Muslims and Mindfulness Training: Teachers’ and Trainees’ Perspectives
Mindfulness July 3, 2026 Eman AlBedah, Vuokko Wallace, Paul Chadwick
Muslims who have taken mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) and the teachers who deliver those interventions report initial tensions and worries about whether secular mindfulness conflicts with Islam or Muslim cultures. Over time, many participants found that mindfulness training deepened their spirituality and sense of common humanity, despite a lack of evidence-based guidelines for integrating the two. The study identifies four themes: tensions between mindfulness and Islam or culture; confusion over what is secular versus Islamic; developing trust in the process and teachers; and discoveries of enhanced connectedness and spirituality. Teachers and graduates made evolving assumptions and decisions as they progressed through MBI programs.