Happy B-Day, Krishna! (UFOs from Heaven)

Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells,  Seth Auberon, CC Liu, Wisdom Quarterly; BBC

The dark lord, blue Krishna: krsna means black or dark (Reuters/BBC.com)

What will a public UFO landing display look like? There was that War Over LA. Albert Hall during the Ultimate Fighting Championship, London, 2002 (Mike Hewitt/Getty Images).

Robert Bingham (center) guides Los Angelenos to daylight UFO summonings and sightings.

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And this one's for patriarchy, Asherah!

Hindus believe that both the Buddha and Lord Krishna were earthly incarnations or avatars of the celestial god Vishnu.
 
India's great celestial goddess and god, Radha and Krishna, are the beloved ultimate couple.

Just as Yahweh (Jehovah, YHVH, one of the Old Testament gods of the Bible and, apparently, the only One that mattered) was once married to Asherah in Judeo-Christian tradition, Radha and Krishna are the immortals, space (akasha)-devas, who came to Earth to frolic.

Ancient Asherah bas-relief

Wait, wait, wait, and hold hold your horses! God had a wife? There is more than one God in the Jewish and Christian Bible? Yes, and yes. The whole sacred book tells of their, the plural gods' exploits on Earth, which scholars construe and misrepresent as a monotheistic -- "one god" -- text about only a single God speaking of Himself in the royal "We." But many kinds of celestial gods and space lords are referred to by name. Scholars who know better gloss this by saying, it's all names for one God. He likes lots of names and classes of names and to refer to himself always in the plural.

Birth then carried across the water in a basket reminiscent of Moses... In pictures: Hindus around the world celebrate Krishna's birthday, one of the most popular Hindu gods (BBC).

• The foundations of Hinduism: Brahminical Vedas

The Bible is much closer to the ancient myths (true and attested to accounts) of the Vedic Pantheon, Ancient Roman Gods, Ancient Greek Gods, and post-Vedic Buddhist cosmology. Buddhists do not worship these gods -- devas, gandharvas, apsaras, brahmas, asuras, nagas, garudas -- but they are well aware of them. And the Buddha taught that if one so wished and, moreover, undertook the appropriate courses of conduct (merit, profitable karma), one could be reborn among the devas. The devas are recollected (devatānussati) rather than worshipped for this reason.

Goddess Radha devi, the favorite consort of the lord: kids play dress up (AP/BBC.com)

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Radha the milkmaid (gopi) was already on Earth in a scene reminiscent of Western religious tradition, as the gods -- including the Cowherd avatar or Shepherd Krishna -- found the "daughters of men" attractive and came in unto them and bore with them hybrid-offspring, heroes of old, men of renown.
 

Janmashtami is Hindu Xmas in India, Lord Krishna's birthday commemoration. Krishna has risen in popular importance above all other incarnations and manifestations of the One God of the Brahmins Brahma (called "Great Brahma" or Maha Brahma in Buddhism).

• [There is something higher but it is not a personality, and it is Brahman, the Ultimate Reality behind the Illusion of Maya, Godhood, Godhead, GOD, realization and union. So we always distinguish: "gods" (devas, deities) from "Gods" (brahmas, divinities) from "GOD" in nontheistic Buddhism. Nontheism does not mean atheism, but rather denotes the fact that whether or not there are gods is not pertinent to enlightenment. Enlightenment transcends that discussion And whether or not their are creators (DNA splicers, cosmic magicians, manipulators of energy, mind/heart readers, powerful aggressors, peaceful enjoyers of the Brahma Viharas or "Divine Abidings"), there is no ultimate uncreated Creator God creator of all...unless one thinks of the impersonal GOD as that creator, but that is more a syncretic Hindu-Mahayana concept than anything the historical Buddha ever taught.]

How the Sumerians depicted the flying visitors from space on compact cylinders

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The Dogon of Mali, Africa

Whether it is Buddhism, Brahmanism (the pre-Buddhist Vedic teachings of the Brahmin-caste priests, later Hinduism, Mahayana Buddhism (a kind of Buddhism steeped in Hindu concepts), Jainism, Sumerianism (of Sumer, Mesopotamia, Iraq), Zoroastrianism, Judaism (Bedouins, Hebrews), Islam, early Christianity, or later Catholicism there are "gods" who came down from on high in space. At least that's where these beings said they were from They may have come from the hollow Earth, nearby Moon, the visible planets, or from the next solar system over, but they came. Even the Dogon know they came.

