Psychosynthesis

Psychosynthesis is the name of a form of transpersonal psychotherapy that was developed by Roberto Assagioli Italian psychologists (1888 -1974 ). Psychosynthesis is different from other forms of psychotherapy on the one hand by its underlying model, which sees the psyche as an interplay of various sub-personalities, and it aims to recognize this, to understand and integrate ( = consciously to use ), and the other by the use of different techniques ( imagination, spontaneous drawing, installation work, etc.) attempts to quickly and solution-oriented to lead to initial success and not to get lost in the pure analyze problems. Psychosynthesis is in addition to therapeutic purposes, also used in other areas, such as counseling.

• 2.1 concept
• 2.2 people image
• 2.3 Methods
• 2.4 will
• 2.5 Internal process as Psychosynthesis

Roberto Assagioli

The Psychosynthesis wanted Roberto Assagioli, a psychiatrist and neurologist from Florence, a synthesis of the existing psychological currents of his time, especially also of psychoanalysis, as well as the spiritual wisdom traditions design. This should make use of a language and a theoretical concept, which would be acceptable to people of different beliefs, theoretical orientation and cultural background. To this end, he built a variety of psychological tendencies in their own development model. Excluded from this synthesis experiment were of him materialistic world views which his view with the Psychosynthesis were incompatible. Assagioli had a major influence on the later psychological nomenclature of various contemporary transpersonal directions.

Assagioli was instrumental in helping to introduce the then fledgling psychoanalysis in Italy.

Reception of the person Assagioli

Carl Gustav Jung wrote in 1909 in a letter to Sigmund Freud of " a very enjoyable and potentially valuable acquaintance with our first Italian, a Dr. Assagioli from the psychiatric hospital in Florence". Freud tells of a letter Assagioli at him. In " Yearbook for Psychoanalytical and Psychopathological Research " Assagioli reported on the psychoanalytic activities in Italy.

Outside the psychoanalytic circles Assagioli caught on among other things, in the Theosophist Alice Bailey. In an unfinished biography describes him as "one of the most eminent psychologists of Europe" and " as a man of rare character beauty."

Assagioli was one of a number of illustrious personalities to his acquaintances, including about Hermann Graf Keyserling, Viktor Frankl, Abraham Maslow, Rabindranath Tagore, the Sufi master Hazrat Inayat Khan, Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy, the Zen master Daisetz Teitaro Suzuki, Lama Anagarika Govinda and the Tibet researcher Alexandra David -Neel.

Influences

Assagioli was life strives to combine an analytical- materialistic people image with a humanistic and spiritual. He was influenced by various schools of psychology, for example, the works of Erich Fromm, Erik H. Erikson, Ludwig Binswanger, Carl Rogers, Fritz Perls, Kurt Lewin, Hans Carl Leuner, Rollo May At the same time he felt the propagated by those psychologies man as partially deficient. This deficiency he tried to compensate by incorporating the teachings of spiritual traditions such as the Christian, Jewish, Hindu and Buddhist, what to him by a familiarity with various philosophical and mystical traditions such as classical Greek philosophy (especially of the Platonic doctrines ), the Kabbalah, the Vedas or the doctrines of the Christian mystic Meister Eckhart, John of the Cross and Teresa of Avila was made possible.

Psychosynthesis is thus a synthesis of various schools, teaching buildings and traditions. It is a concept that the science of medicine and psychology and the wisdom teachings of the peoples combines them into an image of man which integrates the biological bondage of human existence into a larger framework of personal choice and responsibility, and these in turn into an even broader spiritual connectedness and participation.

Psychosynthesis

Concept

As early as 1910 pointed Assagioli in his doctoral thesis on the limitations of the psychoanalytic concept down: As long as the human being is seen as only by his biological drives her, he can only partially recognized, but not be seen in its entirety. Assagioli's concern was therefore to develop a scientific psychology that recognizes the reality of the soul and the joy, meaning and fulfillment, creativity, love and wisdom, so the higher energies and aspirations of human existence is not defined as compensations or sublimation of instincts, but as a living soul reality as well as involves the impulses, appetites and needs of the vital basis of human nature.

1911, a year later, he presented his views on the unconscious in a presentation at the " International Congress of Philosophy " in Bologna before. He differentiated while the unconscious into a " deeper ", "medium " and "higher " unconscious and thus complemented the rather essentialist view of psychoanalysis, the "deeper " to the unconscious was limited by the spiritual aspect of the higher unconscious.

People image

According to the human image of Psychosynthesis the conscious personality makes up only a part of the totality of man. Although in the center of the human unconscious is that of his self-conscious I or the person / personality, but comprehensive or even greater than the conscious is the (individual ) unconscious. The (individual ) unconscious is divided into three successive parts:

The conscious is in direct communication with the central unconscious. Contact between the conscious and the unconscious or deeper the higher unconscious is in principle possible, but finds in everyday life instead of just rare.

Outside the triad of the individual unconscious lies the collective unconscious.

