Meditation shortens the time it takes for the brain to process sounds in the auditory association cortex, as measured by a faster P2 component of long latency auditory evoked potentials. In contrast, random thinking and nonmeditative focusing reduce the number of neurons recruited in the secondary auditory cortex, auditory association cortex, and anterior cingulate cortex, shown by smaller peak amplitudes of P1, P2, and N2 components. The study assessed 60 male participants aged 18–31 years across four mental states based on traditional texts.
Meditation, as described in traditional yoga texts, delays auditory information transmission at the level of the medial geniculate and primary auditory cortex. In 60 participants, the Na and Pa components of mid-latency auditory evoked potentials showed prolonged latencies during meditation compared to random thinking, nonmeditative-focused thinking, and meditative focusing. Meditative focusing did not produce this effect. The findings suggest that meditation, but not mere focused attention, alters early sensory processing.