本文分二部份共七節: 第一部份: 意識狀態、幻覺與心身作用–
一個關於夢、經絡及其它相關現象的理論 Part I: A Psychosomatic Theory of Dreams(1)我提出一個極其簡單的腦工作模型,解構所謂通靈經驗,包括見到或聽到鬼神、靈魂出竅、鬼神附身…,並進而以此模型解釋催眠、多重人格、氣功、見到飛碟…等等很多原本看似難以理解的現象,它們都是由夢所衍生出的意識異常狀態。(2)提出人作夢(rapid eye movement, REM)的目的、氣功治病的機制、禪定、假懷孕等心身作用及中醫針灸、把脈的原理。(3)討論有限度、有神經基礎的超感知覺從本文的模型來看是合理、可能的。
第二部份: 關於靈的一些思考
Part II: Some Thoughts on the Existence of Soul(4)討論通靈、算命應是不可能的,純意志的力量應是不存在的。(5)討論靈魂概念的荒謬性,並從哲學認識論的觀點解釋它是不必要的。人會要求靈魂的存在乃是源於理性邏輯的超限使用所引起的〝超(於經)驗(的)錯覺〞(transcendental illusion,或先驗錯覺)。(6)從量子物理討論自由意志的存在並不要求〝靈〞的存在。(7)最後討論〝宇宙中心感〞、〝唯一感〞等乃是人腦中一個程式〝我〞的內部概念(而無外在客觀的証明),這些概念是人類一直相信有靈魂在生前死後存在的最根本原因。
超驗錯覺、通靈經驗(有些可能含有些許超感知覺)及對自然現象的不了解(物理的、生理的、統計的)共同促成了各式各樣、各說各話的宗教。
States of Consciousness, Hallucination and Mind-Body Interaction
--- A Theory of Dreams, Meridians and Other Related PhenomenaY.D.Tsai
National Cheng-Kung Univ., TAIWAN
1995
A popular view in today's science is that dreams are resulted from brain's off-line processing of information, hence they have little to do with the dreamer's deep desire. While there has been no experiment to prove or disprove this, I suggest a very intuitive and simple theory that can explain not only how dreams are actually a product of imagination, but also a wide array of unusual phenomena which can not be explained by the popular theory of dreams. The major independent hypotheses in this article are threefold: (1) Dissociation Hypothesis - Inside each brain, there is an ubiquitous (i.e. distributed over the entire conscious brain) program "I", or conscious self, which coordinates various kinds of mental functions (cortices), such as thinking, imagining, sensing, moving, reasoning, etc. (see Fig. I). "I" also supervises memory storage (not retrieval). Many bizarre phenomena (states of consciousness), including hypnosis, multi-personality and those frequently attributed to gods and spirits, are actually the results of the dissociation of certain mental functions from "I" ("mind dissociation", e.g. thought dissociation, sense or movement dissociation, etc.) There are clues suggesting that there might be more than one set of thinking (and imagining). (2) Simulation Hypothesis - The autonomous nerves receive not only the real signals from the sensory nerves but also the simulated signals from imagination, which draws the needed material from the sensory memory. However, the receiving channels for imaginative signals are open only in the state of "imagination dissociation". Before the reception of these signals, there is a "sensory feedback", which results in hallucination such as dreams, hearing or seeing spirits, sighting of UFO, "Tsigong" (or Qigong氣功), etc. (see Fig. II ). Feedback can guide, strengthen or stabilize the imagination (mainly for dreaming). It also stimulates mood responses such as fear, anger or joy as in real situation, and hence once more affects the autonomous nerves in an indirect way. Since the dissociated imagination has the function of driving the autonomous nerves, it might be able to decipher some "extra" sensory signals which are normally only responded by the autonomous nerves but not taken in by consciousness. Hence, the existence of some limited and nerve-based extra sensory perception (ESP) is reasonable and possible. (3) Meridian Hypothesis - When a body part is inflicted, its repair involves not only the automatic release of some biochemicals, but also some actions from the autonomous nerves. The "repair nerves", one of whose actions is to expand the blood capillaries by relaxing the precapillary sphincters, inside the central autonomous system connect with the compression nerves and the pain nerves. The connection with compression (to keep the blood flowing) can explain the purpose of dreams and why "Tsigong" hallucination can cure bodily disorders. The repair nerves in the brain (and spine?) are grouped into many serpentine chains which are called "meridians" (Dzingluo or Zingluo經絡) by the Chinese school of medicine. When some repair nerves are prodded by pain or compression from some part of the body to send out their repair signals, a chain reaction spreads out to set other repair nerves in the same meridian into action, hence other parts of the body can also be benefited. A purpose of this chain reaction is to allow the muscular movement and compression on the outer parts of the body, especially on the palms and soles, to bring along the daily nourishment of internal organs. As a result, physical exercises would also make healthier organs. And dreams (rapid eye movements, REMs) actually employ meridians to repair the body, help it grow and develop, by simulating very intensive movement-compression signals to expand the blood vessels when the level of growth enzymes go high. Simulation can ensure that the expansion of blood vessels in different parts of body are in right proportions, not uniformly. The purposes of dreams are: (a) to repair body (probably more than making up the deficiency of exercise during sleep); and (b) to effect mind-body interaction. Mind dissociation and meridians exist mainly for the making and function of dreams respectively. Although it is possible that long term memory is consolidated during the dream period, it has nothing to do with the appearance of dreams. Body repair and memory consolidation are conducted at the same time. The meridian chain reaction was utilized by ancient Chinese who began, without knowing the reason, the seemingly bizarre practices like acupuncture, scratching (刮痧) and massage. The so called "Tsi" (or Qi) by Chinese is a hallucinative sensation of swollenness (compression) or tingling (pain), which can cause the expansion of blood vessels. The "pulse-feeling" diagnosis can also be explained as that a change in the distribution of resistance, caused by the expansion or constriction of blood vessels along meridians, will change the wrist pulse pattern when the heart pumps.