As an integrating principle which acts Even to the lower, the middle, the higher unconscious and the conscious (and thus to the ego ). It penetrates to a certain extent these areas is therefore not completely congruent. While the contents of the unconscious " dynamic, active and changeable ", the self is " unchangeable, immovable and stable". The self is also called Higher Self or Transpersonal Self to hervorzustreichen existing in the human potential for growth. The ego can not be regarded as different from the self, ultimately, rather it must be seen as a kind of " mirror" of the self, which is in itself without concrete content. The " higher self " refers thus simultaneously the integrating principle and the present in the human potential to open up more areas unconscious.

The transitions between the realms of consciousness and the unconscious are not rigid and impenetrable, but conceived in a kind of osmotic exchange. That is, there is a constant exchange of content of the conscious and the unconscious instead. By means of suitable methods and techniques can be content of both the deeper unconscious as well as the higher unconscious by consciousness gradually open up, so that the self over time can integrate more and more comprehensive content, which may be referred to as growth. Assagioli repeatedly pointed out that the suppression of impulses from the higher unconscious can be just as harmful and anti-developmental as the defense of content from the deeper unconscious described by Freud.

Psychosynthesis therefore sees man as a soul that has a personality, to move around in the world and being able to express in life. Like other psychotherapeutic schools Psychosynthesis works with the personality, because only a well- balanced and integrated personality can truly fulfill its role as instrument of the soul. But the real target of the work lies deeper: It's about more and more to recognize the soul as a real center of the people and also to learn in Assagioli's words to himself and others: ". Liberate the energies of the self" The personality is not something to be overcome, as said in some ways the spiritual discipline, but it is true, "the application of the synthetic mind, through the ongoing effort to always put the parts to the whole in relationship. "

Methods

In order to move towards that goal, psychosynthesis has developed methods and techniques that are used in the various stages of the process. Central are the training and education of the inner observer, ie the practice of mindfulness on the one hand, and the awakening and development of the will, ie the formation of the ability to choose from, responsibility and acting implementation on the other. Many exercises are turning to the active and the liberation of energies and forces from the "higher unconscious". The term " higher self " by the way, which is now used by various transpersonal directions, was introduced by Assagioli in psychology. It is regarded as the engine of mental activity, as the center, from which the process of development and will be promoted. Many self - experience exercises in psychosynthesis are set out to find the "higher self" as inner reality and to anchor in consciousness.

Assagioli's concern was not so much to predetermine the Psychosynthesis a new humanities building or metaphysical. He likes stressed, therefore, that psychosynthesis lead to the door, but do not make statements about what was behind it. His goal was primarily to raise the potential of the human soul and to develop practical and understandable methods.

Will

Roberto Assagioli was extremely important to develop a solid moral and ethical foundation. This calls for his opinion here as there inner work and discipline or in other words a powerful and effective training will.

Inner process as Psychosynthesis

As a depth psychologist Assagioli draws particular attention to a need: " To truly know yourself, ... must also be carried out extensive research into the vast regions of our unconscious. First, we must boldly walk through the cave of our deep unconscious, to discover the dark forces that entangle us and threaten - the " phantasms ", the archetypes or childish images that haunt us or dominate quiet the fears that paralyze us, the conflicts that consume our energy. " the higher development can only stand on a good foundation if the " dark forces " are taken out of the shadow region and integrated.

Vision

Assagioli left with psychosynthesis a vision of the evolution of the people that tried to combine between different schools and philosophies of life and challenge to develop this vision. He created an open, but clear and precise formulation of Psychosynthesis, which makes it possible to integrate new insights from science, art and religion. His idea of the future of Psychosynthesis was that this development should be promoted by independent institutes. In summary, his concern is expressed in the following quote:

"We are all connected to each other, not only socially and on a physical level, but also about the power of our thoughts and emotions that pass through each other .... a sense of responsibility, understanding, compassion, love, non -violence - these are the true members the chain that binds us, and they must be forged in our hearts. "

Works

• Roberto Assagioli: Handbook of Psychosynthesis - Fundamentals, methods and techniques. Nawo, Zürich / Zurich 2004 ISBN 3-9522591-0-1
• Roberto Assagioli: The training of the will - methods of psychotherapy and self-therapy. Junfermann, Paderborn 1982 ISBN 3-87387-202-1
• Roberto Assagioli: psychosynthesis and transpersonal development. Junfermann, Paderborn 1992, ISBN 3-87387-067-3 out
• Roberto Assagioli: " Psychosynthesis and Transpersonal Development", Nawo, Zürich / Zurich 2008 ISBN 978-3-9522591-5-3
• Roberto Assagioli: " Psychosynthesis harmony of life ", Nawo, Zürich / Zurich 2008 ISBN 978-3-9522591-6-0, first German -language translation
• Roberto Assagioli 'talking about the self " in " Psychosynthesis " magazine, Nawo Verlag GmbH, Zürich / Zurich, March 2008, first German -language translation