Inside the World of VR Meditation

Although virtual reality has been around for decades, it only recently entered the cultural arena with the arrival of affordable headsets. While VR remains almost totally the domain of the gaming industry, a few contemplative organizations like Tripp have carved out spaces where VR users can learn about and practice meditation. Curious, I borrowed a VR headset to explore a few of these meditation platforms while speaking with some thought leaders at the intersection between Buddhism and VR. “When people go into virtual reality, they don’t expect to find a person leading meditations,” remarks Nickel. “They expect to find video games and people blowing things up. I think people in this world really know they need meditation, but they don’t know how to get it.