Psychology and Sacred MomentsWritten by Elisha Goldstein
"The great lesson from true mystics, from Zen Monks, and now also from Humanistic and Transpersonal psychologists – that sacred is in ordinary, that it is to be found in one’s daily life, in one’s neighbors, friends, and family, in one’s back yard, and that travel may be a flight from confronting sacred – this lesson can be easily lost. To be looking elsewhere for miracles is to me a sure sign of ignorance that everything is miraculous." - Abraham Maslow An electronic search of Psychological Abstracts in psychology’s last 100 years reveals a 14 to 1 ratio of psychological articles about negative emotions versus positive emotions. The imbalance in research of negative versus positive makes it ever more important to ask question, what does it mean to live good life? Religious scholars to philosophers to modern day psychologists have pondered perennial question of what it means to live well. In past few decades there has been a considerable surge in interest and research on phenomena of well-being. Distilled through years, subjective well-being (SWB)and psychological well-being (PWB)have emerged as most prominent concepts in mainstream research. SWB focuses more on positive/negative affect and life satisfaction while PWB is concerned with meaning, purpose, and existential issues. Through empirically validated studies, research in each field has created operationalized, well validated constructs of well-being (Diener, 1984; Lucas, Diener, & Suh, 1996; Ryff, 1989; Ryff & Keyes, 1995). Empirical research suggests that, in considering an approach to pursuing a lifestyle conducive to good overall health and well-being, an important factor is cultivating a sense of sacredness in one’s life. Recent studies show a high positive correlation between cognitive and affective aspects of sacred and well-being. Some studies suggest that connecting with transcendent and experiencing a transcendent sense of self foster well-being. Other studies find that well-being is positively correlated with a sense of support from transcendent in areas such as marriage, parenting,healthy family relationships, and sustaining physical health. Emmons and McCullough (2003) applied a new intervention that focuses on fostering gratitude and linked it to life satisfaction and a sense of purpose in life. Furthermore, cognitive and affective components associated with sacred have positive correlations among themselves, implying that when experiencing one aspect, others may be felt at same time. These studies underscore concept that there is a significant positive connection between what are considered sacred components of life and well-being and a negative connection to stress. It can therefore be argued that an intervention cultivating these sacred components may increase well-being and reduce stress. Sacred Qualities and Sacred Moments A large body of theory has described a broad spectrum of experiences that may or may not be considered a sacred moment. The key aspect of a sacred moment, as defined and described in this study, is that it is a moment in time that is imbued with sacred qualities. For purposes of this study, sacred qualities are defined as having two components: (a) they inherently possess spiritual qualities as defined by Lynn Underwood and World Health Organization, such as gratefulness, feeling of connection with and support from transcendent, sweet-sadness, awe, compassion, and/or a deep sense of inner peace, and (b) they are imbued with qualities such as precious, dear, blessed, cherished, and/or holy. Consequently, for purposes of this study, sacred moments are defined as day-to-day personal moments that are imbued with sacred qualities, which seem like time-outs from daily busy-ness, where a sense of stillness arises or occurs and where concerns of every day just seem to evaporate. In other words, in order to experience a sacred moment, moment needs to be imbued by individual with these sacred qualities. Although extraordinary mystical experiences could also be considered sacred moments, focus of this research is on those more ordinary day-to-day experiences. After defining these moments, it seems important to find a way to cultivate them. A core aspect in cultivating these moments is being able to attend to present moment. Different methods have been developed over last decade to help individual control attention, including; hypnosis, biofeedback, and gestalt therapy. Currently, most applicable and prolific field of study attending to present moment is mindfulness. Mindfulness has been defined as a method of focusing attention on present as it occurs. Learning how to train mind and body to be in present moment is critical to being aware of what is sacred in moment.
| | Visualizations and Healing Written by Robert Bruce Baird
One of my favourite ways of getting to know someone and allowing them to move into a free state of mind and openness to imagery or symbols is psychological word test. It is used by many psychologists in a similar manner to a Rorschach test. I do not think there is as much value in Rorschach test because there is no communication between interpreter and patient. No doubt there are circumstances when an open sharing of what psychologist perceives is not advantageous but often it is a desire to gain a position of power and control at work. It can also mask ineptitude of practitioner. In psychological word test you establish a personal paradise before starting. In trip through paradise interpreter withholds interpretation until all answers have been given to visualizations of that person's personal and free paradise. Just helping person lose their fears and setting proper mood takes skill and compassion or (hopefully you can access your empathic connections) love. It will build good visualization skills in people who have never done it before. Visualizations are very much a part of wholistic healing and dreams are one of most important ways of working on visualized regeneration. Breathing is a regimen of continued impact and becomes unconsciously able to attune forces that proper visualization can attune ones' body to allow such creation. It all works together in harmony with beauty and a lack of fear when one knows soul 'within'. The following quote says that fear and insecurity impact how one acts towards their own body in some interesting ways. The book it is taken from is The Healing Power of Dreams by Patricia Garfield Ph. D.: "Transformation Rituals New Behaviors as Health Returns People who have been injured or ill mark their return to wellness by specific behaviors. These actions are sometimes straightforward 'freshening up'. Rona, for instance, after being out of-work for several months with a mangled wrist, had her hair colored and newly styled and got a manicure week prior to returning to her job. Hand therapists report that one of surest signs of increased vigor in a woman with a hand injury is beginning to use nail polish again or getting a manicure. Such women, like Rona, are feeling well enough to want to look attractive. Yet these behaviors imply even more. We saw how an alienation of afflicted body part is typical following an injury. Using nail polish indicates that woman is re-connecting with her formerly disowned body part. We need to ‘readopt' our body parts to become whole. We can help ourselves do this by deliberately choosing words that repossess our bodies {And visualize it in our late night before sleep or early morning when awaking exercises, of what we are and what we are going to do to make our lives what we need to fulfill our purpose.}, saying 'my scar', and so forth. We are creatures who act upon our environment; we're not simply passive recipients of forces. We can use active verbs to describe what we do or experience and deliberately use integrative imagery. (28)
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