00:01:09,433 --> 00:01:09,733 Can't sit still 32 00:01:10,566 --> 00:01:15,100 But Professor Richard Davidson of the University of Wisconsin-Madison 33 00:01:15,100 --> 00:01:19,600 One of the most important researchers in the field of meditation brain science for four decades 34 00:01:19,666 --> 00:01:21,800 Gave a different interpretation 35 00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:25,233 He was quoted in the Huberman Labs podcast 36 00:01:25,266 --> 00:01:26,500 This experiment 37 00:01:26,500 --> 00:01:27,300 So he says. 38 00:01:27,333 --> 00:01:29,000 It's not that these people can't sit still 39 00:01:29,100 --> 00:01:30,866 Once they start looking in 40 00:01:30,866 --> 00:01:32,200 I was scared of myself 41 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:32,733 Hello 42 00:01:32,733 --> 00:01:33,200 Hello. 43 00:01:33,533 --> 00:01:34,100 I am Wang Lijie 44 00:01:34,933 --> 00:01:36,233 Who is Davidson? 45 00:01:36,366 --> 00:01:40,200 He's taken meditation from the realm of mysticism into the modern age. 46 00:01:40,233 --> 00:01:42,500 The first person in the neuroscience laboratory 47 00:01:42,500 --> 00:01:44,066 More than forty years ago 48 00:01:44,066 --> 00:01:48,000 The entire academic community still thinks that studying meditation is pseudoscience 49 00:01:48,000 --> 00:01:52,633 He's already scanning meditators' brains with EEGs and MRIs. 50 00:01:52,633 --> 00:01:55,833 Double professor of psychology and psychiatry 51 00:01:55,833 --> 00:01:57,833 Founder of Healthy Mind Center 52 00:01:58,300 --> 00:02:00,000 Worked with the Dalai Lama for decades 53 00:02:00,733 --> 00:02:02,433 But it wasn't a religion. 54 00:02:02,433 --> 00:02:04,633 It was a randomized controlled trial. 55 00:02:05,366 --> 00:02:06,633 Davidson has a saying 56 00:02:06,633 --> 00:02:09,000 And I think this is the key to understanding the whole science of meditation. 57 00:02:09,033 --> 00:02:11,800 And then it's before the next one. 58 00:02:12,633 --> 00:02:14,133 Sounds a bit convoluted 59 00:02:14,166 --> 00:02:14,833 Let me translate it. 60 00:02:15,766 --> 00:02:17,766 You do a five-minute meditation. 61 00:02:17,766 --> 00:02:18,833 It changes your state 62 00:02:19,666 --> 00:02:22,866 This altered state doesn't completely disappear. 63 00:02:22,900 --> 00:02:26,100 It becomes the starting point for the next time you experience anything 64 00:02:27,200 --> 00:02:29,000 Every brief state change 65 00:02:29,033 --> 00:02:30,333 Are fine-tuning your baseline 66 00:02:31,200 --> 00:02:32,500 Baseline fine-tuned 67 00:02:32,533 --> 00:02:34,666 The next time the same stimulus comes 68 00:02:34,666 --> 00:02:36,566 Your threshold is different. 69 00:02:37,566 --> 00:02:40,233 That's how states become traits. 70 00:02:40,833 --> 00:02:42,666 Anger is a state of being 71 00:02:42,666 --> 00:02:44,500 But if you are angry frequently 72 00:02:44,533 --> 00:02:46,666 The threshold of anger is getting lower and lower 73 00:02:46,700 --> 00:02:49,066 And you end up being an irritable person. 74 00:02:49,100 --> 00:02:49,833 That's the trait. 75 00:02:50,566 --> 00:02:51,366 reverse 76 00:02:51,366 --> 00:02:53,600 If you frequently enter into a state of awareness 77 00:02:53,666 --> 00:02:56,200 An unresponsive, observational state 78 00:02:56,200 --> 00:02:58,533 This state will gradually precipitate into characteristics 79 00:02:58,833 --> 00:03:01,433 You don't spend five minutes a day being calm. 80 00:03:01,466 --> 00:03:04,066 So you're doing five minutes of conditioning every day. 81 00:03:04,066 --> 00:03:05,766 Rewrite your entire emotional baseline 82 00:03:06,400 --> 00:03:08,866 But there's a huge cognitive barrier here. 83 00:03:08,866 --> 00:03:13,133 Most people think that the goal of meditation is to feel calm while meditating 84 00:03:13,800 --> 00:03:15,133 This is a catastrophic misunderstanding 85 00:03:15,933 --> 00:03:18,966 And Davidson's team did a very fine-grained trace. 