In Buddhism these "shining ones" (beings of light of varying radiance) are generally referred to as akasha-devas from the akasha-deva-loka or "space light beings world" to distinguish them from the earthling-devas (bhumattha-devas).

Playground of the devas

Recollect the Devas' Merit: Mediterranean Greece as the playground of the "gods" (D&G)

What UFO abductees can teach us

David M. Jacobs with George Boory (coasttocoast.com, Aug. 19, 2014)

Documented research

Prof. David M. Jacobs (ICAR, "International Center for Abduction Research," ufoabduction.com) has conducted decades-long research into the alien abduction phenomenon. He was on last night trying to explain his conclusions to a kind, half-witted host. Jacobs outlined his early interest in UFO sightings, how he focused on alien abductions after he met Budd Hopkins, and expressed his disappointment at how academic and scientific communities generally dismiss the subject of UFOs. There is, he feels, a preponderance of evidence to demonstrate their existence.
 

ET Semjase devi (theyfly.com)

From the beginning of human civilization ,aliens have shown an interest in human reproduction, he notes. UFO abduction incidents reveal this interest. The reason for this are their programs to create hybrids, he explains, describing an early case that Hopkins shared with him in which a woman was shown a baby that looked half-human, half-alien, and was asked by the aliens to hold and nurse the baby.

"They are making hybrids so that they can come down and be here," possibly to takeover this planet, he conjectured. Jacobs also mentioned the telepathic abilities of aliens: They can transfer and access data into and out of someone's mind.
 
He theorizes that hybrids are being created with a tremendous amount of information dumped into them by some insect-like ETs (praying mantis type), who seem to direct the hybrid program, not so much the reptilians (nagas) or Nordics (devas) or titans (asuras).


The show was rounded out by aerospace and defense systems developer Sir Charles Shults talking about his work on the technology of education, as well as various advancements and innovations in the fields of space exploration and AI (artificial intelligence). More

Join the Om Healing Circle of Los Angeles

Ashley Wells, Seth Auberon, Wisdom Quarterly; Kaustubhi (omhealingcircle@gmail.com)

"OM" (aum) is the primordial or cosmic "sound of the universe" (Didi/esotericonline.net)

 

Everyone is invited to visit and join the Om Healing Circle in Los Angeles. It meets every first and third Saturday of the month at 1:00 pm. Together, participants seek to heal themselves, humanity, and Mother Earth (Bhumi, Gaia, Pachamama...). Om is a seed (bija) mantra with powerful resonant effects.

• Kaustubhi: (323) 423-3371
• omhealingcircle@gmail.com
• Protective Chanting in Buddhism
• The Book of Protection (Paritta)
• Recommended CDs from SoundsTrue: Mantras for Meditation and Healing Mantras by Thomas Ashley-Farrand
• See the World, my Children. It's big!

Healing Mantras

Enrico Galvini (CEO of Bodhisattva Music) and his faithful dog recommend Healing Mantras by Thomas Ashley-Farrand holding the German version in the jungles of Costa Rica.

Thomas Ashley-Farrand explains the Vedic origins, meanings, and uses of mantra.

Climate chaos continues: Polar vortex (sutra)

Ven. Piyadassi Thera (translator), edited by Wisdom Quarterly (Suriya Sutta, SN 2.10)

Geoengineering the world's weather is new to the MIC and its HAARP. Give them time.

Oh, Surya (Sol), please come back! We liked global warming better than this new Ice Age.

 

Yogic Sun salutation (worldiniowa.com)

Thus have I heard. On one occasion the Blessed One was living near the city of Savatthi at Jetavana in Anathapindika's hermitage.

At that time Suriya (Surya) the Sun deva was seized by Rahu lord of titans (asuras). Thereupon, calling to mind the Blessed One, Suriya the Sun deva recited this stanza:
 

"O Buddha, Hero, wholly free of all defilements, honor to thee. I have fallen into distress! Guide me."
 

Thereupon, the Blessed One responded by addressing a stanza to Rahu lord of titans on behalf of Suriya:
 

"O Rahu, Suriya has gone for guidance to the Tathagata, the Noble One. Release Suriya. The buddhas radiate compassion on the world (of beings).
 
