Imaging Cerebral and Sub-cerebral Correlates of Meditative States (calm)

Three groups of subjects are trained to practice mindfulness meditation, compassion meditation, or attend a health training control class. Individuals from each group will undergo structural and functional brain imaging before and after training. The hypothesis is that the compassion meditation group will show the largest changes in brain structure and function. In a second series of experiments, the subjects practicing a Tibetan meditation practice will be undergo MRI thermometry imaging to construct detailed three dimensional temperature maps of their bodies before, during, and after they perform this practice.