Influence of Vipassana, Raja Yoga and Sudarshan Kriya Yoga on Well-being and Character strengths
Purushartha - A Journal of Management Ethics and Spirituality August 17, 2022 Nikhil Mahindroo, Manjari Srivastava, Vidya Naik
Practitioners of three Indian meditation traditions—Vipassana mindfulness meditation, Raja Yoga, and Sudarshan Kriya Yoga—report higher well-being than non-meditators. In a cross-sectional study of 168 healthy adults, meditators showed significantly greater satisfaction with life, positive affect, flourishing, presence of meaning in life, and character strengths (hope, gratitude, curiosity, zest, love), along with lower negative affect. Effect sizes were medium to large (Cohen's d: .572 to .955), and longer meditation practice was associated with stronger benefits. Flourishing was largely explained by satisfaction with life, positive affect, hope, gratitude, and presence of meaning. These practices are presented as evidence-based, universally accessible tools to promote mental health.