Meditation has stronger relationships with mindfulness, kundalini, and mystical experiences than yoga or prayer.
Consciousness and cognition September 1, 2015 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2015.04.022 via PubMed
Summary
The amount of practice in meditation, yoga, contemplative prayer, or a combination of these practices influences mindfulness and possibly mystical experiences. All practices were associated with enhancements in mindfulness, kundalini effects, and mystical experiences, with meditation showing particularly strong associations. The primary link between these practices and the outcomes appears to be real-time awareness and appreciation of sensory experiences.
Study at a glance
| Population | Individuals who self-reported engaging in meditation, yoga, contemplative prayer, or a combination of these practices |
|---|---|
| Key finding | The amount of contemplative practice influences mindfulness and possibly mystical experiences, with meditation having the strongest associations. |
Abstract
Contemplative practices can have profound effects on mindfulness and on physical and sensory and mystical experiences. Individuals who self-reported meditation, yoga, contemplative prayer, or a combination of practices and their patterns of practice were compared for mindfulness, kundalini effects, and mystical experiences. The results suggest that the amount of practice but not the pattern and social conditions of practice influences mindfulness and possibly mystical experiences. Meditation, yoga, contemplative prayer, or a combination of practices all were found to be associated with enhancements of mindfulness, kundalini effects, and mystical experiences, but meditation had particularly strong associations and may be the basis of the associations of yoga and prayer with these outcomes. The results further suggest that the primary association of contemplative practices is with the real time awareness and appreciation of sensory and perceptual experiences which may be the intermediary between disparate practices and mindfulness, kundalini effects, and mystical experiences.