86 00:03:19,733 --> 00:03:23,766 They got people who had never meditated to start practicing for five minutes a day. 87 00:03:23,766 --> 00:03:26,133 And record their psychological indicators every day 88 00:03:27,000 --> 00:03:28,533 The first week's data comes out 89 00:03:28,533 --> 00:03:30,733 And everybody was shocked. 90 00:03:30,733 --> 00:03:32,833 Anxiety levels have dropped 91 00:03:32,866 --> 00:03:35,333 It's a statistically significant increase. 92 00:03:36,100 --> 00:03:39,133 This is precisely the moment when most people give up meditation 93 00:03:40,133 --> 00:03:41,433 I tried a few times in the first week 94 00:03:41,433 --> 00:03:42,966 I feel more anxious the more I sit 95 00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:44,566 The more you sit, the more irritable you become. 96 00:03:44,566 --> 00:03:46,300 The noise in my head is louder than usual 97 00:03:47,133 --> 00:03:48,833 So the conclusion 98 00:03:48,866 --> 00:03:50,233 I'm not cut out for meditation. 99 00:03:50,233 --> 00:03:51,733 This is making me more anxious. 100 00:03:52,433 --> 00:03:53,566 But Davidson said 101 00:03:53,600 --> 00:03:54,900 This just proves you're right. 102 00:03:55,566 --> 00:03:58,366 You have this chaos in your brain all the time. 103 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:02,433 Fear, anxiety, rumination, self-doubt 104 00:04:02,433 --> 00:04:04,466 It's just that you're too busy to see them 105 00:04:05,166 --> 00:04:09,466 You are swiping your phone, replying to messages, catching up on projects, and watching short videos. 106 00:04:10,833 --> 00:04:14,000 These external stimuli are not helping you relieve anxiety 107 00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:15,733 They're just helping you not see anxiety 108 00:04:16,433 --> 00:04:18,066 Meditation removes all these barriers 109 00:04:18,833 --> 00:04:21,533 You're facing the reality of your own brain for the first time. 110 00:04:21,533 --> 00:04:22,366 Of course you will be scared 111 00:04:23,033 --> 00:04:25,066 And Davidson said something. 112 00:04:25,100 --> 00:04:29,833 What I think is probably the most useful analogy in the field of meditation of the last decade. 113 00:04:30,700 --> 00:04:31,466 So he says. 114 00:04:31,466 --> 00:04:33,433 The anxiety of the first week of meditation 115 00:04:33,433 --> 00:04:34,533 It's lactic acid for the brain. 116 00:04:35,433 --> 00:04:37,233 You go to the gym and do squats 117 00:04:37,266 --> 00:04:40,966 By the time I did the last few, my thighs were burning like hell 118 00:04:40,966 --> 00:04:43,200 That burning sensation comes from lactic acid buildup 119 00:04:44,133 --> 00:04:45,666 Does lactic acid make you miserable? 120 00:04:45,766 --> 00:04:46,000 Certainly. 121 00:04:46,300 --> 00:04:48,266 But everyone who has practiced for a few years knows that 122 00:04:48,266 --> 00:04:51,966 That burning sensation is a signal that muscle is growing. 123 00:04:52,766 --> 00:04:56,000 If you do a set of squats, you feel nothing. 124 00:04:56,033 --> 00:04:57,933 It means the weight is too light. 125 00:04:57,933 --> 00:05:00,533 Your muscles are simply not stimulated enough. 126 00:05:01,533 --> 00:05:02,866 Anxiety in meditation 127 00:05:02,866 --> 00:05:05,166 It's the exact same thing as lactic acid. 128 00:05:05,966 --> 00:05:07,100 It's not a side effect. 129 00:05:07,300 --> 00:05:08,200 It's the drug itself. 130 00:05:08,933 --> 00:05:13,300 The discomfort your brain experiences in the face of internal chaos 131 00:05:13,300 --> 00:05:15,666 It's a stimulus signal that triggers neural plasticity 132 00:05:16,600 --> 00:05:20,666 If you sit down and feel calm and tranquil and fluttering 133 00:05:20,700 --> 00:05:23,000 Then nothing is happening in your brain 134 00:05:23,000 --> 00:05:24,500 Like lifting a dumbbell that's too light 135 00:05:25,033 --> 00:05:26,866 What's really changing your brain? 