"O Rahu, do not swallow the dispeller of darkness, the shining one, the radiant and effulgent traveler of the sky. Rahu, release Suriya."
 

Thereupon, Rahu lord of titans released Suriya and immediately came to the presence of Vepacitti lord of titans and stood beside him trembling in fear with hair standing on end. Then Vepacitti addressed Rahu in this stanza:
 

Indian mythology describes astronomy.

"Rahu, why did you suddenly release Suriya? Why have you come trembling, and why are you standing here terrified?"

"I have been spoken to by the Buddha in a stanza (requesting me to release Suriya). If I had not released Suriya, my head would have split into seven pieces [a common Indian idiom frequently met with in the sutras]. While I yet lived, I would have had no happiness. (Therefore, I released Suriya)."

The asura Rahu is mentioned explicitly in a pair of sutras from the Connected Discourses of the Pali Canon. In the Candima Sutta and the Suriya Sutta, Rahu attacks Chandra the moon deity and Suriya the sun deity before being compelled to release them by their recitation of a brief stanza conveying their reverence for the Buddha. The Buddha responds by enjoining Rahu to release them, which Rahu does rather than have his "head split into seven pieces." The verses recited by the two celestial deities and the Buddha have since been incorporated into Buddhist as protective chants (parittas) recited by monastics as kind of post-Vedic mantras.

Motives for Gift Giving (sutra)

Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly translation based on Ven. Thanissaro, "Discourse on Generosity" (Dana Sutta, AN 7.49)

Giving has the added benefit of resulting in easier meditative absorption (adbusters)

 

Sariputra was wise to ask (TA)

CAMPA, Gaggara Lake, ancient India - Ven. Sariputra said to the Blessed One: 

"Does one person give a certain gift that does not bear great fruit and benefit, whereas another person gives the same gift and it bears great fruit and benefit?"

 

"Yes, Sariputra."

 

"Venerable sir, why, what is the cause, what is the reason?"

 

The Buddha answers (TA)

1. "Sariputra, in one case a person gives a gift seeking profit, with a mind/heart attached [to gaining some reward], seeking to store up [merit with the thought], 'I'll enjoy this after death.'
 

"One gives a gift -- whether food, drink, clothing, transportation, garland, sweet scent, balm, bedding, shelter, lamp -- to a wandering ascetic or Brahmin. What do you think, Sariputra? Might one give such a gift?"

 

"Yes, venerable sir."

 

"Having given such a gift seeking profit with heart/mind attached, seeking to store up [merit with the thought], 'I'll enjoy this after death' -- on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of the Four Great Space Kings. Then, having exhausted that karma, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one returns, falling back to this plane.

 

2. "There is a person who gives a gift but not seeking profit, mind/heart not attached, not seeking to store up [merit with the thought], 'I'll enjoy this after death.' Instead, one gives a gift with the thought, 'Giving is good.' ...What do you think, Sariputra? Might one give such a gift?"

 

"Yes, venerable sir."

 

"Having given this gift with the thought, 'Giving is good,' on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of the devas ["shining ones"] of the World of the Thirty-Three. Then, having exhausted that karma, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one returns, falling back to this plane.

Sariputra's sacred relics (Camerabhai/flickr)

3. "Or instead of thinking 'Giving is good,' one gives a gift with the thought, 'This was given in the past, done in the past, by my relatives. It would not be right for me to let this family tradition end'... on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of the [Yāma] devas of delight. Then, having exhausted that karma, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one returns, falling back to this plane.

 

4. "Or instead... one gives a gift with the thought, 'I am well off. They are not well off. It would not be right for me, being well off, not to give a gift to those who are not well off'... on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of the contented devas. Then, having exhausted that karma, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one returns, falling back to this plane.

 

5. "Or instead... one gives a gift with the thought, 'Sages of the past made great sacrifices -- Atthaka, Vamaka, Vamadeva, Vessamitta, Yamataggi, Angirasa, Bharadvaja, Vasettha, Kassapa, and Bhagu. Just so will this be my contribution'... on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of the devas who delight in creating. Then, having exhausted that action, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one returns, falling back to this plane.

