¶ … humans have been experimenting with and fascinated by the various states of consciousness. It is common knowledge that man regularly moves through these different states of being. Equally known is the ability to intentionally change one's experiential level. Such is man's attraction to altered consciousness that some religions, chiefly Eastern ones, have incorporated into their repertoires philosophies of and activities towards attention manipulation. Science, particularly biopsychology, has also recognized the value of managing consciousness. Biofeedback, meditation, and sleep are examples of the relationship between attention and one's state of being.
Biofeedback involves electrically monitoring involuntary responses to stimuli. In other words, one's heartbeat, muscle tension, and brain wave activity are recorded while specific conditions occur. By analyzing and correlating this data to an individual's physiological dysfunctions, professionals are able to prescribe explicit and effective therapies. The belief guiding biofeedback...
Naturally this involves directing one's attention. More precisely, it requires an acute awareness of one's bodily experiences. It is not surprising that treatment revolves around training patients to first focus their attention on physiological responses and then to modify them. The result is considerable control over physical reactions and the skills to eliminate disruptive conditions.
Although attending to distinct phenomena than those found in biofeedback therapy, meditation nevertheless affords another illustration of the bi-directional nature of attention and consciousness. Primarily a spiritual practice, meditation aims to bring an individual into a peaceful state of being by blocking out many, if not all, external stimuli. Said differently, during meditation fixation on one sound, motion, sensation, or idea allows an individual to quiet all other operations, be they physical, emotional, or…
