Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42286132›Full record

ArticleCommunications biology2026

Non-duality in brain and experience of advanced meditators-key role for intrinsic neural timescales.

Malipeddi Saketh, Arun Sasidharan, Bianca Ventura, Rahul Venugopal, Clemens Christian Bauer, Prejaas K B Tewarie, Ravindra P Nagendra, Seema Mehrotra, John P John, Balachundhar Subramaniam and 3 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Communications biology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

13 authors.

Malipeddi SakethCentre for Consciousness Studies, Department of Neurophysiology, Old Administrative Block, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India. sakethreddy21@gmail.com.ORCID 0009-0005-2636-3605
Arun SasidharanCentre for Consciousness Studies, Department of Neurophysiology, Old Administrative Block, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India.ORCID 0000-0001-7090-2315
Bianca VenturaSchool of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada.
Rahul VenugopalCentre for Consciousness Studies, Department of Neurophysiology, Old Administrative Block, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India.
Clemens Christian BauerMcGovern Institute for Brain Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
Prejaas K B TewarieJoint International Research Unit on Consciousness, CERVO Brain Research Centre, University of Laval, Québec City, QC, Canada.
Ravindra P NagendraCentre for Consciousness Studies, Department of Neurophysiology, Old Administrative Block, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India.
Seema MehrotraDepartment of Clinical Psychology, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India.
John P JohnMulti-modal Brain Image Analysis Laboratory, Department of Psychiatry, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India.
Balachundhar SubramaniamSadhguru Center for a Conscious Planet, Department of Anesthesiology, Critical Care and Pain Medicine, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brookline, MA, USA.
Steven LaureysJoint International Research Unit on Consciousness, CERVO Brain Research Centre, University of Laval, Québec City, QC, Canada.
Bindu M KuttyCentre for Consciousness Studies, Department of Neurophysiology, Old Administrative Block, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), Bengaluru, India.
Georg NorthoffCentre for Cognition and Brain Disorders, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China. gnorthoff@theroyal.ca.ORCID 0000-0002-5236-0951

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Distinguishing between self (internal) and environment (external) is fundamental to human experience, yet mind-body traditions describe non-dual states where this boundary dissolves. However, the neural basis of non-duality remains underexplored. We investigate this in advanced and novice meditators from the Isha Yoga tradition and meditation-naïve controls using psychological scales and EEG-based intrinsic neural timescales (INT). Subjects perform breath-watching meditation (internal attention) and a cognitive task (external attention), allowing us to operationalize non-duality as reduced internal-external distinction. Key findings include: (a) advanced meditators report stronger non-dual experiences during breath-watching than novices and controls; (b) across participants, INTs are longer during internal than external attention; (c) advanced meditators show similar INT durations between internal and external attention; and (d) this reduced INT difference correlates with stronger reported non-dual experiences. These results suggest that similar duration of intrinsic neural timescales during internal and external attention may serve as a neural signature of non-duality.

Indexed as

BrainMeditationAdultAttentionCognitionElectroencephalographyFemaleHumansMaleMiddle Aged

Identifiers

PMID42286132
PMCPMC13616908

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.