Split Brain, and the third stage of alchemy

The Bicameral Mind, or Split Brain

When the corpus collosum is split surgically in epileptics, there becomes "two minds", with the right and left hemispheres acting and thinking separately. In normal people, the right and left hemispheres must act in an integrated, or at least semi-integrated manner, with the right hemisphere in charge of planning and organization,and the left in charge of speech and analyzing. 

There are studies that show that we make some decisions before we consciously think about them. Is this the right hemisphere making these decisions, before the left(which we think of as "I" has a chance to analyze and come to a decision? Is the right hemisphere the "subconscious"? Does this subconscious have it's own sense of "I"? Does everyone really consist of two minds in one, that are so integrated, you can't tell the difference?

The Third Chakra and the Third Stage of Alchemy

I consider the seven chakras and the seven stages of alchemy to correspond. I think it is all the same thing, described in different ways. The third, or solar plexus chakra, deals with personal willpower, or choice. The third stage of alchemy deals with the separation of solar and lunar sides of the mind. I think this is the separation of the right and left hemispheres, or the two minds described above. (which is of course a psychic phenomena, and not a biological one). At this stage of alchemy, you "separate the wheat from the chaff", discarding the crap in your mind, bad behaviors, deciding what is morally good,and choosing to keep what is the good over the bad. Reintegration occurs at the fourth stage, conjunction. If you choose the crap at this stage, you do not reach conjunction, and do not evolve spiritually. 

Once got to watch a really cool video series on the seven stages of Alchemy. I wish I could remember how I found it so I could post it here for you. It was five or more years ago I am sure. Your right though it does tie into chakra work easily. 

I think a lot of these things tie in together, such as the Kabalistic tree of life. I think it is all about spiritual transformation.

I think you would find Theosophy interesting too. 

I've looked into it a little. It's on my list of areas to study

I think the easiest way to approach this is to think about what it means to be conscious of something.  If I am conscious of X then somewhere in my brain is a pattern of neural activity that 'encodes' X.  It doesn't matter if X is in the world - unless X is encoded in my brain I will not be conscious of it and conversely if X is encoded in my brain i will be conscious of it even if X isn't 'out there'.

So if a decision is made by my brain i will not be conscious of having made it until it gets encoded in a form suitble for me to be conscious of it.   That is one part of my brain makes the decision 'move left hand' and there is a small delay before that decision gets encoded elsewhere in the brain for purposes of consciousness.

Obviously making  the decision to move your hand is something that happens within the brain, but its clear that it happening within the brain isn't enough to make you conscious of making a decision;  the additional step of encoding 'A decision to move hand' is required to make you conscious of it and it appears that step takes about 1/2 a second.

what do you mean by encoded?

When you see a football (for example)) what happens is pattern of neurons and synaptic activity is set up in your brain.   That pattern of neural activity isn't a football but it encodes 'football'.   its not very different in principle from how a picture of a football is encoded as apattern of 1's and 0's inside a computer, but it's not always a great idea to draw parallels between brains and computers.  

There has been some progress in being able to measure brain activity and 'decode' what someone is aware of.

I think you are saying consciousness is a physical aspect of the brain. 

That is just an outdated theory, though, that doesn't hold water. It is pure speculation. 

The science of chakras has been around for thousands of years. Associating the mind with the brain(as in, psysically arising from the brain) is modern speculation. It has no base in reality. That the brain is a container for, or a reciever of consciousness is more likely accurate.

Either way, what does this have to do with the topic at hand? If you have nothing to add, even speculation on my theory, then why bother even responding?

Chakra do correspond to glands.  The speculative part is the "energy" associated with them.