socp121 sn09 lecture transpersonal · o part 1 of an interview with stanislav grof reflecting on...

© Endeavour College of Natural Health endeavour.edu.au 1

SOCP121

Session 9

Transpersonal Therapy

Department of Social Science


Session Aim:

This session introduces students to transpersonal therapy which is an

holistic approach that incorporates the study of mind, body, spirituality

and expanded consciousness.

Transpersonal Therapy


Learning Objectives:

At the end of this session, you should:

o Be able to identify the key components of transpersonal psychology

o Have an awareness of states of consciousness

o Be aware of categories of transpersonal experiences

Transpersonal Psychology



Is the study of

Mind

o cognitive processes – e.g. thoughts, evaluations

o emotions – positive & negative

States of consciousness

o mainly higher or expanded rather than suppressed

& Spirituality

o a transcendent dimension & force

In relation to the enhancement of human growth and

well-being


Transpersonal Psychology Pioneers

o Carl Jung

o Abraham Maslow

o Roberto Assagioli

o Stanislav Grof

o Anthony Sutich

• Later: Ken Wilber, Francis Vaughan, Charles Tart, David Lukoff


What is Transpersonal Psychology?

An interview with Dr. Lukoff from the Mental Health,

Wellbeing and Spirituality Conference held in Dundee

Scotland in 2005, addresses - What is Transpersonal

Psychology?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OiHFc8-9kg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OiHFc8-9kg



o Is a more recent and progressive field of psychology which incorporates spiritual dimensions of existence in the scientific study of human beings

o Emerged from earlier branches of psychology including humanistic, phenomenological and cognitive psychology

o Relates to the interrelatedness of all phenomena in the natural and ‘supernatural’ worlds



o Recognises the importance of our individual personalities, but it also includes mystical realms of experience which extend outside the limitations of intellectual (scientific) understanding & material existence

o Incorporates both Eastern & Western philosophies



o Includes, but extends beyond traditional branches of psychology

o Main focus: the study of mind, body, spirituality and expanded consciousness

o Trans = beyond: personal = ego.• Transpersonal refers to beyond our personal ego to include

awareness of higher or expanded states of consciousness



o Associates ‘transpersonal consciousness’ as higher or expanded consciousness, including consciousness of a transcendent spiritual dimension

o Distinguishes between religion and spirituality

o Likened to alternative or complementary medicine


Transpersonal Psychology is NOT

o Restricted to religion, religious studies or religious

practices

o Ideology/Cult – rather it is open to universal experience

o New Age

o In opposition or contradiction to other models of

psychology


Stanislav Grof –

Transpersonal Vision

o Part 1 of an interview with Stanislav Grof reflecting on

his personal and professional background, and the

journey to Transpersonal Psychology. As Stanislav Grof

states he was “bought to spirituality through scientific

work”.

o Part 1: Stan Grof - The Transpersonal Vision

o http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF7bZ9I23n4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XF7bZ9I23n4


Transpersonal Terms

o Spirituality

o Transcendence, Transcendent Experiences

o Mystical

o Religious

o Wholistic

o Higher, altered, heightened, expanded

consciousness

o Ways of knowing - intuition


Describing Spirituality

Class Activity

Brainstorming session

In small groups brainstorm together:

How would you describe what spirituality is (and is not)?

Followed by a whole group discussion


TERMS: Differences between

Religion & Spirituality

o Religion refers to adherence to the beliefs and practices

of an organised religion

e.g. belief in God, attending services, donating

money.

o Spirituality refers to a transcendent dimension and

force that people can experience


Conceptualising Spirituality

o Ineffable

o Spirituality exists, is not fictitious

o Transcendent reality

o Central Focus :God, Gods, Goddess, Higher Being, universal

consciousness

o Comprises : souls, after-life

o Universal Spiritual Force: energy force, all pervasive, omnipresent,

harmonious

o Relationship Between Spirituality and Human Being (Soul)

o Context: Religious, Nonreligious, Philosophical (Eastern vs Western)


Expressions of Spirituality Inventory (MacDonald, 1998)

5 dimensions of spirituality

1. Cognitive Orientation Towards Spirituality

o perceptions, attitudes, and feelings about what spirituality is

2. Experiential/Phenomenological Dimension

o spiritual experiences, both profound and more typical spiritual

experiences

3. Existential Well-being

o benefits of developing spiritual self-awareness

4. Paranormal Beliefs

o e.g. extra sensory power; precognition--knowing what is going to

happen in the future

5. Religiosity

o beliefs, attitudes, and behaviour associated with a religious

institution or dogma


Client Intake Questions on

Spirituality

1. What religion, if any, were you raised with?• Are you still associated with the same religion or philosophy?

• If not, what religion or philosophy do you adhere to now?

