Mandala Meditation Journey: Integrating Cultural Rituals into Digital Meditation Practices

Abstract

This paper narrates the design and development of a Mandala Meditation Journey - a digital meditation application merging Tibetan sand mandala traditions with Loving-Kindness Meditation. We document how abstract compassion practice becomes tangible through culturally grounded design: users create mandalas across four concentric rings representing self, loved ones, difficult persons, and all beings, before releasing their creation into a symbolic river. Our design evolution, informed by six Buddhist practitioners, yielded five design guidelines addressing ritual structure, progressive compassion cultivation, symbolic systems, attention anchoring, and cultural context. User evaluation (N=34) demonstrated significant improvements in self-compassion, with particularly strong reductions in negative self-perceptions: self-judgment, over-identification, and isolation. Usability was rated good (SUS=73.9). Through thematic insights and interface progressions, we offer guidelines for adapting traditional contemplative practices into interactive digital experiences.