The Buddha and his four chief monastic disciples, male and female, Wat Yai Chai Mongkol (Mongkhon) in Ayutthaya, Thailand (Rainer Lott/Steffi Esch/flickr.com)

 

6. "Or instead... one gives a gift with the thought, 'When this gift of mine is given, it makes the heart/mind serene; appeasement and joy arise'... on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of the devas who wield power over others' creations. Then, having exhausted that karma, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one returns, falling back to this plane.

 

7. "Or instead of thinking, 'When this gift of mine is given, it makes the mind/heart serene; appeasement and joy arise,' one gives a gift with the thought, 'This is an ornament for the heart/mind, a support for the mind/heart.' One gives a gift... What do you think, Sariputra? Might one give such a gift?"

 

"Yes, venerable sir."

 

"Having given this -- 

1. not seeking profit, not with a heart/mind attached, not seeking to store up [merit with the thought], 'I'll enjoy this after death,' 
2. nor with the thought, 'Giving is good,' 
3. nor with the thought, 'This was given in the past, done in the past, by my relatives, so it would not be right for me to let this family tradition end,' 
4. nor with the thought, 'I am well off...,' 
5. nor with the thought, 'Sages of the past made great sacrifices... in the same way this will be my contribution,' 
6. nor with the thought, 'When this gift of mine is given, it makes the mind serene; appeasement and joy arise,' 

The Buddha and arhats (Horus2004/flickr)

7. "but with the thought, 'This is an ornament for the heart/mind, a support for the mind/heart' -- on the break up of the body, after death, one reappears in the company of Brahma's Retinue. 

"Then, having exhausted that karma, that power, that status, that sovereignty, one is a non-returner. One does not come back to this plane.

"This, Sariputra, is why, this is the cause, this is the reason one person gives a certain gift and it does not bear great fruit or benefit, whereas another person gives that gift and it bears great fruit and benefit."

Ukraine: Demonstrators flood Kiev for EU deal

Amber Larson, Pat Macpherson, Wisdom Quarterly; Oksana Grytsenko in Kiev (Nov. 24), Shaun Walker and Oksana Grytsenko (theguardian.com, Dec. 15, 2013); FEMEN.org/en

The biggest demonstrations since the "Orange Revolution" are continuing in the Ukraine after Pres. Viktor Yanukovych allegedly aborted a trade deal with the European Union under Russian pressure to stick with the former USSR. 

Tens of thousands of Ukrainians have flooded the streets of Kiev in the biggest anti-government protest since the 2004 Orange Revolution to demand President Viktor Yanukovych reverse a decision not to sign a key pact with the European Union. 

Ukrainian Nordic beauty, human-deva hybrids?

The rally, which may herald the most serious challenge to Yanukovych's authority since he came to power in 2010, ended with scuffles with police outside government offices.

Police [reacted] with teargas. Ukraine was to have signed a historic free trade and association deal with the EU at this week's Eastern Partnership summit in Vilnius, Lithuania. EU officials said Ukraine's abrupt U-turn came as a result of Kremlin pressure.

Riot police clash with Ukrainians near the cabinet building in Kiev (Alexey Furman/EPA)

 

Russia's president, Vladimir Putin, wants Kiev to join a Moscow-led customs union. [Allegedly] an estimated 45% of Ukraine's population support closer ties with the West instead.

 

Ukraine president is unpopular

"We want to be in Europe" said 46-year-old Liudmyla Babych, a saleswoman from Kiev, holding a placard reading, "Mr. President – the Ukrainian nation will not forgive you this treason."

 

The protesters marched through the streets of Kiev as part of a nationwide day of protest chanting the slogans "Out with the gang!" and "Ukraine is Europe" and singing songs popular during the Orange revolution. Tens of thousands of people held a peaceful meeting on... More

Who rules the Ukraine, people or gov't?

Wisdom Quarterly (COMMENTARY)

FEMEN stands against dictators in Ukraine

That was the headline in November. By the middle of December, the sides had grown in intensity. The police and politicians are conservatives, the people radicals for change -- greater trade and affiliation with the West. The EU versus RU (Russia, or what's left of the USSR), who will win the hearts and minds of the Ukrainians?