136 00:05:26,933 --> 00:05:29,133 It's those moments when you want to stand up and quit 137 00:05:29,766 --> 00:05:30,600 Think about it. 138 00:05:30,633 --> 00:05:35,033 This is exactly the same concept we talked about in the previous session on meditation 139 00:05:35,200 --> 00:05:35,833 Right 140 00:05:35,866 --> 00:05:36,766 That's the prediction error. 141 00:05:37,533 --> 00:05:40,633 Anxiety is a huge signal of prediction error. 142 00:05:40,633 --> 00:05:44,400 Your brain predicts that meditation should calm me down 143 00:05:44,433 --> 00:05:47,933 The actual experience is that I'm more annoyed than usual 144 00:05:47,933 --> 00:05:50,133 That gap creates an error signal. 145 00:05:51,066 --> 00:05:52,300 And we talked about 146 00:05:52,333 --> 00:05:56,333 Prediction errors are the only force driving the brain to update its internal models 147 00:05:57,133 --> 00:05:58,233 No errors. 148 00:05:58,266 --> 00:05:59,066 No update 149 00:05:59,800 --> 00:06:00,900 No discomfort. 150 00:06:00,933 --> 00:06:01,666 No growth 151 00:06:02,133 --> 00:06:03,200 No pain. 152 00:06:03,233 --> 00:06:03,966 There is no evolution. 153 00:06:04,533 --> 00:06:05,600 But here's the thing. 154 00:06:05,633 --> 00:06:07,766 Davidson emphasizes an extremely important distinction 155 00:06:08,633 --> 00:06:10,966 Facing anxiety and being hijacked by anxiety 156 00:06:10,966 --> 00:06:11,566 It's two different things. 157 00:06:12,533 --> 00:06:16,633 The point of meditation training is not to sit there and suffer from anxiety. 158 00:06:16,933 --> 00:06:18,300 It is to train a 159 00:06:18,333 --> 00:06:21,866 The ability of meta-awareness 160 00:06:21,900 --> 00:06:24,400 Know what your brain is doing 161 00:06:25,266 --> 00:06:27,100 What is meta-awareness? 162 00:06:27,333 --> 00:06:29,466 Davidson's definition is extremely precise 163 00:06:29,466 --> 00:06:32,300 It's the ability to know what your mind is doing. 164 00:06:33,166 --> 00:06:36,400 How many times have you read a book, several pages? 165 00:06:36,400 --> 00:06:40,400 I suddenly find myself having absolutely no idea what I just read 166 00:06:40,466 --> 00:06:43,266 Your eyes are scanning word by word 167 00:06:43,266 --> 00:06:45,700 But your brain has already gone somewhere else 168 00:06:46,533 --> 00:06:49,533 And at some point you wake up. 169 00:06:49,533 --> 00:06:50,266 And so forth. 170 00:06:50,266 --> 00:06:51,166 I was distracted. 171 00:06:51,933 --> 00:06:53,300 The moment I woke up 172 00:06:53,333 --> 00:06:54,200 Meta-awareness 173 00:06:55,166 --> 00:06:57,300 It involves the prefrontal cortex. 174 00:06:57,900 --> 00:07:01,000 Synergistic Network of Anterior Cingulate Cortex and Insulus 175 00:07:01,000 --> 00:07:01,666 and 176 00:07:01,700 --> 00:07:02,833 That's the key. 177 00:07:02,833 --> 00:07:04,133 It can be trained. 178 00:07:04,233 --> 00:07:05,466 Davidson says 179 00:07:05,466 --> 00:07:08,633 Meta-awareness is a necessary prerequisite for all mental transformation 180 00:07:09,400 --> 00:07:11,033 You have to change a habit 181 00:07:11,033 --> 00:07:13,566 You've got to see it in action. 182 00:07:14,500 --> 00:07:16,233 You have to regulate an emotion 183 00:07:16,233 --> 00:07:18,966 You have to realize that this emotion is happening. 184 00:07:20,066 --> 00:07:24,900 You mind-wander, and then you mind-wander into this cycle. 185 00:07:24,900 --> 00:07:27,466 It's training this meta-awareness muscle over and over again 186 00:07:27,966 --> 00:07:29,866 Every time my mind wandered and came back 187 00:07:29,900 --> 00:07:31,433 It's like doing a dumbbell curl. 188 00:07:32,266 --> 00:07:35,400 It's not that you succeed in staying focused 189 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:39,300 It's when your mind wandered and you came back that it's a training 190 00:07:39,700 --> 00:07:40,133 OK 191 00:07:40,133 --> 00:07:41,166 So that's the mechanics. 