2. Is your religion/philosophy/spirituality very important to you?

3. Do you believe in God(s)?• Are you an atheist? (do not believe in a God or a Higher

Power?)

• Are you agnostic? Don’t know what to believe. Maybe there is, or maybe there isn’t a God or Spiritual Power?)

4. Do you believe there is a spiritual or transcendent dimension?

5. Do you believe that individuals have a soul? What happens to it upon death?


States of Consciousness

Normal alert waking

o cognition, judgments, evaluations

o emotions

o storehouse of thoughts, perceptions, memories & emotions that are

readily accessible to the mind

Subconscious

o repressed thoughts, desires, judgments and associated emotions

o temporarily or permanently unconscious

Transpersonal (heightened or expanded)

o beyond, yet including the ego

o sometimes referred to as spiritual or pure

o entails a sense of direct knowing


Transpersonal Experiences: Altered

States of Consciousness

o Naturally induced (e.g. spontaneous)

o Drug induced

• Medicinal e.g. Anaesthetic

• Illicit drugs e.g. Ecstasy, ice, marijuana


Non Ordinary States of

Consciousness

o Schizophrenia – auditory, visual hallucinations

o Dreams – ordinary-typical, lucid, spiritual

o Transcendent Consciousness (natural)

o Dual consciousness (both transcendent and everyday

consciousness)

An interview with Stanislav Grof on “Spiritual Crisis”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcOhZlOYnrg&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcOhZlOYnrg&feature=related


Categories of Transpersonal

Experiences

o Each category is unique in terms of its characteristics

o These experiences are often referred to as “spiritual experiences” because they appear to occur beyond the limitations of physical reality and the mundane.

o They include:

1. Near death experiences (NDE)

2. Altered states of consciousness (related to perception, self-identity and ways of knowing)• Out of body experiences

• Intuitive ways of knowing

3. Coincidences or synchronicities


Inner-body Experiences

o Normal mental & physical sense of self is

maintained

o Consciousness is perceived as enhanced

o Not perceived as a sense of soul inside body

• e.g. Intuition, inspiration, awareness of

coincidences, synchronicities.


Intuition

o Felt knowledge with a strong sense of rightness

o Not thinking; thinking comes AFTER

o Does not depend on analysis or reason

o Emotions neither influence nor distort intuition

o An opening to oneself of what is

o Occurs spontaneously

o Feels like you are a passive receiver

o Validated by reason & experience


Out-of-Body Experiences

o Normal physical and mental sense of self is lost,

o Alert consciousness is experienced

o Sensed like your soul is outside your physical body

o Sensed like your soul has a mind of its own that can think, see and feel

o Near death experience (NDE) and astral travelling

o Perceived as very profound

o Experienced as real, not as imagination.

o Not well understood – frightening, isolating


Out-of-Body Experience

Definition, Description

o Soul traveller, soul travels outside of physical body while

alive

o Feeling as if in astral body (like a ghostly or ethereal

body) or feeling as if disembodied (both occur)

o Spontaneous

• e.g. patient on operating table, she (her consciousness) floats

above her body, sees and hears the doctors operating on her

o Full awareness when they ‘shake off the physical body’


Transpersonal Counselling

3 levels of intervention:

1. Traditional therapeutic interventions (psychoanalysis, CBT) Focus is on strengthening the ego, reducing pathology & promoting adjustments to the norm.

2. Existential level – consists of contemplating issues of existence, meaning & purpose and the examination of one’s responses to these issues (Person-centered, Humanistic)

3. Transpersonal – one transcends ego identification, identifies with the transpersonal self and experiences a sense of unity & interconnectedness with all of life.