Oops, it's already been won by the EU. That will not stop Vlad Putin from putting inordinate pressure on its president to remain a Russian ally -- even if it means a massive and bloody police state intervention. Paramilitary police and secret forces are already on the scene beating civilians, deploying teargas, and planning for a major crackdown. People can simply not be allowed the delusion that their voice matters. When it comes to governing a modern "democracy," what matters most is what those tricky enough to rig elections decide. 

Ukraine protesters return en masse to central Kiev for pro-EU campaign

Shaun Walker and Oksana Grytsenko (theguardian.com)

Kiev, Dec. 15, 2013 (theguardian.com)

Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians brave freezing weather to demand EU integration despite suspension of negotiations on the agreement due to Russian interference.
 
Hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians braved freezing temperatures and aggressive [paramilitary] policing to return to central Kiev on Sunday to demand political change, sending a message to authorities that the crisis over the government's failure to sign an EU integration pact is unlikely to end soon.

With the news that the EU has suspended negotiations on the agreement likely to further inflame the mood, at least 200,000 people packed into Independence Square, known as the Maidan, to hear music and speeches from the trio of Ukrainian politicians who have attempted to lead the spontaneous outpouring of anger. More

TED: Doubt versus Belief (audio)

Seth Auberon, Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly; NPR/TED Staff (NPR.org, 11-24-13); SCPR.org

Believers and Doubters

Why do some of us believe in something greater than ourselves, while others of us do not? Can our doubts bring our beliefs into sharper focus? Or what is the difference between belief and faith? TED speakers, courtesy of Guy Raz and National Public Radio, offer personal perspectives on belief from all ends of the spectrum, from ardent atheists to the devout faithful.

Devil vs. Super Devil ("Family Guy")

First, the daughter of the Christian televangelist Billy Graham, Anne Graham Lotz, speaking for her elderly father on the difference between (rational) belief and (emotional) faith. Lesley Hazleton asks, Is doubt essential to faith? Former Catholic and SNL comedienne Julia Sweeny explores the journey, How does a person go from believer to atheist? Then Alain de Botton asks, What can atheism learn from religion? Finally, Indian Hindu intellectual Devdutt Pattanaik wants to know, Are there any universal beliefs and truths? LISTEN

• Contribute your story to The Moth radio hour (PRX)

Kimberly Reed (themoth.org, 11-12-13)

A high school quarterback leaves Montana as a promising son and returns years later to reveal a shocking secret; a boy from Sierra Leone describes his transformation from innocent child to cold-hearted soldier; a teenage girl discovers how to control her errant parrot; and a construction worker discovers the up-side of his girlfriend’s one-year prison sentence. LISTEN

Storytelling with a Beat

(SnapJudgment.org) American life is much richer and diverse than we usually get to hear on NPR. Host Glynn Washington is doing something, bringing us Snap Judgment's amazing array of stories with extras only available to the podcast audience and the story-behind-the-stories on Facebook.

 

This American Life

(512: House Rules, 11-22-13) Where we live is important. It can dictate the quality of the schools and hospitals we have access to, as well as things we will experience -- like cancer rates, unemployment statistics, or whether the city repairs roads in our neighborhood. On this week's show, stories about "destiny by geography." Much of this story is told to Nancy Updike by ProPublica reporter Nikole Hannah-Jones, whose series on the Fair Housing laws in modern America -- with more stories, research, and interviews — is here.

 

More comedy, more stories:

• WITS: Margaret Cho with Josh Ritter
• RadioLab (startling stories)
• Science Friday (top science news)
• BBC Newshour (a UK look at America)
• BBC World Service (a UK look at the world)
• The World (a BBC-American look)
  
• The Story
• Fresh Air (interviews by Terry Gross)
• Wait Wait... Don't Tell Me! (news as comedy)
• Ask Me Another (northern comedy)
• Car Talk (Harvard and MIT car fixers)
• Off-Ramp (local Los Angeles stories)
• A Prairie Home Companion (Garrison Keillor)
• The Splendid Table (foodie gluttony)
• On the Media (incisive look into the medium)
• Latino USA (news with a Latin twist)
• On Being (formerly "Speaking of Faith")
• Take Two Evenings (California stories)
• Bullseye

Reaching "heaven" on a private flight (video)

Amber Larson and Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly; LiveScience.com; AccessToInsight.org

Dragon (naga) and fairy (lesser deva) in European conception (mobile9.com)

(Virgin Galactic) Footage from the tail camera onboard SpaceShipTwo during Virgin Galactic's second rocket-powered test flight

 

The Happiest Country

Tia Ghose, LiveScience.com, Sept. 9, 2013

The happiest people in the world may live in [deva-visited] Scandinavia, a new study suggests.  That's according to the United Nations General Assembly's second World Happiness Report...

