Yoga & Meditation: A Study on Influence of Mindfulness-Based Practices on Empathy and Self-Transcendence among Young Adults

Yoga and Meditation are the mindful practices people have been gaining benefits from ancient times and believed to heal us through awareness, knowledge and wisdom. Modern day yoga and meditation practice centres around holistic healing, exploring the mind-body connection and embracing our body as the source of enlightenment of our body through asanas, breathwork and deep relaxation techniques. Empathy is a state of being mindful of others’ experiences, thoughts and emotions. Both Empathy and mindfulness succour the development of self-transcendence as it is an eventual shift of awareness from entirely on self to others. The present study intends to assess the effect of Mindfulness-based practices like yoga and meditation on the levels of Empathy and Self-transcendence of Yoga/Mediation Practitioners and Non-Practitioners. The study was conducted on 50 Yoga/Meditation Practitioners and 50 Non-practitioners. Standardised measures of Mindfulness, Empathy and Self-Transcendence were administered on the participants. The results concluded a significant difference in the level of mindfulness, empathy and self-transcendence among yoga/meditation practitioners and non-practitioners. Further research on what other mindfulness-based practices can lead to deeper insight as much work is needed to understand the relation between mindfulness and self-transcendence & empathy and self-transcendence.