Core Concepts and Theory in the Transpersonal Approach to Counselling free essay sample

What are some of the core concepts and theory when considering the transpersonal approach? The work of the transpersonal draws largely from mainstream psychological concepts and theory in order to ground its practice in science. However, unlike mainstream psychological paradigms, the transpersonal acknowledges that â€Å"our essential nature is spiritual† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012) and that as human beings we have â€Å"valid urges towards the spiritual† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012). The transpersonal approach is based on this notion of the spiritual self as the foundation for our psychological structure of the self and therefore proposes that we exist simultaneously in a multitude of realities, including but not limited to the body, mind, spirit, feeling, fantasy and science. Similarly the transpersonal view of consciousness considers our ordinary, everyday experience of reality as one of many states of consciousness accessible to us at any given time through a variety of methods. It is these fundamental notions which allow the transpersonal approach to transcend time and culture. We will write a custom essay sample on Core Concepts and Theory in the Transpersonal Approach to Counselling or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page This is seen in the way the practitioner can be likened to the ancient shaman as both practically engage with the â€Å"full spectrum of consciousness† becoming â€Å"technicians and navigators† of the multiple states and realities able to be experienced by the human being. The transpersonal approach also considers life as a journey with an origin, landscape and destination or end, â€Å"framed by a cosmic background, a canopy of meaning which arches across our lives from birth to after death† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012) and the intuition as a serious indicator and tool for navigating the world. Ultimately the transpersonal aims to transform the individual through integration of experiences that go beyond the ego and ultimately provide â€Å"a more satisfying or valuable condition† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012). Whilst grounded in science and psychology, the transpersonal approach is unique in its effort to synthesize ideas from schools of thought, which have been in opposition at various times throughout history, into an integrative and holistic method. It includes mystical, spiritual and religious experiences as well as sharing much common ground with consciousness studies and humanistic psychology. Transpersonal experiences can be interpreted either religiously or non-religiously according to individual preference† (Walsh, 1993). Founder of Humanistic and later Transpersonal Psychology Abraham Maslow theorized that the approach of the transpersonal does not oppose that of Freud; it offers a complementary viewpoint, which assists in recognizing  "the full range and variety of transpersonal experience† (Daniels, 2005) and focuses on â€Å"the human origins, significance and value of transpersonal phenomena† (Daniels, 2005). Whilst psychoanalysis was part of a biomedical, reductionist model which did not encompass the full spectrum of states of consciousness, nor did it acknowledge the spiritual self, it provided a basic framework for the psychological structure of the self, later understood by the transpersonal to rest on the foundations of the spiritual self. The notion of the psychological self and the spiritual self stems from the assumption of the transpersonal that we exist simultaneously in multiple realities. The realities of the body, the mind, the spirit, emotion, imagination and science are all part of a rich tapestry, which inform and shape our life-story or journey. Transpersonal work uses this understanding of everyday reality to engage with the whole person and discover resources that offer â€Å"potentialities of self-healing, self-development and self-realization (self-transcendence)† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012). Similarly the transpersonal approach does not consider consciousness to be fixed to the every day waking experience of life. Instead, there exists a variety of states of consciousness outside our every day experience or ‘Ordinary Waking State (OWS)’ (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012) which may be accessed via ‘induction methods’ and contain alternate potentialities that cannot be realized in the OWS. It is this way in which the transpersonal recognizes and integrates the notion of altered states that shapes the transpersonal view of health as a positive state, not the absence of disease. It is the acceptance and integration of altered states of consciousness synthesized with a biomedical understanding of the psychological self which allows the transpersonal to transcend time and culture. This synthesis is visible in Fischers model of ASC’s and Arousal States as it describes a symbiotic relationship between the central nervous system and altered states of consciousness whereby the two are co-dependent and mutually influential. The transcendence of time and culture can be seen in the ability to compare the visionary practices of the ancient shaman with those of the modern transpersonal practitioner. It could be said that the transpersonal practitioner adopts a ‘shamanic’ approach to altered states of consciousness, considering such states as being â€Å"not bounded by bodily space or physical conditions† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012). This is not seen in the psychological paradigm, which operates on the assumption that nothing exists external to us. This notion has great implications for the transpersonal ‘modus operandi’ and often places the transpersonal practitioner more in the realms of the shamanic than the realms of its roots in traditional psychology. When comparing the shaman, the analyst and the transpersonal practitioner, it becomes apparent that the methods and practices of the shamanic and the transpersonal often stand in stark contrast to those of the psychoanalyst. Traditional roles of the therapist and patient dissolve and the patient assumes the role of the healer, creator and author of their story. The practitioner becomes a â€Å"technician and navigator of consciousness† (Phoenix Institute of Australia, 2012) as they join and work with their clients, often facilitating the induction of altered states and entering into the clients landscape empathetically and assisting them to access and retrieve the resources associated with the altered state.