Begin Within

"This isn't abstract spirituality. I've lived it, chasing outcomes and mistaking motion for meaning, all while losing sight of the human pulse. Modern neuroscience echoes both my own experience and many spiritual traditions on this topic. Research suggests that our brains thrive on connection; for example, practicing empathy strengthens neural circuits that support creativity and problem-solving. When we feel disconnected, the stress response spikes and, over time, weakens the brain regions responsible for emotional regulation."

"Science confirms what we instinctively know: Our brains weren't made for constant digital stimulation but for the slower, richer rhythms of human connection. The solution isn't to create more apps and new ways of connecting. Rather, as so often, the best way to approach the future is by encouraging ourselves to wake to the present. We might say that the task is not so much to build a web of connection as it is to inhabit the one we already have."

Digital connectivity has increased global linking while intensifying loneliness, fragmentation, and emotional depletion. Persistent notifications and rapid communication create motion without meaningful progress or genuine connection. Reality reflects an ancient truth of dependent origination: nothing exists independently; everyone and everything is interdependent. Forgetting interdependence fuels anxiety, undermines collaboration, and accelerates burnout. Neuroscience shows that social connection and empathic practice strengthen neural circuits tied to creativity and problem-solving, whereas disconnection triggers stress responses and weakens emotional regulation. Brains are adapted for slower, embodied human rhythms rather than constant digital stimulation. The healthiest approach is to inhabit and deepen existing human connections by waking to the present.

Read at Psychology Today