P.S. Some points for those who can not read Chinese:(a) "I" Doesn't Think, yet "I" Exists
Some Buddhist monks can experience a state in which they lose all senses and have no thought, yet they are not asleep and feel themselves melted with the universe (have no sense of body boundary), and they remember this experience. This is the pure state of "I", which exists as these monks can attest. "I" is the conscious self or awareness.
(b) Examples of Mind-Body Interaction through Hallucinations or Dreams
Some monks can voluntarily change their body’s temperatures as follows: First they imagine themselves in some very cold or hot environments, then their imaginations are dissociated to create hallucinations and their body’s metabolic rates are changed.
Another example is the pseudo-pregnancy in some women. Women with an extremely strong desire to be pregnant often have dreams or hallucinations of being pregnant, and their autonomous nerves respond to these hallucinative sensory signals to prepare their bodies, hence they experience the true pregnancy symptoms such as widening of the abdomen, enlargement of the breasts, etc. (c) An Explanation of Hypnosis
When a person is hypnotized, it might be that his/her imagination is dissociated and sends the imagined content back to the sensory cortex, resulting in dreams or hallucinations; or some of senses are dissociated, resulting in hypnotic anesthesia; or motor function is dissociated, resulting in immobility; or reason is dissociated and he/she obeys the hypnotist’s orders; or thought is dissociated and not controlled by reason, hence strives to straighten out his/her body between two chairs. A command can also be planted into the hypnotized mind and acted out accordingly long after the session of hypnosis, as follows: A person obeys the orders of reason in normal state, but when hypnotized, his/her reason is replaced by the hypnotist's command to make decisions or believes, and he/she will be very uneasy if he/she does not do things as decided or his/her belief is contradicted. Hypnotherapy is also based on this principle. (d) An Explanation of Multi-Personality
Every cerebral cortex area has its own function and associated memory. The thought area has the memory of events and emotions. At some stage of his/her life, a patient of multi-personality disorder created a new thought subsystem and dissociated the others, and then grew up with multiple subsystems alternatedly.
