ABSTRACT
Kama muta motes presumably involve the parasympathetic system including activation of some specific subset of the vast bundle of neurons called the vagal nerve. The security of feeling that one is ‘in’ or ‘has’ communal sharing (CS) relationships, that one belongs to something enduring that transcends the individual self, seems to have an effect on mood. This may be why kama muta motes are exhilarating – even beyond the moment of the emotion proper. Kama muta motes evoked by fiction, videos, television, radio, cinema, deities, nature, music, dancing, sports, pets, patriotism, participation in social movements, and online forums that link otherwise isolated people might well have an additional health effect on top of the effect of kama muta motes with friends and kin. It would be important to sort out the relative health benefits of these various kinds of CS relationships, and whether, when, and how kama muta mediates such benefits.
