[Buddha-l] Abhidharma vindicated once again

[Dan Lusthaus]

>was noted that,
> after twenty-nine hours of confinement, the yogin`s heart rate had
> accelerated to as many as 250 beats per minute. The yogi`s heartbeat
> prior to the experiment was 106 per minute. Suddenly, after thirty
> hours, the ECG from all twelve leads displayed "a straight line with no
> electrical disturbance", and this continued for the next 5 days. Having
> suspected that the leads may have become disconnected, the experimenters
> were amazed when, half an hour before the pit was due to be opened, the
> ECG tracings reappeared, registering a rate of 142 beats per minute.

Sorry, Erik. First, those heart rates are VERY high... suggesting he is 
excited, not calm (and likely has high blood pressure and a guilty 
conscience). Flatlining suggests he had a way out of the confinement and was 
disconnected, getting back into position and reconnecting when the time was 
right. Magicians do this sort of "trick" all the time. This would be much 
more convincing if he stopped his vital signs while wired up IN FULL VIEW. 
Some of the giveaway is that it jumpstarts at the ridiculously high rate of 
142 (twice a normal heartbeat), indicating he was anxious and exerting 
himself prior to reconnecting.

Yogis HAVE been measured and carefully objserved who can do unusual things, 
such as *slowing* their heart rates (but not stopping all together), raising 
the temperature in one palm while lowering it in another, so that there are 
10 degrees Fahrenheit difference between palms, and so on.

A normal heartrate would be somewhere in the 70-80 beats per minute range 
(some individuals may be a bit higher or lower). "The American Heart 
Association recommends an exercise target heart rate ranging from 50% to 75% 
of your maximum heart rate, which is normally calculated as the number 220 
minus your age." Here's a chart -- note the numbers on the left are rates 
for normal activity or rest, on the right during very high exertion.
http://www.heart.com/heart-rate-chart.html

The yogi's rates suggest he was huffing and puffing, exerting himself to get 
out, and after having worming his way back in. (it took his accomplices more 
than a day to reach him).

Dan