註5:!〝自然是可理解的〞這現象或許可這樣作一初步的(不完全的)理解。人類悟性的最基本條件(康德所謂〝先天概念〞及〝先天判斷〞),例如〝事物必以在時間、空間中排列的形式存在,必是可一個、二個或1/3個地計數的〞,或〝若p(a=b且b=c)則q(a=c)〞……等等,是由安裝(hardwired)在腦內的固定線路及其附屬程式執行的。若正確地使用〝腦筋〞,當輸入這程式(線路)的是〝p〞時,它的輸出必然是〝q〞,因而〝非q〞是人無法〝理解〞接受而會被認定是〝錯〞的,而且所有人都會同意是錯的,因為所有人都有同樣一付線路及附屬程式。因而人會以為〝若p則q〞乃是〝天經地義〞、〝放諸所有智慧生物而皆準〞的,甚至是〝存在於自然界中〞的。但這些線路其實是人類在演化過程中產生的。萬物的運行有某種規律。當人類的祖先由一些突變而發展出這些線路時〝意外地〞得到運用自然的能力而使生存競爭力大增,因為此線路及其所支持的程式能與物的運行規律契合。至於其它不能契合的線路則被淘汰掉了或仍存在其它生物身上。或許豬腦內也有一套線路,但因未能與自然規律契合,而使牠們顯得渾渾噩噩(當然最可能的還是因牠們尚末發展出像人類這麼成熟的線路;而野豬的機靈是獵人熟知的,牠們並不笨)。或許人類擁有的是唯一一套能與自然完全契合的邏輯,但人卻無法排除有其它邏輯形式的可能。人無法〝理解〞其它形式的邏輯,甚至無法想像其〝存在的可能性〞,因人腦內並沒有能執行其它形式邏輯的線路。或許某些智慧生物的線路即與人的不同,他們以完全不同的方式理解世界,他們的〝數學〞比我們的更簡明易懂,而能更有效地發明創造。
數學邏輯來自人腦的神經結構(在這種意義下,數學定理是被發現而非發明的),而物理學的理論、觀念則是人類把自己的數學結構強加在自然界的一種發明。至於〝物自身〞,則如康德所主張的,是不可知的。世界是唯物的,但物理是唯心的(The world is physical, but physics is spiritual)。物理學是人類的發明可從這樣的事實看出來:常有一些物理現象,物理學上可有不同的觀念來處理。例如行星繞太陽這件事,在牛頓的觀念裡是由與距離平方成反比的〝力〞造成的,但在愛因斯坦的理論裡則是因行星在太陽造成的彎曲時空中作最短距離的運動,並沒有〝力〞的觀念。後者的數學包含了前者的數學,故後者的適用範圍更廣。其實物理學的發展就是這樣,當理論能解釋所有已知的現象時,大家會樂觀地把理論當真理。等到有不能解釋的現象出現時就開始絞盡腦汁去建構一個數學上可包含前者,但觀念上全新的理論,使理論能走得更遠。所以物理理論基本上是人發明來整合物質世界的工具,是人從紛雜的自然現象歸納出的一些實用規則(只存在於人心中,但總讓人有〝真理〞的錯覺),其整合的範圍愈廣就愈成功。故只要是好用的理論就有繼續存在的價值,就像牛頓力學在工程上仍是標準工具,而中醫的一些陰陽五行理論,若是不導出嚴重錯誤的結論的話,仍可以是某些人工作的好幫手(至少能幫助記憶)。
康德對物自身的不可知論在量子力學中得到一些支持。例如關於電子在原子中存在的情形,量子力學只告訴我們電子在某一區域出現的機率,而任何把電子想成一個質點以連續軌道作運動的想像都是錯的,甚至把電子想成從某一點消失而同時在另一點出現的想像也是錯的。電子究竟如何存在是不可想像、不可知的,我們只知道當我們作位置或動量或能量的測量時會得到某個值的機率。不過這種〝人類認識極限之外的不可認識〞與康德的不可知論仍有差別。從康德的觀點,〝電子存在〞的理論或量子機率理論背後所代表的物自身是不可知的,甚至連〝存在─不存在〞也只是人類的概念而不是物自身的屬性。
但演化的事實仍不能令人滿意地完全解釋〝為何自然是可理解的〞。人腦是在古典力學即能處理的世界中演化的,只要能有效地取得食物、逃避獵食者並爭得配偶就能生存下來,這些都只需古典力學的技巧,那為甚麼人能夠進一步發展出量子力學而製造出遠超過生存所需的工具?這與〝人與人之間的勾心鬥角(這是人類能在智慧上把其它動物遠遠拋在後頭的最主要原因)是源自量子計算〞的事實會有關係嗎?這宇宙間的規律是如此地緊密嗎,一種動物只要能清楚地處理它部份的現象(古典的)也就能處理它全部的現象?或〝為何自然是可理解的〞是不是個該問的問題呢,因為想用理解力來理解理解力畢竟是荒謬的?人類想用理解大自然的方式去推敲意識是如何由基本物理原理產生出來的努力必然是徒勞無功的,因為如前所討論物理是人類意識理解大自然的方式,而不能用到意識自身上。雖然人類終將找出某類形的腦神經衝動與〝我存在〞的思緒有關,但將無法理解這麼真實的主觀感覺是如何產生的。 