Neuroplasticity Quotes

“Any man could, if he were so inclined, be the sculptor of his own brain.”
― Santiago Ramon y Cajal, Advice for a Young Investigator

“Where attention goes, neural firing flows, and neural connection grows.”
― Daniel J. Siegel

“Let a man radically alter his thoughts, and he will be astonished at the rapid transformation it will effect in the material conditions of his life. Men imagine that thought can be kept secret, but it cannot; it rapidly crystallizes into habit, and habit solidifies into circumstance. Bestial thoughts crystallize into habits of drunkenness and sensuality, which solidify into circumstances of destitution and disease: impure thoughts of every kind crystallize into enervating and confusing habits, which solidify into distracting and adverse circumstances: thoughts of fear, doubt, and indecision crystallize into weak, unmanly, and irresolute habits, which solidify into circumstances of failure, indigence, and slavish dependence: lazy thoughts crystallize into habits of uncleanliness and dishonesty, which solidify into circumstances of foulness and beggary: hateful and condemnatory thoughts crystallize into habits of accusation and violence, which solidify into circumstances of injury and persecution: selfish thoughts of all kinds crystallize into habits of self-seeking, which solidify into circumstances more or less distressing. On the other hand, beautiful thoughts of all kinds crystallize into habits of grace and kindliness, which solidify into genial and sunny circumstances: pure thoughts crystallize into habits of temperance and self-control, which solidify into circumstances of repose and peace: thoughts of courage, self-reliance, and decision crystallize into manly habits, which solidify into circumstances of success, plenty, and freedom: energetic thoughts crystallize into habits of cleanliness and industry, which solidify into circumstances of pleasantness: gentle and forgiving thoughts crystallize into habits of gentleness, which solidify into protective and preservative circumstances: loving and unselfish thoughts crystallize into habits of self-forgetfulness for others, which solidify into circumstances of sure and abiding prosperity and true riches.

A particular train of thought persisted in, be it good or bad, cannot fail to produce its results on the character and circumstances. A man cannot directly choose his circumstances, but he can choose his thoughts, and so indirectly, yet surely, shape his circumstances.”
― James Allen, As a Man Thinketh

“If you believe you can change—if you make it a habit—the change becomes real. This is the real power of habit: the insight that your habits are what you choose them to be. Once that choice occurs—and becomes automatic—it’s not only real, it starts to seem inevitable.”
― Charles Duhigg, The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business

“NirVana chakra is the chakra of neuroplasticity. It allows the brain to continuously change and adapt, and build new neural connections as needed, and abandoning the pathways that drags people down.”
― Amit Ray, Ray 114 Chakra System Names, Locations and Functions

“Meditation has also been proven scientifically to untangle and rewire the neurological pathways in the brain that make up the conditioned personality. Buddhist monks, for example, have had their brains scanned by scientists as they sat still in deep altered states of consciousness invoked by transcendental meditation and the scientists were amazed at what they beheld. The frontal lobes of the monks lit up as bright as the sun! They were in states of peace and happiness the scientists had never seen before. Meditation invokes that which is known in neuroscience as neuroplasticity; which is the loosening of the old nerve cells or hardwiring in the brain, to make space for the new to emerge. Meditation, in this sense, is a fire that burns away the old or conditioned self, in the Bhagavad Gita, this is known as the Yajna;

“All karma or effects of actions are completely burned away from the liberated being who, free from attachment, with his physical mind enveloped in wisdom (the higher self), performs the true spiritual fire rite.”
― Craig Krishna, The Labyrinth: Rewiring the Nodes in the Maze of your Mind

“Your brain loves habits because they are simple, structured, well-known, energy efficient, quick, and automatic.”
― Stan Jacobs, The Dusk And Dawn Master: A Practical Guide to Transforming Evening and Morning Habits, Achieving Better Sleep, and Mastering Your Life

“The old adage we usually hear is that “practice makes perfect.” Based on what we know about neuroplasticity and deliberate practice, we should rephrase that to read, “practice makes permanent.” As you organize yourself for this self-reflective prep work, remember that it is not about being perfect but about creating new neural pathways that shift your default cultural programming as you grow in awareness and skill.”
― Zaretta L. Hammond, Culturally Responsive Teaching and The Brain: Promoting Authentic Engagement and Rigor Among Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Students

“Spiritual and emotional recovery are possible because the human brain is a living organ that we can transform by making new choices and being in non-shaming recovery-based environments.”
― Christopher Dines, Drug Addiction Recovery: The Mindful Way

“An influx of new research explores how our brains do continue to change and how our very thoughts impact those changes. This natural tendency of our brains to rewire is called neuroplasticity, which can be influenced by both external and internal factors.”
― Tina Hallis, Sharpen Your Positive Edge: Shifting Your Thoughts for More Positivity and Success

“The way your mind is structured will determine the person you will become, the life you will live, and the fulfillment you will realize. When you modify your mind, you make changes to the operating system at your core and change your personal trajectory. And when you make a persistent occupation of this endeavor, you become the architect of your own character.”
― Designing the Mind, Designing the Mind: The Principles of Psychitecture

