Some four decades back, my younger brother Dr. Behanan T. Kovoor of Yale University measured the rate of oxygen consumption and respiratory volume to show the relationship between psycho-physiological effects during pranayama. The effects of the different types of pranayama have been studied on the gas-exchange in the lungs and the blood-gas composition. It has been found that the high concentration of carbon dioxide in the blood during pranayama can produce changes in the excitability of the nervous system. The unusual pattern of the brain wave of a person in deep meditation clearly indicates the deranged state of his mind. No sensible person, who has any knowledge of psychiatry, will accept this state of abnormality as a desirable thing. Such unusual patterns of brain waves are common among schizophrenics.
Many people talk about a feeling of well-being after a session of meditation. Such feeling of euphoria is not uncommon when a person starts using alcohol or hallucinatory drugs like Ganja, LSD, marijuana, peyote, etc.