192 00:07:41,200 --> 00:07:41,700 Look at the data 193 00:07:42,633 --> 00:07:47,166 The Davidson team uses their developed Healthy Mind digital training tool 194 00:07:47,166 --> 00:07:48,700 Focused on four core pillars 195 00:07:48,700 --> 00:07:55,500 Awareness, connection, insight, purpose 196 00:07:55,533 --> 00:07:58,433 Let the subjects practice for less than five minutes a day 197 00:07:58,433 --> 00:07:59,600 Practice for 28 days 198 00:08:00,533 --> 00:08:02,300 What do these four pillars mean? 199 00:08:02,466 --> 00:08:05,200 Awareness is what we just called meta-awareness 200 00:08:06,166 --> 00:08:09,700 Connectivity is about developing emotional bonds with others. 201 00:08:09,700 --> 00:08:13,200 It involves a practice called compassion meditation. 202 00:08:13,200 --> 00:08:15,266 You bless someone in your heart 203 00:08:15,300 --> 00:08:16,500 Start with the person you love 204 00:08:16,766 --> 00:08:20,166 Gradually expand to strangers or even people you don't like 205 00:08:21,033 --> 00:08:25,733 Insight is the distance between you and your own inner script 206 00:08:25,766 --> 00:08:27,766 Not kill that script 207 00:08:27,766 --> 00:08:31,800 But to see that it's just a set of beliefs and expectations you made up 208 00:08:31,833 --> 00:08:33,133 Not reality itself 209 00:08:34,733 --> 00:08:39,766 The goal is to rediscover meaning in what you're already doing. 210 00:08:39,800 --> 00:08:42,333 Not to find a grand mission 211 00:08:42,366 --> 00:08:44,533 But in the most ordinary daily life 212 00:08:44,566 --> 00:08:47,233 See why you are doing this 213 00:08:47,766 --> 00:08:49,000 Four weeks later 214 00:08:49,033 --> 00:08:52,866 Validated in multiple randomized controlled trials 215 00:08:52,900 --> 00:08:56,733 Significant decreases in depression, anxiety, and stress indicators 216 00:08:56,900 --> 00:09:01,400 Well-being and positive psychology measures of flourishing have risen significantly 217 00:09:02,400 --> 00:09:04,366 But what really made me sit up straight was 218 00:09:04,366 --> 00:09:06,100 Just this dose of practice 219 00:09:06,133 --> 00:09:10,800 This led to a significant decrease in interleukin six (IL-6) levels 220 00:09:11,333 --> 00:09:14,833 Interleukin 6 is a pro-inflammatory cytokine 221 00:09:14,866 --> 00:09:16,800 Is a core marker of chronic inflammation 222 00:09:17,633 --> 00:09:19,733 What is chronic inflammation related to? 223 00:09:19,866 --> 00:09:25,200 Depression, cardiovascular disease, weakened immune function, accelerated aging 224 00:09:25,200 --> 00:09:27,333 Almost everything you don't want 225 00:09:27,366 --> 00:09:31,100 Five minutes of meditation every day 226 00:09:31,133 --> 00:09:32,300 In four weeks 227 00:09:32,300 --> 00:09:35,400 Alters your body's inflammatory state at the molecular level 228 00:09:36,100 --> 00:09:37,700 This is not a subjective questionnaire 229 00:09:37,733 --> 00:09:38,966 This is from a blood test 230 00:09:39,400 --> 00:09:40,866 And then the gamma wave story. 231 00:09:41,733 --> 00:09:47,133 Davidson's team studied a group of people who meditated for an average of 34,000 hours over their lifetime. 232 00:09:47,133 --> 00:09:48,666 Hour veteran practitioner 233 00:09:49,533 --> 00:09:54,133 An extremely rare phenomenon appeared on the EEG of these people 234 00:09:54,133 --> 00:09:56,966 High-amplitude, persistent gamma wave oscillations 235 00:09:57,833 --> 00:10:02,066 Normal people also have gamma waves in the moment of a flash of inspiration 236 00:10:02,100 --> 00:10:04,366 But it only lasts about 250 milliseconds. 