Exploring the Relationship Between Mystical Experience, Flow, and Well-Being Among Indian Classical Dancers and Non- Dancers: An Empirical Study

Although dance is a culturally rooted embodied practice linked to psychological flourishing and ideal experiential states, there are still few scientific comparisons between dancers and non-dancers. In this study, flow, mystical experience, and psychological well-being were compared between trained Indian classical dancers and non-dancers, and correlations between these characteristics were investigated. With 100 individuals (50 Indian classical dancers and 50 non-dancers) between the ages of 18 to 35, a cross-sectional comparative design was used. The participants filled out the Psychological Well-Being Scale (PWB), Flow State Scale (FSS), and Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ-30). Descriptive statistics, independent samples t-tests, and Pearson's correlation analysis were used to examine the data. The findings showed that, in comparison to non-dancers, Indian classical dancers experienced much higher levels of psychological well-being, mystical experience, and flow. Both mystical experience and psychological well-being showed strong positive correlations with flow. These results highlight the potential of dance as a culturally sensitive intervention for fostering mental health and well-being and imply that dancing promotes optimal experience states that lead to improved psychological well-being.