Sofia University, Revised 2015
Sofia University
Global MTP Program
Introduction
to
Transpersonal
Studies
MTP 7403
(4.0
Units)
Creative
Explorations:
Introduction
and
Purpose
Dorit Netzer, Ph.D.
Transpersonal psychology emphasizes
that intellectual grasp of theory provides an
incomplete, and even distorted view of its full meaning. Theory must
be integrated
experientially, emotionally, relationally, and
in
embodied ways to be truly meaningful
and potentially transformative. Practice
is manifested as everyday
actions in the world.
We hope you will explore the dynamics between the seen and unseen—known
and
unknown—embodied
and mystical in everyday life.
These creative explorations aim to facilitate experiential knowing
of the
“Transpersonal”
(Braud, 1998)
∗
as:
-
A
Movement
Across,
as in a journey or pilgrimage connecting two shores. Your
experience might feel like traveling from one place of
awareness
to another. You
might travel in your imagination, on the page—with
a brush or a pen, out in
nature, in a conversation . . .
-
A
Movement
Through
the personal (emphasizing the value of personal, subjective
experience, as the shaper of reality. Remember that there isn’t
a
right or wrong
way to go through an experience.
Your unique experience is meaningful to you
and inspiring to others in its authenticity.
-
A
Movement
of
Change,
or
Transformation
of matter into spirit and spirit into
matter. Change is inevitable when one is engaged in a practice.
Transformation
is
a profound and persistent change, but one may be so deeply moved
shortly after
an experience, that the experience feels transformative.
-
A
Transcendent
Movement,
a movement beyond the personal, expansion and
inclusion of community and the universe at large.
Transpersonal experiences,
especially when shared with others, take on a larger meaning, which
often radiates
as a feeling of interconnectedness with others and the world at
large. When you
reflect upon your transpersonal practice, pay attention to the
qualities,
which feel
both expansive and integrative.
∗
Braud,
William.
(1998b).
Can
research
be
transpersonal?
[Electronic
version].
Transpersonal
Psychology
Review,
2(3),
9-17.
1
Sofia University, Revised 2015
Each exercise aims to integrate multiple ways of knowing, including
contemplation,
embodied knowing, and creative expression. Feel free to elaborate on
the exercise and
depart from it if you wish to take the suggested exploration
further, deeper, or in another
direction. You will have the opportunity to share your process with
your cohort.
A Contemplative Walk:
Opening to the Creativity of the Natural
World
By S. Kofler
2
Sofia University, Revised 2015
Creative
Explorations
Dorit
Netzer,
Ph.D.
The purpose of these
self-exploratory
exercises is to facilitate experiential understanding
of transpersonal qualities, such as personal awareness,
interconnection with the world,
creative expression, and relationship with
the natural environment.
Intellectual
understating of transpersonal theory is not sufficient; it must be
integrated experientially,
emotionally, relationally, and in embodied ways. Thus theory
transforms into practice
and
is manifested as everyday actions
in the world.
A number of times throughout this course, you will be tasked with a
creative
expression/exploration activity.
Creative expression assignments
will take
a two-
week format in this course.
The
first week
will introduce the exercise and provide
time to explore it contemplatively and creatively.
During
the next
week,
you will
post your self-reflection,
integrating
your experience with the other modes of
learning you had been exposed to in the course.
1.
Creative
Exploration
#1,
Weeks 2-3:
Students examine the role of
wisdom traditions in the early years of transpersonal psychology.
Students
become acquainted with contemporary viewpoints of transpersonal
psychology.
Relating
by
Analogy:
World
as
Mirror
World
as
Symbol
The purpose of this week’s exploration is to observe how my inner
state is reflected in
outer events and phenomena, and how in turn the world mirrors back
to me my inner
state. The world provides ample opportunities to gain understanding
of internal process,
by noting the analogy between the inner and outer worlds.
We will engage in observation without commentary for one week.
