There is a school of thought that suggests that the brain, rather than being the seat of our mindfulness, our consciousness, is a means of limiting consciousness.
The more the brain is calmed, suppressed, quietened, the greater the consciousness experienced, as though once the brain can be somewhat switched off a greater amount of the conscious self is experienced. The harder you try to think, the more brain activity we have the less we experience consciousness.
Certain drugs, for example, produce hallucinogenic experiences, vast shifts and increases in consciousness and yet when the brain is viewed via CT scan many areas of the brain have become relatively inactive. Meditation is another example of increased consciousness while at the same time reducing the brains activity.
It is very complex and there is so much more yet to learn about this subject. The brain is like a conduit that allows the mind-self, our "human" consciousness, perhaps we are even talking about the human soul, to enter into physical reality with our instincts and survival skills intact and at the same time maintains a balance between how much consciousness we can experience as physical beings and some greater consciousness that seems to be external to physical reality.
