The increasingly competitive life of modern age has added to increased incidence of psychological problems in all the societies around the world. There is an increase in stress levels, psychosomatic disorders and suicide rates amongst children and youth. Efforts are needed to identify solutions like empowering children and young people by giving them the tools to develop self-reflection, self-protection, self-regulation, and holistic self-development. There are several types of meditative practices that serve as tools-Mindfulness Meditation being one amongst them.
For the present study, it was hypothesized that charkha spinning, an age-old practice of spinning cotton thread is a way of practicing mindfulness meditation with measurable cognitive development and mental health benefits. It helps improve intelligence, concentration, multitasking abilities, patience, motor activity, mind-body coordination, processing speed, self-awareness amongst its practitioners. It was intended to evaluate the changes before and after regular spinning of charkha measured using psychological tools.
The present study has added that Mindfulness Meditation can also be practiced by spinning ‘charkha’. The study undertaken as a pilot project in children has shown encouraging results in improving the IQ, logical abilities, concentration, processing speed and overall development of the brain. Also, the spirituality quotient and feeling of ‘being’ is enhanced after continuous attention to charkha spinning.
