Well-being and Self-transformation in Indian Psychology
Sangeetha. B. Menon, Shankar Rajaraman, Lakshmi Kuchibotla
International Journal of Transpersonal Studies September 1, 2018 DOI: 10.24972/ijts.2018.37.1.13 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Citations | 3 |
| Key points | Argues that Indian wisdom traditions offer a psychology grounded in transformative and transpersonal consciousness, in which well-being is primary and the unity of opposites such as matter and consciousness is experienced as empathy, love, and intuition. Contends that these transpersonal theories are founded on a practical body-mind discipline intended to lead to well-being and self-transformation. |
Abstract
This paper uses instances from literature covering a broad spectrum of Indian philosophies, art, medicine and practices—attempts to offer the components of a psychology that is rooted in transformative and transpersonal consciousness. Psychology, in this instance, refers to a systematic study of mind, behavior, and relationship, rather than the formal Western discipline as such. In the Indian approach to understanding consciousness, primary importance is given to the possibility of well-being. Such an approach facilitates an immediate comprehension of the unity of metaphysical opposites, such as matter and consciousness, and its experience as empathy, love and intuition. It involves a thinking that connects the gross and the subtle, the particular and the universal, the outer and the inner, the objective and the subjective, through a discipline of transcendence. This paper argues, based on carefully selected narratives from the Indian philosophical discourse, that the theories of the transpersonal developed in Indian wisdom traditions are founded on a practical body-mind discipline designed to lead to well-being and self-transformation.