The Zen doctrine of “no-method”.
The Humanistic Psychologist October 1, 2009 DOI: 10.1080/08873260903113576 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Qualitative Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism |
| Citations | 5 |
| Key points | Argues that the quantitative–qualitative continuum fails to account for the phenomenology of science-making as a consciousness problem and for non-Western views on method. Proposes that Zen practices, such as cultivating wu and using koans, illustrate a broader spectrum of methods for psychological inquiry. |
Abstract
The case is made for a spectrum of methods in Western psychology transcending the normal dichotomy between the categories of quantitative versus qualitative methodology. Although the quantitative–qualitative continuum may be a sufficient representation of methods in the discussion of methodology within the reductionistic sciences, it fails to account for the phenomenology of the science-making process, itself, as a problem of consciousness within the developing human sciences, and also has little relevance for the way non-Western cultures view the problem of the relation of method to theory. A case in point is the problem of method as discussed in Zen Psychology. The act of freeing attention from its attachment to objective thought through the cultivation of wu, or no-thing-ness, is considered in Zen meditation and then applied to an analysis of the method of the koan, or nonrational riddle, which is designed to shock consciousness into a state of release through immediate intuitive insight. The conclusio...
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| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
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