Jhanas are profound meditative states that can deconstruct ordinary consciousness, according to a case study of an adept meditator. Using 4 hours of 7T fMRI data collected across 27 sessions, the study identified distinctive brain activity patterns in cortical, subcortical, brainstem, and cerebellar regions during jhana meditation. Correlations between brain activity and phenomenological qualities of attention, jhanic qualities, and narrative processing showed that jhanas differ from non-meditative states. The findings suggest jhana practice offers unique insights into consciousness and potential benefits for mental health and well-being.
Advanced concentrative absorption meditation known as jhana (ACAM-J) disrupts the brain's typical hierarchical organization, shifting functional gradients toward a more globally integrated state between sensory and higher-order cognitive regions. It also increases differentiation between sensory-related and attention modulation-related areas, consistent with meditators' subjective reports. These findings come from an intensive case study using nonlinear dimensionality reduction of functional neuroimaging data, analyzed with linear mixed models and correlations. The work highlights the need for further research on brain reorganization and health implications of both short-term and long-term ACAM-J practice.