Implementing and developing a rumi meditation-based intervention for the stress and anxiety of individuals: a 7-weeks follow-up group therapy

Most therapies today include meditation practices in addition to a variety of cognitive or behavioral techniques. The inspiration for such practices has traditionally been Buddhism, but Islamic thought has not been included in this development, despite the growing need for mental health support among the Muslim population. In this context, Sufism and especially Mevlana's teachings seem promising in terms of consciousness studies and culturally sensitive therapies. In this direction, the aim of the study is to determine the effect of Rumi Meditation on individuals with stress-anxiety. Within the scope of this purpose, the concept of meditation was emphasized in the first three chapters of the study and examples of its use in psychotherapy were given, the types of spiritual meditation among world traditions and Islamic meditation in particular were mentioned, the Sufi tradition and finally the psychological aspect of Mevlana's teaching and its practical application were mentioned. In the fourth part, 10 adults with high stress/anxiety levels were randomly assigned to the experimental and control groups in five ways to test the hypotheses created for the purpose. While no procedure was applied to the control group, a 120-minute, 7-session focus group interview was conducted once a week with the experimental group. The Integrated Anxiety Stress and Mood Profile Scale were applied to both groups before and after the focus group interviews, and the results were analyzed using SPSS 22. As a result of the analyzes made, it was determined that Rumi Meditation has a positive effect on individuals with stress-anxiety.