During the week, pay
attention to symbols in your everyday life that mirror back to you
how you feel within.
Take notes of these events
and occurrences, and engage in creative activities, such as
creative writing and art making, as outlets to process your
observation without applying
value judgment of good/bad. The premise of this exercise is the
assumption that nothing
happens by chance
and that the Self and the world are interconnected. How does your
inner state change when you approach your daily life in this way?
What happens when
you depict your experience through creative means?
In
Week
2
simply
engage
in
this
activity.
During
Week
3
you
will
provide
a
brief
written
reflection
in
your
Personal
Folder,
and
will
attach
a
copy
of
your
creative
expression.
2.
Creative Exploration #2, Weeks 3-4:
Students explore the varieties of
transpersonal experiences and learn about theories
of transpersonal
development, as they continue to engage in their own transpersonal
practice.
Sofia University, Revised 2015
See,
Sense,
and
Feel
This
week’s
creative
exploration
aims
to
facilitate
heightened
awareness
through
tuning
into your senses—experiencing
your world through your senses.
The
activity
of
this
week
encourages
you
to
step
out
into
the
world
and
engage
your
whole body, all your senses and feelings,
with your daily environment as if you
encounter
it
for
the
first
time.
See
if
you
can
not-privilege
one
sensorial
mode
over
another.
It
is
understood
that
our
sense
of
vision
tends
to
dominate
unless
we
close
our
eyes,
and
that
when
we
encounter
our
environment
habitually,
we
naturally
revert
to
stored
knowledge
and
existing
understanding
of
our
relationship
to
it.
Can
you
be
aware
of
this
ever
so
fully?
Experience
your
presence
in
mundane
situations
with
a
renewed
sensitivity
to
your
surroundings,
to
the
sounds,
colors,
felt
energy,
and
your
direct
connection
to
it.
See
if
you can be present and fully engaged as well as observant of
yourself and others.
When
you
feel
you
have
gathered
enough
direct
experience
to
work
with
introspectively,
engage
with
your
favorite
mode
of
creative
expression,
in
writing,
with
art
media,
through
authentic
movement,
etc.
and
let
this
newly
acquired
knowledge
about
the
world,
which
you
have
gathered
intuitively
and
with
your
whole
being,
to
guide
your
creative
expression process.
In
Week
3
simply
engage
in
this
activity.
During
Week
4
you
will
provide
a
brief
written
reflection
in
your
Personal
Folder,
and
will
attach
a
copy
of
your
creative
expression.
3.
Creative Exploration #3, Weeks 7-8:
Students focus on multicultural
perspectives, and on the experience of connecting with others and
with the
natural world. In closure, students engage in the integration of
their course
learning.
Creative
Exploration:
The
Teachings
in
Your
Natural
Environment
This week’s creative exploration will guide you to find time in
which you can
consciously and attentively take a walk in nature or in your city
streets.
Whether you
observe a tree in the woods or on a sidewalk, sunlight filtered
through branches or
shadowed by buildings, observe the teachings they behold, which have
value for your
transpersonal development. Consider this as a creative experiment,
the outcome
of which
you cannot predict. This brief journey will hopefully help to
facilitate inner shifts on
multiple levels (emotional, mental, physical, imaginal).
When you feel you have gathered enough direct experience to work
with introspectively,
consider experimenting with a mode of creative expression, which you
are
less
familiar
with,
in writing, with art media, through authentic movement, etc.
and
let your creative
4
Sofia University, Revised 2015
expression become your teacher as well. What aspects from your
experience in your
natural environment are you bringing into your page or your
movement space?
In
Week
7
simply
engage
in
this
activity.
During
Week
8
you
will
provide
a
brief
written
reflection
in
your
Personal
Folder,
and
will
attach
a
copy
of
your
creative
expression.
~
~
~
Make Your Own Path
Dorit Netzer, Winter 2011
5