237 00:10:05,200 --> 00:10:08,233 The gamma waves of these practitioners lasted for several seconds 238 00:10:08,266 --> 00:10:10,000 Even for several minutes 239 00:10:10,000 --> 00:10:11,233 high amplitude 240 00:10:11,233 --> 00:10:13,766 You can see it directly with the naked eye by looking at the original EEG 241 00:10:14,833 --> 00:10:20,200 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2004. 242 00:10:20,233 --> 00:10:22,766 Later, it was repeatedly verified by multiple independent teams 243 00:10:23,800 --> 00:10:25,000 And here's what's really amazing. 244 00:10:25,000 --> 00:10:30,000 Gamma waves persist in deep sleep, these practitioners. 245 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:33,800 Superimposed on delta waves of slow-wave sleep 246 00:10:34,633 --> 00:10:38,533 Their brains seem to enter a state of uninterrupted hyper-integration 247 00:10:39,400 --> 00:10:42,000 Thirty-four thousand hours sounds out of reach. 248 00:10:42,866 --> 00:10:44,533 But Davidson's attitude was 249 00:10:44,566 --> 00:10:47,866 The value of these extreme cases lies in proving the upper limit 250 00:10:47,866 --> 00:10:51,766 They tell you what the human brain can be trained to do. 251 00:10:52,566 --> 00:10:55,666 And you don't have to be there to make a difference. 252 00:10:56,466 --> 00:10:58,266 Five minutes, thirty days 253 00:10:58,300 --> 00:11:00,333 It's already rewriting your inflammation levels 254 00:11:01,133 --> 00:11:04,666 And here's the data that really blew my mind about the whole issue. 255 00:11:05,566 --> 00:11:09,333 Davidson's team at public schools in Louisville, Kentucky 256 00:11:09,366 --> 00:11:11,500 The system did a randomized controlled trial 257 00:11:12,400 --> 00:11:16,466 832 middle school teachers were randomly divided into two groups 258 00:11:16,466 --> 00:11:19,133 The experimental group practiced meditation for less than five minutes a day 259 00:11:19,166 --> 00:11:19,900 Practiced for four weeks 260 00:11:20,666 --> 00:11:22,700 Then they looked at the students' data. 261 00:11:23,966 --> 00:11:25,400 13,000 middle school students 262 00:11:26,266 --> 00:11:28,966 Students are completely unaware of any research going on. 263 00:11:29,866 --> 00:11:30,866 The result is 264 00:11:30,866 --> 00:11:33,633 Students assigned to the experimental group teacher's class 265 00:11:33,633 --> 00:11:36,966 Standardized math test scores significantly higher than the control group 266 00:11:38,266 --> 00:11:42,533 The same curriculum, the same textbooks, the same schools 267 00:11:42,566 --> 00:11:45,866 The only variable is that the teacher practiced an extra five minutes every day 268 00:11:46,900 --> 00:11:48,300 And let me explain. 269 00:11:48,300 --> 00:11:52,700 This is the latest unpublished data from Davidson's team 270 00:11:53,766 --> 00:11:56,433 Why math and not reading? 271 00:11:56,566 --> 00:11:58,533 Because studies have shown that 272 00:11:58,566 --> 00:11:59,766 In this age group 273 00:11:59,766 --> 00:12:03,600 Math scores are more susceptible to stress than reading scores 274 00:12:04,400 --> 00:12:09,866 Meditation-trained teachers may have created a calmer classroom atmosphere 275 00:12:09,900 --> 00:12:12,700 Students are less nervous during exams 276 00:12:12,733 --> 00:12:15,700 Their true abilities are brought into play 277 00:12:15,733 --> 00:12:17,133 Rather than being suppressed by anxiety 278 00:12:18,166 --> 00:12:21,833 Davidson summed it up in one sentence. 279 00:12:21,833 --> 00:12:23,533 Flourishing is contagious. 280 00:12:24,633 --> 00:12:26,266 You're in better shape. 281 00:12:26,266 --> 00:12:29,100 And the people around you are better off. 282 00:12:29,133 --> 00:12:31,133 Even if they have no idea what you've done 283 00:12:32,100 --> 00:12:36,200 A calmer teacher doesn't have to teach meditation. 284 00:12:36,233 --> 00:12:39,766 His very existence is changing the neurochemical environment of the classroom. 