International Journal of Indian Psychology
March 25, 2016
Susan Thomas, Shobini L. Rao
19 citations
Listening to the Gayatri mantra activates specific brain regions, including the bilateral superior temporal gyri, right temporal lobe, right insula, left inferior parietal lobule, lateral globus pallidus, and culmen of the cerebellum. The study involved meditation-naive participants: 12 for EEG and 8 for fMRI. EEG changes were observed before and after listening, but reliable analysis was not possible due to the small sample size. The findings suggest that mantra meditation can produce changes in brain activity.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
June 8, 2025
A. N. Prajapati, Rakesh Varma
1 citation
The Yoga Sūtras, an ancient Indian philosophical text, offer a detailed account of consciousness, which they call Puruṣa or Cetanā, distinct from the material world (prakṛti). Unlike modern science's focus on the 'easy problem' of consciousness, the Yoga Darśana describes consciousness's existence, nature, and properties through logic, Āgama evidence, and empirical reasoning. The text presents a structured system for progressively developing consciousness, emphasizing the interplay between the mind (citta) and the self (Cetanā). This exploration suggests that Patanjali's perspective may provide insights into the 'hard problem' of consciousness, complementing modern approaches.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
February 17, 2026
Saidalavi Kundupuzhakkal
This article introduces the qualum approach, a framework that draws an analogy to quantum theory to explain metaphysical aspects of reality, particularly consciousness and subjective experience. The authors propose a Periodic Table of Mind Elements, modeled on chemistry's periodic table, which categorizes mental elements such as intelligence, emotions, and values. They argue that metaphysical reality follows a patterned structure composed of "qualum," conceptual units representing cognitive phenomena, and that these elements interact, cohere, or counterbalance one another. The article engages with psychological and philosophical themes including emotional intelligence and the problem of evil. The Delphi method was used to validate the proposed concepts.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
July 30, 2018
An 8-week Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) intervention was tested in a pilot study with 40 female college students aged 18–22. Half were assigned to the MBSR group and half to a control group. The study measured changes in mindfulness, attention, and perceived stress using the Kentucky Inventory of Mindfulness Skills (KIMS), Stroop task, change detection task, and the Perceived Stress Scale. The text describes the study design and measures but does not report any results or findings.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
July 20, 2017
A one-week body scan meditation intervention did not significantly reduce negative affect or increase positive affect in patients with alcohol dependence. Thirty in-patients with alcohol dependence syndrome were randomly assigned to either a group that received 45 minutes of guided body scan meditation plus 15 minutes of discussion daily for one week or a group that did not receive the meditation. Both groups continued pharmacological treatment as usual. After the intervention, the meditation group showed significantly less severe alcohol dependence, but no significant changes in affect were observed.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
June 30, 2017
A 36-year-old inpatient diagnosed with alcohol dependence disorder underwent one week of body scan meditation, a component of mindfulness-based stress reduction. After detoxification, the patient received 45 minutes of guided meditation and 15 minutes of discussion daily. Craving was significantly reduced following the intervention. The findings suggest that body scan meditation may be effective for reducing craving in alcohol dependence.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
April 25, 2017
Practicing Vipassana Meditation reduces academic stress in adolescents aged 15 to 18. An experiment with 50 adolescents in a non-randomized control group using a pre-test/post-test design found that the meditation practice significantly lowered academic stress, as measured by the Bisht Battery of Scale of Academic Stress. The results, analyzed with a two-sample t-test, indicate that Vipassana Meditation is an effective practice for reducing academic stress in this age group.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
March 25, 2016
Test anxiety is a common condition marked by intense fear of evaluation that can impair logical thinking and memory during exams. It typically begins early in life and often precedes other anxiety, mood, and substance use disorders. The condition causes significant distress and functional impairment in work and social settings, and it tends to persist without treatment. Its early onset amplifies negative outcomes including higher school dropout rates, poor social integration, and increased co-occurring mental health problems.
International Journal of Indian Psychology
June 25, 2015
A ten-day Vipassana meditation course (ten hours per day, three hundred hours total) improved life satisfaction among 120 student participants. Those who completed the course reported higher scores on the Satisfaction with Life Scale immediately afterward compared to a control group. The effect was analyzed using repeated-measures ANOVA, and the results indicate a positive effect of the meditation on life satisfaction.