Psychology Commons^™

Contemplative Inquiry In Movement: Managing Writer´S Block In Academic Writing, Eva Bojner Horwitz, Cecilia Stenfors, Walter Osika

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

This exploratory study stems from a meditation exercise in contemplative inquiry with transdisciplinary researchers. A master’s student with writers block was asked to perform body movements reflecting a thesis writing process over time. An interview with a phenomenological hermeneutic method was used to uncover the significance of the student’s experience during the exercise, including bodily sensations, feelings, and thoughts. New embodied knowledge helped the student to enable identification and acceptance of both adverse and blocking information. By systematically using a “thinking in movement” approach after applying body movements, new self-confidence was generated in the writing process. The interpretation of the …

The Ethno-Epistemology Of Transpersonal Experience: The View From Transpersonal Anthropology, Charles D. Laughlin

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

This paper introduces the topic of ethno-epistemology with regards to transpersonal experiences. The distinction between polyphasic and monophasic cultures is introduced and the interaction between a society’s world view and individual transpersonal experience is explained using the cycle of meaning model. A link to philosophical work on “natural epistemology” is made and the importance of the “projectability” of cultural theories of experience is discussed. The individual contributions to this special section of the journal are introduced.

Dreaming And Reality: A Neuroanthropological Account, Charles D. Laughlin

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

In what sense is dreaming real to people of different cultures? How do they come to conclude that dreaming is real, and how do they use dreams to expand their knowledge and control of real events? The reader is introduced to dream anthropology and shown that there are universal patterns to how dreams are experienced, expressed, and used by societies. The distinction between monophasic and polyphasic cultures is described, the latter being the majority of societies that consider dreaming as being in some sense real. Neuroscience supports the notion that there is a natural realism behind the experience of reality …

The Self: A Transpersonal Neuroanthropological Account, Charles D. Laughlin

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

The anthropology of the self has gained momentum recently and has produced a significant body of research relevant to interdisciplinary transpersonal studies. The notion of self has broadened from the narrow focus on cultural and linguistic labels for self-related terms, such as person, ego, identity, soul, and so forth, to a realization that the self is a vast system that mediates all the aspects of personality. This shift in emphasis has brought anthropological notions of the self into closer accord with what is known about how the brain mediates self-as-psyche. Numerous examples from the ethnography of the self are given, …

Dream-Spirits And Innovation In Aboriginal Australia’S Western Desert, Robert Tonkinson

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Among the Mardu Aborigines, dreams (kapukurri; jukurrpa) may carry at least the same weight as the events of waking life. ‘Travelling’ in dream-spirit form enhances the possibility of revelations both dangerous and enlightening. In the Australian case, a major cultural dilemma is to accommodate and rationalize an inevitable dynamism when the dominant ideology is one of timelessness and stasis. Two key cultural symbols, the Dreaming and the Law, still substantially shape worldviews and behaviour of the Martu people, who live in the remote Western Desert region. Much of my focus is on a category of popular, largely public contemporary ritual …

Understanding Bohm’S Holoflux: Clearing Up A Conceptual Misunderstanding Of The Holographic Paradigm And Clarifying Its Signifigance To Transpersonal Studies Of Consciousness, Mark A. Schroll

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Throughout the past 31 years transpersonal anthropologists and transpersonal psychologists seeking a scientific language to discuss anomalous phenomena and the farther reaches of human nature (or to invoke a discussion of ultimate reality, universal mind or cosmic consciousness) have referred to the holographic paradigm, the conceptual origin of which is directly related to David Bohm’s implicate order theory. In 1982 and 1984 Bohm discussed the holographic paradigm’s limitations (and more specifically his concept of holomovement) to accurately represent his implicate order theory, suggesting instead the more precise conceptual reference holoflux; yet the limited publication of this correction has not been …

Searching For Wild Elephants In The North Georgia Forests: The Saga Of Writing A Transpersonal Dissertation At A Mainstream University, Harris L. Friedman

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Editor's Introduction, Glenn Hartelius

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

“Say From Whence You Owe This Strange Intelligence”: Investigating Explanatory Systems Of Spiritualist Mental Mediumship Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Elizabeth C. Roxburgh, Chris A. Roe

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Walsh and Vaughan (1993) defined transpersonal experiences as those “in which the sense of identity or self extends beyond (trans) the individual or personal to encompass wider aspects of humankind, life, psyche or cosmos” (p. 203). One population who regularly report such experiences are mediums. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted with ten spiritualist mediums to explore their lived experience, such as how they communicate with the deceased, the meaning of spirit guide phenomena, and the role of mediumship, regardless of the actual ontology of mediumship. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) identified three themes: explanatory systems of mediumship, spirit guides as transcendental …