285 00:12:40,733 --> 00:12:42,600 Speaking of connecting this pillar 286 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:45,666 And the Davidson team found something else that really impressed me. 287 00:12:46,566 --> 00:12:49,966 They did a randomized controlled trial of compassion meditation. 288 00:12:50,000 --> 00:12:52,900 It's the blessing exercise I was talking about. 289 00:12:52,900 --> 00:12:54,700 Start with the person you love 290 00:12:54,733 --> 00:12:57,000 I wish you happiness in my heart 291 00:12:57,033 --> 00:12:58,666 May you be free from pain 292 00:12:58,666 --> 00:13:00,700 Then gradually expand to strangers 293 00:13:00,733 --> 00:13:01,833 Even people you don't like 294 00:13:02,633 --> 00:13:04,366 Just two weeks of practice 295 00:13:04,400 --> 00:13:06,000 A few hours in total 296 00:13:06,000 --> 00:13:10,666 Generates a measurable pattern of activation of brain function on brain imaging 297 00:13:10,700 --> 00:13:11,333 significant change 298 00:13:12,466 --> 00:13:13,266 Two weeks. 299 00:13:13,266 --> 00:13:14,733 This is fast 300 00:13:14,733 --> 00:13:17,700 Very rare in neuroplasticity research 301 00:13:18,800 --> 00:13:23,100 It means that the brain is very good at making emotional connections with other people 302 00:13:23,133 --> 00:13:24,233 response speed 303 00:13:24,266 --> 00:13:26,000 Faster than we thought 304 00:13:26,800 --> 00:13:31,100 There was an old Jungian analyst named James Hollis. 305 00:13:31,133 --> 00:13:35,200 And he said something that perfectly echoes what Davidson found. 306 00:13:36,033 --> 00:13:40,400 He said that a good life has two equally important parts 307 00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:42,566 Half of you are thrown into the world 308 00:13:42,600 --> 00:13:45,333 Doing things, working, building relationships 309 00:13:45,333 --> 00:13:48,633 The other half is that you set aside a small amount of time each day 310 00:13:48,666 --> 00:13:50,833 Get out of the stimulus-response loop 311 00:13:51,666 --> 00:13:54,666 Because it's only when you quit the stimulus-response 312 00:13:54,666 --> 00:13:57,266 You get a chance to see yourself in action. 313 00:13:58,066 --> 00:14:00,033 And only see the mode of operation 314 00:14:00,066 --> 00:14:01,266 You can change it. 315 00:14:01,900 --> 00:14:04,266 That's exactly what meditation does. 316 00:14:04,300 --> 00:14:08,533 It's that little time each day that you give yourself to quit your stimulus-response. 317 00:14:09,666 --> 00:14:13,800 It takes you out of being an automated reaction machine for those five minutes. 318 00:14:13,800 --> 00:14:17,000 It's an observer who sees patterns in his own responses. 319 00:14:17,800 --> 00:14:19,733 That's a small change. 320 00:14:19,766 --> 00:14:23,400 But it's probably the most leveraged thing you can do for yourself 321 00:14:24,400 --> 00:14:27,000 And it also leads me to the bigger picture. 322 00:14:27,900 --> 00:14:31,433 There's a birth cohort study in New Zealand called Dunedin. 323 00:14:31,433 --> 00:14:34,733 Two psychologists, Moffitt and Casby 324 00:14:34,766 --> 00:14:38,633 Self-control was tracked from the age of three. 325 00:14:38,666 --> 00:14:40,966 Followed until the age of thirty-two 326 00:14:40,966 --> 00:14:43,200 Follow-up research has been going on for decades 327 00:14:43,766 --> 00:14:44,966 They found that 3 328 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:49,633 Children with self-control in the top quintile by age 11 329 00:14:49,633 --> 00:14:51,233 By the age of thirty-two 330 00:14:51,266 --> 00:14:53,566 Substance abuse rates are significantly lower 331 00:14:53,566 --> 00:14:56,866 The probability of legal action is significantly lower 332 00:14:56,866 --> 00:14:59,200 Income is also significantly higher 333 00:14:59,866 --> 00:15:04,433 And these differences after controlling for family socioeconomic status 334 00:15:04,466 --> 00:15:05,000 It still stands. 