However, Grof believes that a spiritual emergency is fundamentally different in that it usually features an "observing self" who stands apart from the psychological disturbance, so that the person can rationalise and understand their experience to some degree. The transpersonal psychologist Stan Grof, for example, acknowledges that what he calls a "spiritual emergency" can resemble psychosis in that there may be a sudden eruption of new spiritual energies and potentials which may feel threatening-even overwhelming-and cause disruption to normal psychological functioning. They aren’t just two variations of the same fundamental experience, but two fundamentally different experiences which have some similarities, or overlap to some degree. However, most researchers-including me-take the view that there is a basic difference between psychosis and awakening. Clark believes that, rather than making a distinction between spirituality and psychosis, we should think of a whole spectrum of "transliminal states of consciousness." Another researcher, Caroline Brett, also argues that there is no categorical difference between spiritual awakening and psychosis, and that any apparent difference results from how the experience is contextualised and labelled-that is, whether it is supported or pathologised by the person’s peers or wider culture. For example, one of the UK’s leading researchers on "spiritual crisis," Isabel Clark, believes that the most important factor in determining whether a transpersonal experience becomes "a life-enhancing spiritual event" or a "damaging psychotic breakdown from which there is no easy escape" is how strong and stable a person’s sense of self is-or in her terms, the "well-foundedness" of the self, or "ego-strength." In other words, if a person doesn’t have a strong sense of self, they are more likely to have a psychotic experience.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |