Off-campus UMass Amherst users: To download campus access theses, please use the following link to log into our proxy server with your UMass Amherst user name and password.
Non-UMass Amherst users: Please talk to your librarian about requesting this thesis through interlibrary loan.
Theses that have an embargo placed on them will not be available to anyone until the embargo expires.
Access Type
Open Access
Document Type
thesis
Degree Program
Psychology
Degree Name
Thesis (M.S.)
Year Degree Awarded
1973
Keywords
Meditation, Personality
Abstract
In view of mankind's never-ending search for emotional stability, contentment and peace of mind, it is surprising that so little research has been undertaken in the investigation of the practice of meditation which - according to the claims of its practitioners, ancient and modern - can bring about just these effects- Meditation can be defined as a narrowing of the field of attention in a manner, and for a time determined by the will. The mind is made one-pointed, does not waver, does not scatter itself, and it becomes steady like the flame of a lamp in the absence of wind. (Conze, 1969, p. 19) The object of meditation may be a physical object, a mental image, a phrase or an idea, the choice within these categories being determined by the supposed effect of the object upon the consciousness of the meditator.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.7275/k52c-0w45