This thesis is a psychological analysis of the internal conflicts experienced by many religious mystics at the beginning of their mystical life. I refer to the conflicts, and the response of the mystic to these conflicts, as an experience of mystical struggle. The study begins with an examination of descriptions of mystical struggle found in scholarly accounts, manuals of mystical instruction and in the personal documents of mystics themselves. Subsequently I critique the psychological interpretations of mystical struggle found in William James and Evelyn Underhill. In order to provide what I believe is a more adequate interpretation, I compare the mystical struggle to the relevant stages in the personality development theory of Kazimierz Dabrowski. I also present a model of five factors that appear to be predispositional of a mystical struggle. These factors are: (1) a temperament characterized by emotional sensitivity and a heightened capacity for imaginative involvement; (2) stress or loss; (3) emotional support or encouragement; (4) religious training and modeling; and (5) access to a mystical institution (e.g., convent or ashram).

https://positivedisintegration.com/NixonThesis.pdf

Zen--way to enlightenment

The mystical struggle : a psychological analysis

The Gifts of the Spirit: Aquinas and the Modern Context

The Buddhist-Christian Dialogue

The Buddhist practice of avoiding conceptual descriptions of experiences of enlightenment was compared to Wittgenstein’s declaration in the Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus that ‘‘what we cannot speak about we must pass over in silence.’’ Wittgenstein’s later idea of language games, expressed in Philosophical Investigations, was examined in terms of its potential use in the exploration of transcendent experiences, with a focus upon the availability and variability of such language games. Methodological issues involving the contextual nature of transcendence and its manifestations were also discussed.

background

Linguistic and Other Challenges in Researching Transcendent Phenomena: Considerations from Wittgenstein and Buddhist Practice

The purpose of this paper is to discuss the “New Life” model developed by a Japanese self-help group for alcoholics, Danshukai. Danshukai's “New Life” model has emerged as an alternative to medical or spiritual recovery models. Although in the early period of Danshukai's operation, the “New Life” model was considered to be the only available model by the Danshukai members, as medical services for alcoholism have developed in Japan, the medical recovery model has grown in popularity among the members. Consequently, it has become diffi cult for Danshukai to fully develop their potential as a self-help group, with many alcoholics seeking out medical professionals rather than peer members in self-help groups. Therefore, in order to develop their group, Danshukai leaders need to be more conscious of the importance of the “New Life” model. However, the “New Life” model is still ambiguous, and therefore social-work researchers can contribute to Danshukai's value and development by helping the organisation's leaders clarify and articulate the specifi cs of their “New Life” model. In this paper, I fi rst present two types of recovery model as mentioned above and discuss the “New Life” model as a third type of recovery model. Second, I present two statements regarding the “New Life” model: 1) The “New Life” model has no written programme; and 2) the “New Life” model can be well understood as an application of Zen Buddhism.

Zen--way to enlightenment

Citations

The mystical struggle : a psychological analysis

The Gifts of the Spirit: Aquinas and the Modern Context

The Buddhist-Christian Dialogue

Linguistic and Other Challenges in Researching Transcendent Phenomena: Considerations from Wittgenstein and Buddhist Practice

The 'New Life' Model of a Japanese Self-Help Group for Alcoholics

Related Papers (3)

The story of Chinese Zen

Zen and the Study of Confucianism (Selection from Zen and Its Influence on Japanese Culture)

Staging Zen Buddhism: Image creation in contemporary films