Volume 5, Issue 8, June 1996

SPIRITUALITY AND THE INNER SELF

From the Viewpoint of Arthur J. Deikman

by Anne Readhead

Spirituality is concerned with understanding ones inner self to the point of achieving an innermost sense of balance and harmony.

Some persons describe this as the process where you bring the soul to a state of peacefulness and possess "absolute knowledge."

Within the eastern culture of Buddhism the ultimate existence of true "being" is hoped to be gained through the practice of meditation. The technique of blending bodily sensations with emotional and intellectual awareness aims at a higher level of consciousness and promotes a deeper sense of the inner self. Within Western culture the exploration and development of ones inner self is attempted through the practice of psychotherapy. However, neither practice alone has been found with aggregation.

Recently psychologists and mystical scientists have been investigating the idea of combining the Eastern practice of meditation with the Western practice of psychotherapy. The belief is that when relieving ones subconscious problems by healing negative childhood experiences, one is free then to move on to heightening their awareness and knowledge. The theory claims that this approach will inevitably lead to a conscious level of genuine quality and spirituality. Both practices use the technique of mediation and both complement each other with the aim of unfolding a psychologically healthier and more balanced person. It is believed both practices need the other to attain the goal of whole spirituality for the fundamental reason one cannot reach a higher level of mystical consciousness only by seeking externally, or only by looking internally. Perfect spirituality stems from awareness of both mental realms. This developes from from our inner and outer worlds into a sense of wholeness and completeness.

Arthur J. Deikman, M.D., describes this process as growing from "the object self", which constitutes ones thoughts, feelings, memories, perceptions, and any other content of consciousness which has a psychic location, to "the observing self", which is a

deeper self of heightened conscious awareness.

Deikman believes that the observing self can be known but cannot be located or visualized in the way that thoughts, feelings and individual being can. Awareness produced from the development of the observing self manifests a different type of knowing - an intuitive or direct knowing.

Deikman states that the object self (local) motivations and their corresponding form of consciousness can subside and cease to dominate perception. Then the person becomes aware of the subtler, deeper channels that reflect and permeate actuality. When this takes place people experience their continuity and identity with that larger activity which is given various names: self, Tao, truth, Brahman, or God (page 104).

For many years it has been believed that human beings have untapped mental abilities that could be made conscious under the proper conditions. To perceive oneself as more than an object of this world calls for a radically different form of perception. According to Deikman psychopathology must be dealt with first as anxiety, fantasy and neurotic tendencies with which psychotherapy deals, preventing an individual from absorbing the mystical experience. Once the inner self is healed of unhealthy psychological characteristics one can progress to the development of the observing self which will allow the person to experience a larger reality; a larger self. "The observing self can be a bridge between the object world and the transcendent realm," declares Deikman (page 176). He claims that aggregation of Western psycholgy with Eastern mysticism will give rise to a deeper knowledge of human life and promote its evolution.

In conclusion, let me sum up my interpretation of Deikman's ideas. Instead of looking solely for some external and supernatural power to heal our world let us look at ourselves, thoroughly! Spirituality starts with ones self. Heal yourself. Give freedom to yourself to develop your fullest potential. If one concentrates on the process one can find the rest of the world and life around us will fit together as a meaningful whole. Let us resolve inner conflict(s) of our "self", awaken the mind, and advance towards the evolution of higher consciousness.

( The previous article refers to the book, "The Observing Self", By Arthur J. Deikman, Beacon Press, 1982. Anne Readhead is an honours student in psycholgy from McMaster and Brock Universities. She resides in Welland, Ontario).

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"Religion NOW" is published in limited edition by the Rev. Ross E. Readhead, B.A., B.D., Certificate of Corrections, McMaster University, in the interest of furthering knowledge and participation in religion. Dialogue is invited and welcomed.