Brain-electric activity during eyes open Brahma Kumaris Rajayoga meditation.
Kanishka Sharma, Peter Achermann, Bhawna Panwar, Shrikant Sahoo, Ramakrishnan Angarai, Roberto D Pascual-Marqui, Pascal L Faber
May 8, 2020 DOI: 10.31231/osf.io/e48bv (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 52 |
| Population | Brahma Kumaris Rajayoga meditators |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key findings | Seed stage meditation reduces delta and increases low alpha brain activity, affecting networks involved in attention, self-processing, and the experience of the soul. |
Abstract
Brahma Kumaris Rajayoga’s open eyed ‘seed stage meditation’ was studied in 52 meditators. Meditation stages: concentration on peace, realization of being a soul and communion with the Supreme Soul. Frequency domain brain electric source localization was used on multichannel EEG recordings to establish activation differences between meditation and open eyed, task-free resting. Additional exploratory analyses probed for effects of passing time from initial rest through meditation to final rest. Meditation showed reduced activity in delta and increased activity in low alpha frequencies. Affected brain areas comprised the following networks: central executive network, mirroring network, task-positive and task-negative network. These altered activations reflect the main cognitive-affective and behavioral specifics of seed stage meditation: attention modulation, self-related processing, experiencing the soul as a point of light between the eyes, endowing the soul with the properties (peacefulness) of the Supreme Soul. Future studies need to differentiate between the stages of the meditation.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness Undergraduate students | 2006 | Observational cohort | |
| Effectiveness of a meditation-based stress reduction program in the treatment of anxiety disorders Patients with generalized anxiety disorder or panic disorder with or without agoraphobia | 1992 | Observational cohort | n = 22 |
| Meditation experience is associated with increased cortical thickness Participants with extensive Insight meditation experience and matched controls | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 20 |
| Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Experienced meditators and matched meditation-naive controls | 2011 | Observational cohort | |
| Long-term meditators self-induce high-amplitude gamma synchrony during mental practice Long-term Buddhist practitioners and controls | 2004 | Observational cohort |
Citations in the library
Cited by 4
- Necessity and Significance of Meditation in Life Journal of Advanced Research in Ayurveda Yoga Unani Sidhha & Homeopathy October 8, 2020
- Coherence-based interhemispheric EEG functional connectivity changes in distinct frequency bands during eyes open meditation bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) February 6, 2023
- Effect of Raja Yoga Meditation on the Distress and Anxiety Levels of Women with Breast Cancer Religions July 31, 2021
- Characterization of Meditation EEG based on Consistency of Covariance Matrices over Time IEEE India Conference December 10, 2020
Cites 14
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- Meditation experience is associated with differences in default mode network activity and connectivity Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences November 23, 2011
- Meditation leads to reduced default mode network activity beyond an active task Cognitive, Affective, & Behavioral Neuroscience April 22, 2015
- Neural correlates of nondual awareness in meditation. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences 2014
- Toward a unifying taxonomy and definition for meditation Frontiers in Psychology 2013
and 9 more in the library