Definition: Spiritual Transformation

nnSpiritual Transformation and Transpersonal PsychologynTranspersonal psychology is a school of psychology that studies the transpersonal, the transcendent or spiritual aspects of the human experience. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology describes transpersonal psychology as "the study of humanity’s highest potential, and with the recognition, understanding, and realization of unitive, spiritual, and transcendent states of consciousness" (Lajoie and Shapiro, 1992:91). Issues considered in transpersonal psychology include spiritual self-development, peak experiences, mystical experiences, systemic trance and other metaphysical experiences of living.nnTranspersonal psychologists see the school as a companion to other schools of psychology that include psychoanalysis, behaviorism, and humanistic psychology. Transpersonal psychology attempts to unify modern psychology theory with frameworks from different forms of mysticism. These vary greatly depending on the origin but include religious conversion, altered states of consciousness, trance and other spiritual practices. Although Carl Jung and others have explored aspects of the spiritual and transpersonal in their work, transpersonal psychology for the most part has been overlooked by psychologists who are focused on the personal and developmental aspects of the human psyche.nnDefinitionnnLajoie and Shapiro reviewed forty definitions of transpersonal psychology that had appeared in literature over the period 1969 to 1991. They found that five key themes in particular featured prominently in these definitions: states of consciousness, higher or ultimate potential, beyond the ego or personal self, transcendence and the spiritual. Walsh and Vaughan (1993) have criticised many definitions of transpersonal psychology, for carrying implicit ontological or methodological assumptions. They also challenge definitions that link transpersonal psychology to healthy states only, or to the Perennial Philosophy. These authors define transpersonal psychology as being the branch of psychology that is concerned with transpersonal experiences and related phenomena, noting that "These phenomena include the causes, effects and correlates of transpersonal experiences, as well as the disciplines and practices inspired by them".nnResearch interests in Spiritual TransformationnnThe transpersonal perspective spans many research interests. The following list is adapted from Scotton, Chinen and Battista (1996) and includes:nn * The contributions of spiritual traditions - Hinduism, Yoga, Buddhism, Vajrayana, Zen, Taoism, Tantra, Shamanism, Kabbalah, Sufism and Christian mysticism - to psychiatry and psychologyn * Native American healingn * Aging and adult spiritual developmentn * Meditation research and clinical aspects of meditationn * Consciousness studies and researchn * Psychedelics, Ethnopharmacology and Psychopharmacologyn * Parapsychologyn * Cross-cultural studies and Anthropologyn * Diagnosis of Religious and Spiritual Challengesn * Offensive spirituality, spiritual defenses, psychic defencen * The treatment of former members of cultsn * Transpersonal Psychotherapyn * Addiction and recoveryn * Guided-Imagery and Visualization Therapyn * Breathworkn * Dying and near death experience (NDE)n * Past-Life therapyn * Ecological survivaln * Leadership and Succession Studiesn * Social Changenn

nWikipedia, the free enclyclopedia © 2001-2008 Wikipedia ContributorsnThis article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation Licensen

n