Cognitive performance with Trataka and breath focused meditation
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Background. Meditation may influence attention and memory, but effects depend on the practice, exposure, cognitive task and study design. We examined acute Trataka exposure, habitual breath focused practice and short sequences of repeated cognitive testing. Methods. This exploratory report consolidated five studies documented in a physiology dissertation. Two experiments compared 15 minutes of Trataka gaze fixation with a seated control condition for visual reaction time (15 participants per group) and immediate word recall (34 versus 38 participants). An independent-group observational comparison included 10 experienced meditators and 10 controls. The same volunteer completed six-day Stroop and Go/No-Go AB series, each comprising three baseline days followed by three days with 2-3 hours of daily breath focused meditation. Between-group comparisons used Welch tests and 95% confidence intervals (CIs); single-participant trajectories were analysed descriptively. Results. The between-group difference in acute reaction-time improvement was 6.27 ms (95% CI -2.17 to 14.71; P = 0.139). The difference in word-recall change was -0.70 words (95% CI -3.15 to 1.75; P = 0.571). Experienced meditators had a mean reaction time of 292.0 ms versus 320.1 ms in controls; the independent-group difference was -28.10 ms (95% CI -60.88 to 4.68; P = 0.088). In the Stroop series, normal and incongruent reaction times decreased by 134.47 and 186.77 ms between phases, although improvement had already begun during baseline. Go/No-Go mean reaction time decreased by 5.09 ms; comparison with baseline days 2-3 instead showed a 0.80-ms increase. Conclusions. A single Trataka session did not demonstrate a clear advantage in either acute outcome. Habitual-practice and Stroop findings remain exploratory because of confounding, practice effects and small samples. Controlled replication is needed before attributing these differences to meditation. Keywords: Trataka; Anapanasati; meditation; reaction time; immediate recall; Stroop; Go/No-Go
Institutions: NIMS University, Andhra University
Language: English
Subfield: Clinical Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7219655100