Body, Soul, and Spirit: An Explorative Qualitative Study of Anthroposophic Meditation and Spiritual Practice
Religions June 26, 2020 Peer reviewed DOI: 10.3390/rel11060314 via Semantic Scholar
Summary
Long-term practitioners of Anthroposophic meditation report experiences organized into seven main themes: self, cognition, perception, affect, sleep, embodiment, and environment, with 32 subthemes. This form of meditation, focused on cognition, self-development, and pro-social action, yields novel areas for inquiry including strengthening the self, contemplative inquiry, sensed presences, phenomenological atmospheres, sleep consciousness, embodied aspects, practice in daily life, and meditation challenges.
Study at a glance
| Design | qualitative study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 30 |
| Population | long-term practitioners of Anthroposophic meditation |
| Key finding | Seven main themes (self, cognition, perception, affect, sleep, embodiment, environment) and 32 subthemes characterize the experience of Anthroposophic meditation. |
Abstract
This article presents the results of a qualitative study of Anthroposophic meditation, which arose in the German-speaking world in the early 20th Century focusing on cognition, self-development, and pro-social action. The objective was to explore this previously unstudied form of meditation. The current sample (N = 30) consists of long-term practitioners of Anthroposophic meditation. Semi-structured interviews, focusing on demographics, background, and phenomenology and interpretation, were conducted with these practitioners. The material gathered was investigated using thematic analysis. Seven main themes were found: Self, cognition, perception, affect, sleep, embodiment, and environment, and, among these, 32 subthemes. Potential avenues for further research are outlined. Some of these overlap with current approaches to meditation while others represent new areas of inquiry: Personal development with a focus on strengthening the self, introspection or contemplative inquiry, sensed presences, the experience of phenomenological atmospheres, consciousness in the sleep state, embodied aspects of meditation experience, the relationship between practice and daily life, and meditation challenges.