<p>I know there have been many studies on meditation in general, with noticeable changes in the brain. From a skeptic's perspective, I am curious if there are noticeable changes in the brain between "normal" practitioners and "enlightened" practitioners.  </p>

<p>Have there been any studies that focused on self-reported or peer-reported "enlightened" people?</p>

CC BY-SA 3.0
2016-04-28T19:07:38.817Z
There have been EEG and FMRI studies of long term meditating monks, but I'm not aware if any of these monks have claimed to be "enlightened"
Alex Stone
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-01-08T23:09:37.083Z
The Dalai Lama has been active in promoting research between neuroscience and Buddhist meditation. A web search on those terms will yield news references to studies that may help answer your question about brain function. From my personal observation, it's unlikely that you'll find anyone who will
"self-report" or "peer-report" claims of enlightenment. It's a contradiction. Maybe a better term is 'having realization(s)'.
DavidJ
CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-01-10T20:52:18.783Z
you need to define what is "enlightened"
gfdsal
<meditation>
Does any neurological research exist surrounding Buddhist "enlightenment"?
Wouter
# Does any neurological research exist surrounding Buddhist "enlightenment"?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2016-04-25)

I know there have been many studies on meditation in general, with noticeable changes in the brain. From a skeptic's perspective, I am curious if there are noticeable changes in the brain between "normal" practitioners and "enlightened" practitioners.

Have there been any studies that focused on self-reported or peer-reported "enlightened" people?

**Tags:** meditation

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: There have been EEG and FMRI studies of long term meditating monks, but I'm not aware if any of these monks have claimed to be "enlightened"  
> **username_2**: The Dalai Lama has been active in promoting research between neuroscience and Buddhist meditation. A web search on those terms will yield news references to studies that may help answer your question about brain function. From my personal observation, it's unlikely that you'll find anyone who will "self-report" or "peer-report" claims of enlightenment. It's a contradiction. Maybe a better term is 'having realization(s)'.  
> **username_3**: you need to define what is "enlightened"  

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## 0 answers