“I was suitably impressed with the eighty-six billion neurons that glittered like stars in the skull but was a little overwhelmed by the idea that the constellations could be moved, shaped, and changed negatively and positively.”
― Jennifer Fraser, The Bullied Brain: Heal Your Scars and Restore Your Health

“The beauty of neuroplasticity is that when you make changes to what you remember and how you remember it, what you do and how you do it, your brain overrides the old neural networks with new ones.”
― Jennifer Fraser, The Bullied Brain: Heal Your Scars and Restore Your Health

“With your brain veritably defined by its dynamic neuroplasticity, the cage that holds you back is an illusion. Your brain potential is unlimited.”
― Jennifer Fraser, The Bullied Brain: Heal Your Scars and Restore Your Health

“[We can use] play as a means to enhance neuroplasticity and explore novel situations, regardless of age.”
― Andrew Huberman

“The modern fascination with neuroplasticity has led many to try to optimize their intelligence, memory, and concentration. People obsessively track and optimize their sleep, nutrition, and exercise regimens. But people who obsessively and directly optimize the structure of their minds for flourishing are less common."

- Designing the Mind: The Principles of Psychitecture”
― Designing the Mind, Designing the Mind: The Principles of Psychitecture

“Societal pressures work to pull you up to the line of psychological adequacy, and psychotherapy can be used when society falls short. But these aims are far too low. Falling within the current normal range of psychological health is nothing to aspire to. We are interested in far exceeding this line - in psychological greatness.”
― Designing the Mind, Designing the Mind: The Principles of Psychitecture

“healing is not just a desired outcome of treatment, it is a potential that is there from the start. We are wired to heal, to right ourselves, to grow and transform. This is not just a metaphor. It is what neuroplasticity is about.”
― Hilary Jacobs Hendel, It's Not Always Depression: Working the Change Triangle to Listen to the Body, Discover Core Emotions, and Connect to Your Authentic Self

“The quality of the mind is greatly shaped by that of the brain.”
― Mokokoma Mokhonoana

“Chakra 44 is modulated by vagal tone and reflected in heart rate variability. It embodies compassion as a neuroplasticity process—where emotional regulation, breath, and autonomic balance converge.”
― Sri Amit Ray, The Secrets of 114 Chakras

“The brain devotes more cortical real estate to functions that its owner uses more frequently and shrinks the space devoted to activities rarely performed. That's why the brains of violinists devote more space to the region that controls the digits of the fingering hand. In response to the actions and experiences of its owner, a brain forges stronger connections in circuits that underlie one behavior or thought and weakens the connections in others.”
― Sharon Begley, Train Your Mind, Change Your Brain: How a New Science Reveals Our Extraordinary Potential to Transform Ourselves

“Psychitecture is a high-level design and implementation process - creative problem-solving for the subjective experience - and when utilized persistently, it can take a mind that is like a prison and gradually transform it into a palace.”
― Designing the Mind, Designing the Mind: The Principles of Psychitecture

“Here‘s the good news: our brains are flexible and designed for learning and adaptation in a phenomenon known as neuroplasticity, so we can reprogram at any time in the life span and make genuine, radical changes. With the right tools, a human being can travel the Lam Rim (the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment), from ordinary neurotic to extraordinary hero . . . all the way to a Buddha. (p. 77)”
― Miles Neale, Gradual Awakening: The Tibetan Buddhist Path of Becoming Fully Human

“Davidson had become a strong believer in the concept of neuroplasticity, the idea that people’s brains will physically change over time and that those changes can depend on their life experiences.”
― Sam Walker, The Captain Class: The Hidden Force that Creates the World's Greatest Teams

“In nature nothing is hardwired, everything is livewired, everything is evolvable.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Find A Cause Outside Yourself: Sermon of Sustainability

“Life unplastic is life unsapient.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Either Right or Human: 300 Limericks of Inclusion

“…taking responsibility for one's own mind can lead to liberation of the self, and to the ability to offer nurturance and love to the next generation.”
― Daniel J. Siegel, Mindsight: The New Science of Personal Transformation

“Neuroplasticity is one of the true wonders of the mind.”
― Stephanie Cacioppo, Wired for Love: A Neuroscientist's Journey Through Romance, Loss, and the Essence of Human Connection

“The role of fear is especially relevant in neuroplastic healing. If the brain comes to believe that something harmless is dangerous, that belief causes fear that can create or contribute to pain and illness. The healing insight of neuroplasticity is that this association can be reversed: the false sense of danger that causes the fear— and the baseless fear that causes the pain— can be unlearned, and the pain can ease and the body can heal.”
― Tom Rosshirt, Chasing Peace: A Story of Breakdowns, Breakthroughs, and the Spiritual Power of Neuroscience

“To be aware is to rewire.”
― Abhijit Naskar, Neurosonnets: The Naskar Art of Neuroscience