Unified Consciousness and the Effect of Body Scan Meditation on Happiness: Alteration of Inner-Body Experience and Feeling of Harmony as Central Processes.

Objectives: The main aim of this paper was to investigate the processes by which body scan meditation (BSM) increases happiness. We hypothesized that BMS would lead to a transition from the narrative self to the minimal self, but also and more importantly to a transition from the minimal self to a state of more unified consciousness characterized by both self-loss and oneness. Methods: Participants (n = 89; 79 women and 10 men; M_age = 19.5) were randomly assigned to either a body scan, a relaxing spiritual-minimalist style of music, or an active control condition. All constructs were assessed by means of self-report measures. Results: As expected, the increase in unified consciousness and happiness was greater in the BSM condition than in the two other conditions, with unified consciousness mediating the effect of BSM on happiness (b = 0.10, CI: 0.03, 0.19). Feeling of being in harmony emerges as a significant mediator of the effect of unified consciousness on happiness (b = 0.06, CI: 0.01, 0.13), while alteration in inner-body experience significantly mediates the effect of BSM on unified consciousness (b = 0.35, CI: 0.12, 0.62). The increase in decentering and decrease in mind-wandering during the meditation does not explain the effect of BSM on happiness and unified consciousness. Conclusions: Altogether, the results support the hypothesis that BSM alters both the narrative and the minimal self and favors a transition toward a state of unified consciousness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]