六、自由意志與靈 古典的物理以為物質是以確定的軌跡運行的,它以後的狀態是可由現在的狀態依物理定律推演給出的。所以古典物理的世界是一個命定的世界。但每個人都會清楚感到自己有〝自由意志〞(例如你要我伸出右手,我偏不伸或故意伸出左手),絕無法接受我的一切動作都是千百年前就設定的。但這〝非命定〞是如何成為可能的﹖難道是有個〝靈〞在不斷地讓體內物質不遵守物理定律(行使神蹟,見註6)﹖非也!現代的量子力學告訴我們物質的狀態是依機率進行改變的。每一個改變都有幾乎是無限多種的可能性,而真正出現的狀態則是依據某一可計算的機率被〝任意〞選出的(故算命是不可能的)。所以這對相信有〝自由意志〞但又不相信〝靈〞的人是個大好消息,他們應不會覺〝量子機率〞有何艱澀難以接受的。但再進一步想,似乎仍有問題。既然量子的選擇是〝任意的〞,那人的行為怎會是〝理性的〞、〝意志的〞﹖故似乎仍必須有物理以外的〝東西〞來作〝意志的選擇〞,而這似是〝靈〞必需存在的有力論証。如果再繼續思考下去,生命應是由〝靈〞與〝物〞構成的,缺一不成,雖然這靈未必即一般所認為的靈魂,它可能只是構成生命除了物以外的那一〝必要的部份〞。就如〝現在構成我這個身體的物質可在我死亡分解後再去構成另一身體〞,靈可能也是以類似方式構築生命。不過靈是不能一個、兩個地數的,人腦雖已發展出一套非常成熟可處理〝物〞的邏輯線路,但並未發展出理解靈的線路,因那與生存需要無關。而類似〝物〞之間有交互作用,〝靈〞也可能有交互作用,而這就是心靈感應。 好極了,似乎所有人都能滿意了,宗教與科學必需是並存的。但筆者要指出,這樣的靈物二元論也是不必要的,因腦其實是一部〝量子計算機〞。兩個粒子在自由空間中交互作用後可能的狀態有極多,但被放入一堆物質中時,他們的可能態就減少很多,而若被放入極端複雜的腦結構中則其可能態更少。那些是這些剩下的可能態﹖即那些是腦最後可能的選擇﹖就是〝對我最有利的〞、〝最合我個性的〞或〝符合我作人作事原則的〞等等。這些剩下的可能狀態是人類祖先在與自然及(更重要的)與自己的同類競爭中經舉族無數次的嘗試錯誤而篩檢下來的,是祖先的生存經驗被轉譯成複雜的腦結構而限制了可能的量子狀態。所以作意志選擇的〝靈〞是〝祖先的經驗〞。除非是出了毛病,否則人不會作出對自己不利又對種族無益的事。而只有在各方評估後仍無法決定好壞的情況下才會出現〝任意〞的選擇(評估的過程則是〝意志〞的選擇)。的確是非常不可思議。但能維持自身生命的身體也是同樣的不可思議,若人能發展出這麼複雜的身體,必也能發展出這樣一付腦,只要生存競爭有需要。若那一天人的社會只有天才才能生存下去,那以後的人類就會全是天才(不過可惜不會是我們這些平常人的後代;其實現在的人已全是人猿時代的天才之後代了)。〔註:您一定是位能接受演化論的人,否則您早就看不下這篇文章了。〕 現有的電子計算穖是〝古典的計算機〞,它是用0與1根據確定的規律進行的。同樣的輸入,即使作千萬遍,其輸出都一樣(即使是〝亂數產生器〞,輸入的種籽數字一樣,出來的〝亂數〞也都一樣)。但〝量子計算機〞的輸出則可有極大不同(邏輯線路除外),可依〝個性〞、〝心情〞、〝作人作事原則〞等等因素作出各種不同的決定,也可〝順其自然〞(不作決定讓它隨機發展)。故人若要製造一部〝有意志的計算機〞,則需研究如何運用量子機率。雖然要了解目前計算機中所用半導體的工作原理也需用到量子力學,但計算本身並未用到量子原理,例如用真空管也能造出計算機。 基督徒會說〝上帝是存在的,就看你接不接受〞,我想說的是〝科學是必能解釋一切的,就看你接不接受〞、〝不被違及的物理定律是存在的,就看你接不接受〞。在只知有古典物理的時代,尚未被發現的量子現象會被歸為是〝靈〞的工作,等量子機率被發現後,〝靈〞已無存在的必要。同樣地,我們目前尚無法用計算加以確定或尚不知如何理解的事(雖然基本的定律可能已具備)也常會被歸於〝靈〞。但隨知識的進步,靈存在的空間必愈縮愈小而最後歸於〝零〞。這是基於〝自然是可理解的〞的信仰,這信仰是經各領域無數科學家的觀察檢驗的。當然也可以說宗教是經無數宗教家的體驗而確立的。若是純內心的體驗,我們承認宗教家比誰都在行,他們可盡興建構他們的內心世界,享受他們的宗教生活。但若與〝事物〞有關,最好還是讓科學家去操心。講到生命的起源,應是讓証據說明一切,而不是靠一本二千年前某部族所寫的〝聖經〞。(還好中國沒發展出一個被嚴格信奉的宗教,否則中國〝神經〞第一章的〝盤古開天〞必與西方〝聖經〞的〝創世記〞對上,而使世人更加迷惑。)