Trāṭaka and Gāyatrī Mantra Chanting As Preventive and Promotive Tools for Mental and Spiritual Health

Abstract The present world discovers itself placed at a critical junction wherein people struggle to locate solutions that have been studied for mental well-being and other outcomes concerning health. In this regard, Trāṭaka (steady gazing) and Gāyatrī Mantra practices (GMPs) are now regarded as widely used methods in yoga and mantra as studied by Pramanik & Chatterjee (2024) and Sharma et al.(2025). In the present study, the researcher studies evidence from an updated Trāṭaka comprehensive review including 16 studies from 2000–2024 and a GMP systematic review including 17 studies and 841 participants from 1960–2023. This aims at proposing an integrative model as facilitated by Pramanik & Chatterjee (2024) and Sharma et al.(2025) and explaining how these practices may support preventive and promotive mental and spiritual health outcomes. Additional pre–post evidence for reductions in stress, anxiety, and depression and improvements in mindfulness and psychological capital in young adults. (Sharma et al., 2025; Tripathi & Vishvakarma, 2024; Tripathi et al., 2024) Proposing the present model, the researchers connect practice inputs to intermediate self-regulation capacities, including attentional stability, relaxation-related regulation, affect regulation, and meaning-oriented cognition. The present work as a model is a hypothesis generator and recommends rigorous multi-arm trials to test additive effects of combined Trāṭaka and GMP programs. (Pramanik & Chatterjee, 2024; Sharma et al., 2025)