The Synapses and Clarity

Have you ever wondered why
we ‘sort of know’ something,
but either cannot express it
or don’t quite get it?

From Wikipedia:
SYNAPSES
It is widely accepted that the synapse plays a role in the formation of memory. As neurotransmitters activate receptors across the synaptic cleft, the connection between the two neurons is strengthened when both neurons are active at the same time, as a result of the receptor’s signalling mechanisms. The strength of two connected neural pathways is thought to result in the storage of information, resulting in memory. This process of synaptic strengthening is known as long-term potentiation.

LONG-TERM POTENTIATION
In neuroscience, long-term potentiation (LTP) is a long-lasting enhancement in signal transmission between two neurons that results from stimulating them synchronously. It is one of several phenomena underlying synaptic plasticity; the ability of chemical synapses to change their strength. As memories are thought to be encoded by modification of synaptic strength, LTP is widely considered one of the major cellular mechanisms that underlies learning and memory.

If we link this to spiritual teachings, we start to understand why practice makes perfect; it is the activity of firing and wiring.

Much of the advice from Buddhas and Bodhisattvas goes over our heads – or doesn’t quite register. This is basically because what is being conveyed is vaguely familiar…and our habitual mind has other ideas. 🙂

This may also account for ‘not quite getting it’; having acquired a load of complex ideas, the mind cannot process such simple, profound clarity as “not too tight and not too loose”. This is because of theoretical knowledge overlaying empirical experience. Our synapses are not quite joined up because of a lack of genuine, uncontaminated experience.

Synapse: a junction between two nerve cells, consisting of a minute gap across which impulses pass by diffusion of a neurotransmitter.

Firing and wiring

Hebbian theory is a theory in neuroscience which proposes an explanation for the adaptation of neurons in the brain during the learning process. It describes a basic mechanism for synaptic plasticity, where an increase in synaptic efficacy arises from the presynaptic cell’s repeated and persistent stimulation of the postsynaptic cell.

Hebb states it as follows:
“Let us assume that the persistence or repetition of a reverberatory activity (or “trace”) tends to induce lasting cellular changes that add to its stability… When an axon of cell A is near enough to excite a cell B and repeatedly or persistently takes part in firing it, some growth process or metabolic change takes place in one or both cells such that A’s efficiency, as one of the cells firing B, is increased.”

This is why Experience is superior to Theory! – although we need some theory to get excited about experiencing…! 😉 We will need sound theory if we want to practise Vajrayana, and complete the preliminary practices of Ngondro 4 x 111,111. Doing the Ngondro fires and wires the understanding which forms the foundation of the main practice of Vajrayana (if we choose to do this; it’s an individual choice) – if we don’t do them mechanically.

Actual experience
It is so important to catch ourselves in the middle of anger, pride, jealousy, fear, desire or indifference. If we recognise the nature of the emotion as wisdom, and experience the genuine, uncovered-up, raw nature of the emotion as clarity, this fires and wires neurons and the dots join up. If not, we are caught in emotional flare-ups and it’s business as usual: our wiring goes around in the circles we are all so familiar with.

This is why a simple teaching – if heard without assumptions – can cut through our complexity, and we ‘get it’! Our real problem is wanting more and more complex and ‘advanced’ teachings, when these are merely more toys.

An example of a short cut!
When one of my teachers was a youngster, he crept out from his monastery one night to visit a highly advanced practitioner – Khenpo Goncha – for teachings. The high lama made him some tea, and they sat together, drinking. The youngest waited…and waited. Nothing happened. The lama suddenly said, “It is done!” The youngster thanked him, thinking he was crazy, and wandered back to his monastery saying to himself, “What did he do? What did he do?” He found that he couldn’t think of anything… 😉

Forty years later, that ‘youngster’ – a tulku – came over to my wife and me while we were helping build a shrine room; he held us firmly by the shoulders and said, “You are my friends.” We left to go to a cafe, ordered tea and sat and stared at one another. I said. “I can’t think of anything!” – and she was the the same. Of course, this was temporary, but very weird – and the memory of that has stayed with us both. Perhaps some firing and wiring went on..or perhaps there’s something in tea…… 😉 .

The truth is ordinary and simple. It is pure awareness. That is our essential nature. Our essence!

So why are there so many complex spiritual texts?
Ask the ‘entertainment’ officer!

The toys are to help us wire and fire;
we need some paraphernalia to inspire us to practice.

NB If we find ourselves projecting or making assumptions about how things ‘should’ be rather than how they actually are, maybe that is due to certain synapses not having joined up and so our view is not clear...just a thought.

This is why it is so, so, so important to ask questions rather than merely acquire answers!

Q.How do mind, brain and body work together?
A. Perhaps consciousness excites electricity to effect a change in chemicals.
Of course all this came about because essence ignored itself, and became occupied in consciousness. 🙂