Catherine Prueitt

2 papers in the library · publishing 2025-2026

Papers

Extending the Scientific Study of Advanced Meditation Across Contemplative Traditions to Sufism within Islam: A Comparison Case of Self-Attenuation including Theravāda Buddhism and Tibetan Dzogchen

PsyArXiv May 27, 2026 Asiya Gul, Sebastian Ehmann, Catherine Prueitt et al. preprint

This theoretical paper proposes extending the scientific study of advanced meditation to Sufism within Islam, comparing self-attenuation practices across Theravāda Buddhism, Tibetan Dzogchen, and Sufi traditions. The authors argue that contemplative traditions beyond Buddhism, particularly Sufism, offer valuable but underexplored models for understanding advanced meditative states and their effects on self-related processing. By examining similarities and differences in how these traditions conceptualize and cultivate self-transcendence, the paper suggests that a broader cross-traditional framework can enrich scientific understanding of meditation's transformative potential. The analysis highlights common themes of self-diminishment and non-dual awareness while respecting each tradition's unique doctrinal and practical contexts.

DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/wjnuc_v1

Reimagining pain as an allostatic imperative: perspectives from contemplative traditions.

Neuroscience of consciousness January 1, 2025 Catherine Prueitt, Idil Sezer, Matthew D Sacchet

Pain is an allostatic imperative that commands an organism to adapt a part of its body. Drawing on empirical studies of pain reprocessing during advanced meditation, allostatic paradigms of biological self-regulation, and the philosophy of pain in the classical Sanskrit Pratyabhijñā Śaivism tradition, this paper theorizes two components of an allostatic response: homeostatic responses, which are error-corrective and aim to return to a previous stable state, and heterostatic responses, which are anticipatory and shift to a new steady state to better prepare for future challenges. Successful adaptation depends on both error-correction and anticipatory change. A broad range of affect properly accompanies pain, and the model may extend to mental pain.

DOI: 10.1093/nc/niaf049 Full text Meditation Allostasis Contemplative traditions Neurophenomenology +2