冥想如何從生理上改變大腦

薩拉·納普頓

People can boost their happiness by growing a part of the brain which increases positive thinking， scientists believe. 科學(xué)家認(rèn)為，對大腦積極思考部位的開發(fā)，有助于提升人們的幸福感。

Aristotle said that “happiness depends upon ourselves” and a new study suggests it is possible to physically grow a happier brain through practices like meditation.

Although scientists have known which hormones produce emotions like pleasure or desire， it has been unclear where the feeling of overall contentment and well-being stems from.

To find out， scientists at Kyoto University asked 51 volunteers to rate their own happiness levels and then scanned their brains to see if they could spot any differences between the upbeat individuals and their more glum counterparts.

Intriguingly they discovered that an area of the brain called the precuneus was larger in people who were happier. It suggests that happiness can be worked like a muscle.

Previous studies have shown that regular meditation can boost grey matter in the precuneus， which could explain why those who meditate report experiencing feelings of general contentment and even bliss.

The scientists behind the finding said it will now be possible to clinically measure what things make people happier.

“Over history， many eminent scholars like Aristotle have contemplated what happiness is，” said author Dr Wataru Sato. “Im very happy that we now know more about what it means to be happy.

“Several studies have shown that meditation increases grey matter mass in the precuneus.

“This new insight on where happiness happens in the brain will be useful for developing happiness programs based on scientific research.

“This study suggests it is possible to grow a happier brain.”

Researchers believe that the precuneus is particularly important for subjective happiness， such as where someone chooses to make the best of a situation and see it in a more positive light.

Volunteers who scored higher on the happiness surveys had more grey matter mass in the precuneus.

In other words， people who feel happiness more intensely， feel sadness less intensely， and are more able to find meaning in life have a larger precuneus. The difference in size between the person with the biggest and the smallest was about 15 per cent.

“Happiness is a subjective experience that has special significance for humans，” added Dr Sato.

“Our results suggest that psychological training that effectively increases grey matter and volume in the precuneus may enhance subjective happiness.”

Happiness expert Prof Paul Dolan at the London School of Economics said it was clear that the brain could be changed.

Speaking about the new research he said： “This does not surprise me at all. The brain is malleable， just like other organs.

“Paying attention can literally change your brain. In London， Black Cab taxi drivers have to pass a very difficult test that requires them to know and be able to navigate 25，000 different city streets.

“Only half of the prospective cabbies who take this test pass it. Those that do pass have larger hippocampi—the part of the brain that corresponds with spatial processing—than those who fail.

“Yet it isnt that the drivers started out with better spatial processing; instead， as they studied for the test， their hippocampi became larger as they learned more.”

Prof Dolan， who is a government advisor on how to make the population more contented， and author of the book Happiness By Design， claims that many of the things people believe will make them happy are fleeting and can actually alter their lives in a negative way.

“Most things we think will make us happy wont，” he said. “Were really always happier if we are focussing on the person we are with and the thing we are doing right now. So make that something you enjoy.

“You should listen to music that you like listening to. That has a substantial effect on your mood. Your brain literally lights up. There is no other stimulation like music to arouse the brain.”

亞里士多德曾說，“幸福來源于我們自己”。一項新研究表明，人們可通過冥想等練習(xí)，從生理上提升大腦的幸福感。

雖然科學(xué)家已知悉哪些激素可產(chǎn)生愉悅或渴望之類的情感，但卻尚未明確總體滿足感和幸福感由何而來。

為一探究竟，京都大學(xué)的科學(xué)家首先讓51名志愿者對自身幸福水平打分。然后，掃描對比他們的大腦，判斷樂觀者與悲觀者是否存在差異。

有趣的是，他們發(fā)現(xiàn)樂觀者的大腦中楔前葉的體積更大。這就表明，幸福感像肌肉一樣可通過訓(xùn)練提升。

此前研究已表明，定期冥想可促進(jìn)楔前葉中的灰質(zhì)生長。這就可以解釋，為什么冥想者反映出普遍的滿足感甚至幸福感。

支持這一發(fā)現(xiàn)的科學(xué)家表示，現(xiàn)在將有可能通過臨床檢測來判斷哪些事物可使人們更加快樂。

該研究報告的作者佐藤彌博士說：“歷史上，許多像亞里士多德這樣的著名學(xué)者，都曾苦思冥想幸福的含義。現(xiàn)在，我們更加了解幸福的內(nèi)涵，這令我十分高興。

“多項研究均表明，冥想可增加楔前葉中灰質(zhì)的質(zhì)量。

“該項關(guān)于幸福在大腦何處產(chǎn)生的重大發(fā)現(xiàn)，有助于開發(fā)基于科學(xué)研究的幸福感項目。

“這項研究表明，使大腦更加快樂是可行的。”

研究人員認(rèn)為，楔前葉對主觀幸福感尤為重要。例如，它幫助人們充分利用某種情況，并且更加積極地面對它。

在幸福感調(diào)查中得分較高的志愿者，其楔前葉中包含更多灰質(zhì)。

換言之，更易感知幸福、較少感到悲傷且更能找到生活真諦的人，楔前葉體積更大。楔前葉體積的極差，約為15%。

佐藤彌博士補(bǔ)充說：“幸福，是對人類尤為重要的主觀體驗。

“我們的研究結(jié)果表明，有些心理訓(xùn)練可有效促進(jìn)楔前葉中灰質(zhì)的生長和楔前葉體積的增加，這些訓(xùn)練或可提高主觀幸福感。”

倫敦政治經(jīng)濟(jì)學(xué)院的幸福感研究專家保羅·多蘭教授表示，很明顯，大腦可被改造。

談及這項新研究時，他提到：“我對此絲毫未感驚訝。和其他器官一樣，大腦可被改造開發(fā)。

“專心可以改變你的大腦。在倫敦，黑色出租車司機(jī)必須通過一項高難度的測試。這項測試要求他們熟知倫敦2.5萬條不同的街道，且能在其中自如地行駛。

“參加測試的準(zhǔn)出租車司機(jī)中，只有一半獲得通過。與未通過者相比，這些司機(jī)有更大的海馬體——這是大腦處理空間信息的部位。

“然而，這些司機(jī)并非一開始就具備良好的空間信息處理能力。相反，當(dāng)他們潛心準(zhǔn)備測試時，學(xué)得越多，海馬體就長得越大。”

多蘭教授是一位政府顧問，研究如何讓民眾更加稱心如意，同時也是《設(shè)計幸福》一書的作者。他聲稱，人們認(rèn)為的能帶來快樂的事物很多都是轉(zhuǎn)瞬即逝的，且實際上會給生活帶來消極影響。

他說：“大多數(shù)我們認(rèn)為能讓我們開心的事物，往往不會如此。其實，如果我們專注于眼前的人和事，我們總會更快樂。所以去關(guān)注那些你喜歡的事吧！

“你應(yīng)該聽愛聽的音樂。這對你的心情有極大的影響。你的大腦會感到興奮。音樂是喚醒大腦的最佳方式。”

（譯者單位：華中科技大學(xué)）