Implications And Consequences Of Post-Modern Philosophy For Contemporary Perspectives On Transpersonal And Spiritual Experience I. The Later Foucault And Pierre Hadot On A Post-Socratic This-Worldly Mysticism, Harry Hunt

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

While Michel Foucault is chiefly known for his historical relativism and his critique of modern institutional power over the individual, his late writings, as further extended by Pierre Hadot, centered on the post-Socratic spiritual practices of the experience of here and now presence or Being in the Stoics, Epicureans, and Cynics. For Foucault the positive, expansive self-actualization common to these traditions, and contrasting with Christian self-renunciation, offers a guidance for a contemporary spiritual crisis in valuation of the person. For Hadot each of the post-Socratic traditions was based on the imitation and further development of key characteristics of Socrates, much …

Belief Is Not Experience: Transformation As A Tool For Bridging The Ontological Divide In Anthropological Research And Reporting, Bonnie Glass-Coffin

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

For more than a hundred years, anthropologists have recorded stories of beliefs in other-than-human sentience and consciousness, yet we have most frequently insisted on contextualizing these stories in terms of cultural, epistemological, or ontological relativism. In this paper, I ask why we have had such a hard time taking reports of unseen realms seriously and describe the transformative role of personal experience as a catalyst for change in anthropological research and reporting.

Dreamscapes: Topography, Mind, And The Power Of Simulacra In Ancient And Traditional Societies, Paul Devereux

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Dream content can be influenced by external sounds, smells, touch, objects glimpsed with half-open eyes during REM sleep, and somatic signals. This paper suggests that this individual, neurologically-driven process parallels that experienced collectively by pre-industrial tribal and traditional peoples in which the land itself entered into the mental lives of whole societies, forming mythic geographies—dreamscapes. This dreamtime perception was particularly evident in the use of simulacra, in which the shapes of certain topographical features allowed them to be presented in anthropomorphic, zoomorphic, or iconic guise to both the individual and the culturally-reinforced gaze of society members. This paper further indicates …

Shamanic Cosmology As An Evolutionary Neurocognitive Epistemology, Michael Winkelman

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

The biological foundation for a shamanic epistemology is indicated by the cross-cultural distribution of a shamanic cosmology derived from knowledge obtained during altered consciousness. These special forms of consciousness involve integrative brain conditions that access ancient ways of knowing, expressive systems which have evolutionary roots in the communicative and social processes involved in animal displays or rituals. These were augmented over the course of hominid evolution into expressive and mimetic activities that provided a basis for significant epistemological expansions of consciousness exemplified in shamanic out-of-body (OBE) experiences. These manifestations of consciousness involved new modes of self and processes of knowing, …

Integral Counseling Psychology Newsletter, Ciis

Integral Counseling Psychology Newsletter

This is the Fall 2012 issue of ICP Newsletter

Editor’S Introduction Transpersonal Psychology At 45, Glenn Hartelius

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Dissipative Processes In Psychology: From The Psyche To Totality, Manuel Almendro, Daniella Weber

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

This paper articulates a possible framework for understanding and resolving psychopathological

phenomena from the perspective of chaos theory and based on the application of Ilya

Prigogine’s concepts of dissipative structures and processes. Twenty-eight years in clinical

practice have shown the human being to be memory-inheritance, which produces a type of

“psychological DNA.” The personality is thereby crystallized, generating dynamic patterns

(fractals) in its interference with reality. Although necessary for living, this crystallization

is imprisoning. Once the shadow of memory has been resolved and dissolved, the person

achieves reorganizing and transrational processes. We develop the concepts of the emergent …

Spirituality And Hallucinogen Use: Results From A Pilot Study Among College Students, Adam Stasko, Satya P. Rao, Amy Pilley

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Anthropologists have studied the use of hallucinogens as a spiritual tool by indigenous

populations since the turn of the 20th century. However, literature is sparse in describing

use by non-indigenous populations. Using a study population of students from a university

in the Southwest United States, the current study investigated the spiritual development and

meaning that college students place on their use of hallucinogenic substances. The spiritual

framework developed by Love and Talbot (1999) and a transpersonal anthropological

approach were used to guide the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with

each participant. Results indicated that participants used hallucinogens for both spiritual …

Introduction To Special Topic Section: Shamanism, Adam J. Rock

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Shamans As Healers, Counselors, And Psychotherapists, Stanley Krippner

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Shamanic models of healing, counseling, and psychotherapy differ from Western models in that

they emphasize closeness to the natural world as well as to one’s body and life’s spiritual dimensions.