Transpersonal Philosophy

o Each person has the potential to realise their inherent

wisdom and goodness which may be blocked or

unacknowledged by learned behavior patterns.

o Transpersonal Psychology helps facilitate natural

movement towards healing and growth by helping to

uncover or remove these blocks.



Counselling

Transpersonal psychologists help clients enhance their

self-esteem, self-confidence, emotional well-being,

relationships with others, coping skills and more. And, if

the client is willing, transpersonal psychologists can help

the person gain or improve awareness of their spiritual

potential, sense of soul and “soul-sense”. The aim is to

integrate the invisible and transcendent dimensions of life

with the visible and material; in other words to ground

spirituality into everyday life. Transpersonal development is

independent of race, culture, religion, status or gender. In

this way, “transpersonal” is like the air we breathe; it refers

to a universal dimension and qualities.



Counselling

o Is eclectic; most therapists will use a variety of

techniques suited to the client

o Includes counsel relating to not only the client’s thoughts

and emotions whether conscious or subconscious, but

also counselling the client to get in touch with their soul

and spiritual ways of knowing

o Counsels clients with various forms of spiritual confusion

o Not many counsellors are trained in Transpersonal

Psychology


Who would seek TP Counselling ?

o People lacking/losing meaning in life

o People facing a crisis which has changed their basic philosophy or beliefs about life – e.g. major physical illness

o People questioning life & death issues

o People seeking new ways of understanding spirituality & its relevance to their life

o People facing a spiritual crisis e.g. NDE

o People of a particular faith feeling pressured or challenged to take on the faith values/rules of a different faith e.g. through marriage, moving to a new country

o People having transcendent, spiritual, mystical, religious experiences.

o People confused about religion or spirituality


Accessing Your True Self &

Transpersonal Psychologyo Client is suffering from deep discontent & a lack of

peacefulness – this is associated with not living authentically in one’s truth, not accessing their true self, higher self, natural spirit, soul qualities…

o An aim of transpersonal counselling is to promote transcendence of the conscious mind enabling it to explore the unconscious and reveal a deeper (transpersonal) level of being called their “higher self, true self, inner self”...

o A basic assumption of transpersonalism is that this deeper level can be realised when one lets go of their ego-centred perspective.



Interventions

o Holistic interventions can include:

Meditation, contemplation, intuition, yoga,

biofeedback, breath training, inward focusing,

visualisation, dreamwork and guided imagery

o Attention is also given to sleep, exercise, diet, nutrition,

rest, leisure activities, body/posture movement and work


Benefits of Transpersonal

Counselling

o It integrates mind/body/soul and spirituality thus providing a more wholistic approach to wellbeing, growth and healing.

o It assists the individual to form new views/attitudes/perceptions of themselves/ others and the world he/she lives in.

o In doing this the individual learns to apply their new or expanded understanding of human potential, human relationships and their relationship with their environment.


Outcome Effects of Transpersonal

Counselling

o Greater sense of peace & comfort

o Broader perspective on life

o Finding/affirming meaning, purpose & direction

in life

o Greater sense of security

o Increased sensitivity toward others & self, e.g.

compassion, tolerance, patience, understanding

• Remember this is using a wholistic approach, not just

cognitive, behavioural and/or emotional.


Transpersonal Psychology Review

Is a newer branch of psychology that promotes not only the

means for rational and emotional well-being, but also

transpersonal and spiritual well-being and development. It

focuses on states of consciousness and the non-material,

spiritual dimensions of existence, including transcendent

experiences.

Sometimes these “spiritual” experiences are known as mystical,

religious, transpersonal, supernatural, expanded consciousness,

etc. Overall, expanded or transpersonal consciousness includes

a range of experiences from subtle inner intuitive experiences to

vastly profound out-of-body consciousness such as near-death

experiences.


Transpersonal Psychology Review

Transpersonal psychology is ‘trans-religious’ – it distinguishes

between religion (the adherence to beliefs and practices of an

organized church or religious institution) and spirituality (a

transcendent dimension/force that can be experienced by living

individuals – paradoxically, transcendent yet immanent

experiences).


Revision Questions

o What does the study of Transpersonal Psychology

involve?

o Identify the states of consciousness?

o Identify three (3) categories of transpersonal

experiences?

socp121 sn09 lecture transpersonal · o part 1 of an interview with stanislav grof reflecting on...

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