335 00:15:06,066 --> 00:15:07,166 Davidson says 336 00:15:07,200 --> 00:15:09,666 Self-regulation is a trainable skill 337 00:15:09,666 --> 00:15:12,433 And meta-awareness is the central engine of self-regulation. 338 00:15:13,366 --> 00:15:16,566 The essence of meditation training is not to make you more zen 339 00:15:16,566 --> 00:15:19,400 It's about developing your underlying ability to make better choices. 340 00:15:20,200 --> 00:15:21,766 And I'll leave you with one final thought. 341 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:24,033 Davidson mentioned 342 00:15:24,066 --> 00:15:26,400 In some Tibetan Buddhist traditions 343 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:30,000 There is a saying called undistracted non-meditation 344 00:15:30,033 --> 00:15:32,700 It is regarded as the highest state of spiritual practice 345 00:15:33,500 --> 00:15:38,133 You lose all skill, all control, all purpose 346 00:15:38,966 --> 00:15:41,666 You are fully awake, fully aware. 347 00:15:41,666 --> 00:15:44,133 But without any pretense, without any tension 348 00:15:45,133 --> 00:15:47,066 That you are completely yourself 349 00:15:48,033 --> 00:15:51,933 Davidson said he has seen this state in some people 350 00:15:51,933 --> 00:15:53,000 Existence in the form of traits 351 00:15:53,766 --> 00:15:57,866 He used a word to describe something that most people lack 352 00:15:57,900 --> 00:15:59,233 sticky 353 00:16:00,233 --> 00:16:01,000 emotional stickiness 354 00:16:01,833 --> 00:16:05,466 The emotions you've accumulated from your last experience cling to you 355 00:16:05,466 --> 00:16:07,000 Brought on to the next experience 356 00:16:08,333 --> 00:16:09,700 I was scolded by the boss in the morning. 357 00:16:09,700 --> 00:16:11,900 Talking to children in the afternoon with that anger 358 00:16:12,833 --> 00:16:15,200 Last week's anxiety has infiltrated this week's decision-making 359 00:16:16,066 --> 00:16:19,333 Your emotions don't just pop up and go away. 360 00:16:19,333 --> 00:16:20,900 It sticks to you. 361 00:16:20,933 --> 00:16:22,000 Contaminated everything behind 362 00:16:22,833 --> 00:16:25,566 And those who are truly free don't have that stickiness 363 00:16:26,266 --> 00:16:27,900 Every experience comes 364 00:16:27,933 --> 00:16:29,233 Fully interact 365 00:16:29,266 --> 00:16:31,500 And walked away clean. 366 00:16:31,533 --> 00:16:32,166 Leave No Trace 367 00:16:32,966 --> 00:16:35,366 Translate with our predictive coding framework 368 00:16:35,366 --> 00:16:39,500 The accuracy of those highest-level prior beliefs is weighted down to a reasonable level 369 00:16:40,366 --> 00:16:42,566 It's called non-attachment in Buddhism. 370 00:16:42,566 --> 00:16:46,633 It's something called the default mode in Davidson's lab, deactivation of the Internet. 371 00:16:47,700 --> 00:16:48,933 Different languages 372 00:16:48,933 --> 00:16:49,633 The same phenomenon 373 00:16:50,033 --> 00:16:53,233 Davison's 40 years of research condensed into three sentences 374 00:16:54,266 --> 00:16:54,933 first 375 00:16:54,933 --> 00:16:56,566 Flourishing is a skill 376 00:16:56,600 --> 00:16:58,200 It's not about character. 377 00:16:58,200 --> 00:17:00,000 It's not a genetic lottery. 378 00:17:00,000 --> 00:17:01,633 You can get it through practice. 379 00:17:02,366 --> 00:17:03,200 second 380 00:17:03,200 --> 00:17:05,233 It's easier than you think. 381 00:17:05,266 --> 00:17:07,966 Five minutes, thirty days 382 00:17:07,966 --> 00:17:09,400 The threshold is so low that there is no excuse 383 00:17:09,666 --> 00:17:10,433 third 384 00:17:10,433 --> 00:17:11,800 It's contagious. 