Shamanic practices reflect the ideals of harmony and knowledge. In shamanism, there is no division

between “mind” and “body,” hence what Westerners refer to as “mental illness” is seen as part of

the total client being treated by a shaman, a perspective that often includes the client’s family,

community, and the world of “spirits.”

Experiences Of “Soul Journeys” In The World’S Religions: The Journeys Of Mohammed, Saints Paul And John, Jewish Chariot Mysticism, Taoism’S Highest Clarity School, And Shamanism., Roger Walsh

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

“Soul journeys” are a central practice of shamanism. However, they have also been important

in many other religious traditions and have exerted a major impact on religions, cultures, and

history. This article surveys some important journeys in the world’s religions such as those of

Mohammed, the Christian saints Paul and John, Jewish Chariot Mysticism, Taoism’s Highest

Clarity tradition, and shamanism. The article explores the experiences of these journeys, techniques

for inducing them, culturally specific features, and the range of metaphysical interpretations of

them. It also examines some of the surprising ways in which journeys are currently impacting

Western culture, ranging …

A Reply To Abramson’S Response To My “Beyond Mind” Papers And Some Reflections On Wilber V, Elias Capriles

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Transpersonal Effects Of Exposure To Shamanic Use Of Khoomei (Tuvan Throat Singing): Preliminary Evaluations From Training Seminars, Vladislav Matrenitsky, Harris L. Friedman

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

Khoomei is a Tuvan Siberian shamanic practice involving overtone throat singing. One hundred eighty-one Western participants completed questionnaires after attending Khoomei seminars, asking about the following: motivation of people to learn shamanic throat singing; self-perception at the levels of body, energy, and mind before-and-after the seminar; feelings and sensations from practicing throat singing; transpersonal experience during throat singing; experience of inner vibrations from listening to the singing; and general state and feelings after seminar. In general, most participants reported many benefits from attending the seminars, although a few reported mild negative effects (e.g., dizziness and sadness). Of particular interest are …

Sexuality As A Transformational Path: Exploring The Holistic Dimensions Of Human Vitality, Samuel A. Malkemus, Mariana T, Romero

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

This article explores a holistic vision of human sexuality by contrasting it to the prevailing

trend of “cognicentrism” in sexological studies. To this end the authors propose that a

novel understanding of sexuality as a creative force of life energy can greatly enhance such

cognicentric approaches. Such a proposal rests on a holistic approach to human nature that

has been developed over many years of educational and clinical application. Within this

holistic vision, the role of a human multidimensional cognition that is somatically rooted in

bodily nature assists the articulation of sexuality as a transformational life path of embodied

spirituality, …

Transforming Self And Others Through Research: Transpersonal Research Methods And Skills For The Human Sciences And Humanities, Dorit Netzer

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Postmodern Trickster Strands In Shamanic Worlds, Jürgen W. Kremer

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

This essay explores socio-philosophical meanings of shamanic cultures and practices and

their affirmation and revival. What is their potential significance for humanity’s future? I

argue that shamanism engages humans in practices that put us potentially at the center of

our creativity and creative visioning. The trickster figure, a pervasive indigenous presence,

so often seems pivotal in this process and this pervasively male figure plays an important

part in this regenerative interpretation of postmodernism; in fact, postmodernism can be

understood as trickster. Just like the trickster, the nature of postmodernism is ambiguous.

I explore this ambiguity and suggest that shamanic practices …

My Path In Shamanism, Michael Harner

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Shamanism, Imagery Cultivation, And Psi-Signal Detection: A Theoretical Model, Experimental Protocol, And Preliminary Data, Adam J. Rock, Lance Storm

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

NA

Shamanism In Cross-Cultural Perspective, Michael Winkelman

International Journal of Transpersonal Studies

This article reviews the origins of the concept of the shaman and the principal sources of

controversy regarding the existence and nature of shamanism. Confusion regarding the

nature of shamanism is clarified with a review of research providing empirical support for a

cross-cultural concept of shamans that distinguishes them from related shamanistic healers.

The common shamanistic universals involving altered states of consciousness are examined

from psychobiological perspectives to illustrate shamanism’s relationships to human nature.

Common biological aspects of altered states of consciousness help explain the origins of

shamanism while social influences on this aspect of human nature help to explain …

Integral Counseling Psychology Newsletter, Ciis

Integral Counseling Psychology Newsletter

This is the Spring 2012 issue of ICP Newsletter

Ciis Today, Spring 2012 Issue, Ciis

CIIS Today

This volume is the Spring 2012 issue of CIIS Today, the Magazine of the California Institute of Integral Studies