Self And Soul

An ARTery Best Book of the Year An Art of Manliness Best Book of the Year In a culture that has become progressively more skeptical and materialistic, the desires of the individual self stand supreme, Mark Edmundson says. We spare little thought for the great ideals that once gave life meaning and worth. Self and Soul is an impassioned effort to defend the values of the Soul. “An impassioned critique of Western society, a relentless assault on contemporary complacency, shallowness, competitiveness and self-regard...Throughout Self and Soul, Edmundson writes with a Thoreau-like incisiveness and fervor...[A] powerful, heartfelt book.” —Michael Dirda, Washington Post “[Edmundson’s] bold and ambitious new book is partly a demonstration of what a ‘real education’ in the humanities, inspired by the goal of ‘human transformation’ and devoted to taking writers seriously, might look like...[It] quietly sets out to challenge many educational pieties, most of the assumptions of recent literary studies—and his own chosen lifestyle.” —Mathew Reisz, Times Higher Education “Edmundson delivers a welcome championing of humanistic ways of thinking and living.” —Kirkus Reviews

A wide range of ancient Eastern and modern Western philosophies are connected in this exciting new therapy. Free your bodily tensions and release long-held emotions, enhancing your mental and physical health. Rosenberg's Integrative Body Psychotherapy helps develop both personal and internal growth, focusing on the whole person — the body, mind, emotions and spirit. An integration of various disciplines, this approach is ideal for professionals looking to develop a holistic and integrated philosophy of health. This book helps both professionals and lay readers learn: -The basic tools of Integrative Body Psychotherapy -Segments of the body, and how they work together -The stages in development of the self -The physical/energetic level of sexuality -The intra-psychic level of sexuality -The interpersonal level of sexuality -The transpersonal experience What readers are saying about this book: The authors' broad perspective is a welcome relief from the narrowness of most self-development systems. Body, Self, and Soul is thoughtful, practical, and very well informed. — Michael Murphy, founder of Esalen Institute

Heart, Self, and Soul is the first book by a Western psychologist to explore the rich spiritual tradition of Sufism as a path for personal growth. Western psychotherapy aims largely to help us eliminate neurotic traits formed in childhood and adapt to society. In contrast, the Sufi goal is ultimately spiritual: Yes, we need to transform our negativity and be effective in the world; but beyond that, we need to reach a state of harmony with the Divine. Full of stories, poetry, meditations, journaling exercises, and colorful everyday examples, this book will open the heart, nourish the self, and quicken the soul.

It has been clear from the beginning that William Blake was both a political radical and a radical psychologist. In William Blake on Self and Soul, Laura Quinney uses her sensitive, surprising readings of the poet to reveal his innovative ideas about the experience of subjectivity.Blake’s central topic, Quinney shows us, is a contemporary one: the discomfiture of being a self or subject. The greater the insecurity of the “I” Blake believed, the more it tries to swell into a false but mighty “Selfhood.” And the larger the Selfhood bulks, the lonelier it grows. But why is that so? How is the illusion of “Selfhood” created? What damage does it do? How can one break its hold? These questions lead Blake to some of his most original thinking.Quinney contends that Blake’s hostility toward empiricism and Enlightenment philosophy is based on a penetrating psychological critique: Blake demonstrates that the demystifying science of empiricism deepens the self’s incoherence to itself. Though Blake formulates a therapy for the bewilderment of the self, as he goes on he perceives greater and greater obstacles to the remaking of subjectivity. By showing us this progression, Quinney shows us a Blake for our time.

Psyche, Self and Soul is a many faceted exploration of the relationship of psychotherapy and spirituality. Introducing the term 'an everyday transcendence', Gargiulo studies the silent alone space of each individual and relates a psychoanalytic exploration to a spiritual journey. Calling on the thought of philosophers, theologians, scientists and analysts, the text gives a new framework for understanding psychoanalysis and spirituality grounded in the here and now as well as a psychoanalysis that respects mystery, justice and civility. The clinical cases demonstrate how each patient's task must be understood as individualized, and consequently, how the analyst/therapist must creatively adapt clinical technique. D.W. Winnicott's thoughts are applied throughout the text and are given a comprehensive summary in the final chapters.

From Soul to Self takes the reader on a fascinating journey through philosophy, theology, religious studies, and physiological sciences. Each of the essays, drawn from a number of different fields, focuses on the idea of the soul and of our sense of ourselves. A stellar line-up of authors explore the relationship between a variety of ideas that have arisen in philosophy, religion and science, each idea seeking to explain why we think that we as individuals are somehow distinct and unique. Contributors: Richard Sorabji, Anthony Kenny, Kallistos Ware, Peter Riviere, Gary Matthews, Susan Greenfield, Galen Strawson

The way an individual's psychology is intertwined with their morality is the subject of this fascinating book from the pen of the late Ilham Dilman. Dilman convincingly argues that evil, though it cannot be reduced to psychological terms (it is a moral concept) is explicable in terms of an individual person's psychology. Goodness, by contrast, comes from the person and not their psychology. Philosophers the world over will want to read this book and see how Dilman skilfully defends his arguments.