385 00:17:11,833 --> 00:17:13,033 Your own change 386 00:17:13,033 --> 00:17:15,566 In ways you can't even tell 387 00:17:15,566 --> 00:17:16,933 It affects everyone around you 388 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:20,133 There is a paradox in our time 389 00:17:20,900 --> 00:17:23,600 The average person opens their phone hundreds of times a day 390 00:17:23,600 --> 00:17:25,633 Attention is fragmented 391 00:17:26,666 --> 00:17:29,766 Davidson said something that made me stop for a long time 392 00:17:29,800 --> 00:17:32,566 We are all participants in a huge experiment 393 00:17:32,600 --> 00:17:35,433 But no one has ever signed the informed consent form 394 00:17:36,300 --> 00:17:39,800 We don't know this level of attention fragmentation. 395 00:17:39,800 --> 00:17:42,566 What are the long-term consequences for the human brain? 396 00:17:43,266 --> 00:17:45,966 But we do know that meditation is reverse training. 397 00:17:46,600 --> 00:17:48,666 It's not about escaping the world. 398 00:17:48,666 --> 00:17:51,966 Instead, let you practice one piece of modern almost every day for five minutes 399 00:17:52,000 --> 00:17:53,800 Incapacity that has been lost 400 00:17:53,833 --> 00:17:55,366 Stay with yourself for a while 401 00:17:55,366 --> 00:17:57,033 See the chaos inside 402 00:17:57,066 --> 00:17:57,933 Don't run away 403 00:17:57,933 --> 00:17:59,366 Don't shock yourself 404 00:17:59,366 --> 00:18:00,066 Just watching 405 00:18:00,833 --> 00:18:02,033 Then you will find 406 00:18:02,033 --> 00:18:04,500 The chaos is not as scary as you think 407 00:18:05,266 --> 00:18:07,533 When you are no longer afraid of your heart 408 00:18:07,533 --> 00:18:09,466 Your world outside will be different 409 00:18:10,233 --> 00:18:11,866 Not because the world has changed 410 00:18:11,866 --> 00:18:14,333 It's because in that machine that makes up the world 411 00:18:14,366 --> 00:18:15,966 Some gears are loose 412 00:18:15,966 --> 00:18:17,800 Some parameters have been updated 413 00:18:17,833 --> 00:18:20,133 Some of the old labels glued to them fell off. 414 00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:23,400 But there was one question that stuck with me. 415 00:18:24,266 --> 00:18:28,066 Davidson proves that change can be initiated in five minutes 416 00:18:28,066 --> 00:18:32,900 Thirty-four thousand hours of meditation produce gamma waves that are visible to the naked eye. 417 00:18:33,666 --> 00:18:34,400 So... 418 00:18:34,400 --> 00:18:38,066 The curve from five minutes to 34,000 hours 419 00:18:38,100 --> 00:18:39,800 What shape is it? 420 00:18:39,900 --> 00:18:41,400 It's a linear gentle slope. 421 00:18:41,400 --> 00:18:42,233 Or as we are 422 00:18:42,266 --> 00:18:46,566 423 00:18:47,133 --> 00:18:49,400 It's the same emergent phenomenon. 424 00:18:49,400 --> 00:18:50,900 There's a tipping point. 425 00:18:50,933 --> 00:18:53,100 After that, there will be qualitative change 426 00:18:53,200 --> 00:18:55,300 If there is such a phase transition point 427 00:18:55,366 --> 00:18:57,566 How many hours is it around? 428 00:18:57,733 --> 00:18:58,566 This question 429 00:18:58,566 --> 00:18:59,966 Davidson hasn't given an answer yet 430 00:19:00,966 --> 00:19:03,300 But I think it's worth hanging here 431 00:19:03,333 --> 00:19:06,100 Because it points to a deeper puzzle 432 00:19:06,100 --> 00:19:07,666 plasticity of consciousness 433 00:19:07,666 --> 00:19:09,666 Is there a ceiling? 434 00:19:09,766 --> 00:19:11,966 If the content of this issue has touched you 435 00:19:12,000 --> 00:19:13,966 Or do you have your own experience of insisting on meditation? 436 00:19:14,566 --> 00:19:17,066 I want to share the story of giving up meditation 437 00:19:17,066 --> 00:19:18,300 Welcome to leave a message in the comment area. 438 00:19:18,866 --> 00:19:22,100 You are also welcome to tell me the direction you are most looking forward to in the next issue. 439 00:19:22,833 --> 00:19:23,533 I am Wang Lijie 440 00:19:23,966 --> 00:19:24,766 See you next time.