Paul J Mills1, Christine Tara Peterson1,2, Meredith A Pung1, Sheila Patel1,3, Lizabeth Weiss3, Kathleen L Wilson1, P Murali Doraiswamy4, Jeffery A Martin5, Rudolph E Tanzi6, Deepak Chopra1,2,3. 1. 1 Department of Family Medicine and Public Health, University of California , San Diego, La Jolla, CA. 2. 2 The Chopra Foundation , Carlsbad, CA. 3. 3 Mind-Body Medical Group, The Chopra Center for Wellbeing, Carlsbad, CA. 4. 4 Department of Psychiatry and Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University, Durham, NC. 5. 5 Sophia University, Transformative Technology Laboratory, Palo Alto, CA. 6. 6 Department of Neurology at Harvard University and Genetics and Aging Research Unit, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Abstract
OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effects of a comprehensive mind-body program on sense of nondual awareness and spiritual awakening. DESIGN AND INTERVENTION: The study compared the effects of participation in an intensive 6-day Ayurveda-based mind-body program that addressed physical, emotional, and spiritual domains as compared with a control condition. SETTING: Resort setting. SUBJECTS: Participants were 69 healthy women and men (mean age 53.9 years; range 32-86). OUTCOME MEASURE: The primary outcome was the Nondual Embodiment Thematic Inventory (NETI). RESULTS: A significant group by time interaction (p = 0.029) indicated that after the intervention, participants in the mind-body program showed a significant increase in NETI scores (p < 0.03), which was sustained 1 month later (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Findings suggest that an intensive program providing holistic instruction and experience in mind-body practices can lead to a significant and sustained shift in perception of self-awareness, one that is likely favorable to well-being.
OBJECTIVE: This study examined the effects of a comprehensive mind-body program on sense of nondual awareness and spiritual awakening. DESIGN AND INTERVENTION: The study compared the effects of participation in an intensive 6-day Ayurveda-based mind-body program that addressed physical, emotional, and spiritual domains as compared with a control condition. SETTING: Resort setting. SUBJECTS:Participants were 69 healthy women and men (mean age 53.9 years; range 32-86). OUTCOME MEASURE: The primary outcome was the Nondual Embodiment Thematic Inventory (NETI). RESULTS: A significant group by time interaction (p = 0.029) indicated that after the intervention, participants in the mind-body program showed a significant increase in NETI scores (p < 0.03), which was sustained 1 month later (p < 0.01). CONCLUSION: Findings suggest that an intensive program providing holistic instruction and experience in mind-body practices can lead to a significant and sustained shift in perception of self-awareness, one that is likely favorable to well-being.