• Life found beneath ice-covered Antarctic lake
• NASA spacecraft cruising to Moon with novel design

Buddhist Heavens in Space

Warrior deva takes a stand (Charest)

In Buddhist cosmology, the heavenly or celestial (akasha) realms are blissful abodes whose present inhabitants (devas, lit. "shining ones") gained rebirth there through the power of their past meritorious karma (actions). 

 

Like all of the living beings still caught in the Cycle of Rebirth (samsara), however, these "deities," "angels," or advanced humanoids eventually succumb to old age, illness, and death. They eventually take rebirth in other realms -- pleasant or otherwise -- according to their deeds (karma). 

 

The devas, light beings, are NOT always especially knowledgeable or spiritually mature. In fact, many are quite intoxicated by their sensual indulgences, finer than human enjoyments but still rooted in sensuality. The devas are not considered worthy of veneration.

 

Nevertheless, the devas and their happy realms stand as important reminders to humans both of the happy benefits that ensue from the performance of meritorious skillful deeds and, finally, of the ultimate shortcomings of sensuality.

A Rare Rebirth

Blinded in this world [kama loka, "sensual sphere"] -- how few here see clearly! Just as birds who escape from a net cast to ensnare them are few, few also are the [number of] people who make it to heaven. — Dhp 174

Seeing for Oneself

"I have seen beings who -- endowed with beneficial bodily, verbal, and mental good conduct, who refrained from reviling noble ones (self-purified beings along the stages of enlightenment), who held right views, and undertook actions under the influence of right views -- at the break up of the body, after death, have reappeared in good destinations, even in the [lower sensual] heavenly world.

"It is not from having heard this from other ascetics and Brahmins that I tell you that I have seen such beings who...at the break up of the body, after death, have reappeared in good destinations, even in the heavenly world.

"Rather, it is from having known it myself, seen it myself, realized it myself that I tell you that I have seen such beings who...held right views and undertook actions under the influence of right views -- at the break up of the body, after death, have reappeared in good destinations, even in the heavenly world." — Iti 71 

Recollecting the Devas

Figurines in China (Jass Xia/jasspierxia/flickr)

"Furthermore, one ought to recollect the devas: 'There are the devas of the [realm of the] Four Great Kings, the devas of the Thirty-Three, the devas of the Hours, the Contented Devas, the devas who delight in creating, the devas who have power over the creations of others, the devas of Brahma's retinue, and the [many] devas beyond them.

"Whatever confidence (conviction, faith, view) they were endowed with when falling away from this life that led them to re-arise there -- the same sort of confidence is present in me!

 

Whatever virtue they were endowed with that when falling away from this life lead them to re-arise there -- the same sort of virtue is present in me!

 

Whatever learning (suta) they were endowed with when falling away from this life leading them to re-arise there -- the same sort of learning is present in me as well. 

 

Whatever generosity they were endowed with when falling away from this life that led them to re-arise there -- the same sort of generosity is present in me.

 

All human beings are potential devas or "light beings" (centraxis)

 

Whatever wisdom they were endowed with when falling away from this life that led them to rearise there -- the same sort of wisdom is present in me!'

 

At any time when a disciple of the noble ones is recollecting the confidence, virtue, learning, generosity, and wisdom found both in oneself and the devas, one's mind is not overcome with passion (greed), not overcome with aversion (hate), not overcome with delusion (e.g., wrong views). 

 

One's mind heads straight, based on the [qualities of the] devas. And when the mind is headed straight, the disciple of the noble ones gains a sense of the goal, gains a sense of the Dharma, gains joy connected with the Dharma.

 

In one who is joyful, rapture (piti) arises. In one who is full of rapture, the body grows calm. One whose body is calm experiences ease. In one at ease, the mind becomes concentrated." — AN 11.12

 More 

Mini Brain Grown from Human Stem Cells
LiveScience.com

(Infographic/LiveScience.com)