Of course, it's not the mat that needs an element. You, as an individual practitioner, benefit from this or another mat. But why does a mat make a difference if you are the one practicing? There are ways to come to this conclusion. Some just feel it. And surely you have had such experiences before: standing barefoot on the ground. It is such a common practice that there is a verb for it in almost every language: grounding. It literally means coming into physical contact with the earth.
