A critique of “Neurotheology” and an examination of spatial perception in mystical experience
Journal Title: Acta Neuropsychologica - Year 2012, Vol 10, Issue 1
Abstract
The “neurotheology” developed by d’Aquili and Newberg is critiqued, beginning with its modular conception of mental process and its understanding of the contribution of language, deafferentation, and autonomic and limbic arousal in mystical experience. Neurotheology makes claims about ultimate reality and the neuropsychological means of its realization. A spatial perception that conveys the sense of “unified undifferentiated oneness” reveals Absolute Unitary Being (AUB). The neurotheology of AUB is analyzed and compared with texts from the Buddhist and Vedantic traditions, leading to the phenomenological description and neuropsychological interpretation of a distinctly mystical form of spatial perception represented in three religious traditions. The conclusion illustrates neurotheology’s overinclusiveness in equating all mystical experiences with AUB.
Authors and Affiliations
David Bradford
Keywords
Related Articles
- EP ID EP55393
- DOI -
- Views 114
- Downloads 0
NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL REHABILITATION IN FINLAND
Bilingual advantage? Literacy and phonological awareness in Polish-speaking early elementary school children learning English simultaneously
ATTENTION AND MEMORY FUNCTIONING IN ADULT PERSONS WITH THE APPEARANCE OF HYPERACTIVITY DISORDERS
Until recently, hyperactivity disorders have been associated mainly with a growth period. It is more often stressed, however, that many persons do not grow out of ADHD but become adults with persistent disorders. This r...
IMPACT OF CHEMOTHERAPY ON MEMORY, ATTENTION AND EXECUTIVE FUNCTIONS DEPENDING ON THE STAGES OF TREATMENT AND THE LEVEL OF DEPRESSION IN FEMALE PATIENTS WITH CANCER
Background: This study examined the neuropsychological effects of che motherapy on female cancer patients’ cognitive processes, depending on their stages of cancer treatment and mood (level of depression). Material/Meth...
The diagnosis and therapy of aphasia in the acute phase
Communication disorders, including aphasia. accompany central nervous system damage of various origin. Comprehensive rehabilitation – provided from the beginning of hospitalization, adjusted to the general state of healt...