Awakening the Heart: East/West Approaches to Psychotherapy and the Healing Relationship

by John Welwood

Book Overview

Can a meditative practice assist and promote the healing relationship between psychotherapist and patient? The notable contributors to this practical book draw on a wide range of Eastern and Western disciplines--psychoanalysis, Gestalt, Aikido, and various Christian, Hindu, and Buddhist contemplative traditions--to show that it can. What they propose is a meeting between the Western psychotherapeutic approach--grounded in working with the personal...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0394721829
• ISBN13: 9780394721828
• Release Date: November 1983
• Publisher: Shambhala
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.71 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 5.7" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

Great for self-counseling and managing change

This book is worthwile to purchase even if you read only one chapter "What is the self?", where one comes to terms with a definition of Satori and how to evolve creative capacity. I recommend this book if you want to be in the center of managing your change process in life. Roshi in "Where is the Self?" discusses the need to know how you are put together and what puts you together, essentially "know thyself" (Welwood, 1983). This allows one to become aware of a "unifying integrating function of the center of gravity." This produces respect for oneself and for others as well, He talks about true love as the "realization of the asbolute center of gravity," a two-phased process (I am paraphrasing on what Satori is) when one is able to 1) to realize absolute Self (there is no self "I am" consciousness left to experience), and when this unification breaks up and 2) to realize the individual self which objectifies the absolute (external projection of oneness, unity consciousness) Satori means, "there is only one center of gravity in the universe, and you are sitting in the center of gravity," basically what one sees as the ultimate reality must become one's own experience. Once you have this experience within yourself, then "there is no need to go on seeking things outside yourself." His basic thesis is that our culture cannot succeed and sustain itself as long as it is based on a partial definition of the Self. Those in Las Vegas in a perpetual search of meaning are stuck on Satori, incomplete on the first step without awareness of the second. He goes on to talk about the "essential tragedy of modern education," that we are taught only to affirm this one aspect. With a one-sided perspective one is "forever seeking that which appears only as an object to yourself...... You are enslaved by it, and you can never experience life in its true joy." Since you only "experience the world as external to you and you are never unified with it, then you are forever seeking the world." In fact, this is pervasive in modern civilization and the culture we know.

A very different approach to therapy, besides drugs.

I am a senior in college and majoring in Psychology. I have a senior thesis paper do and I have choosen your book to read. What our teacher wanted us to do is to: a) Find a book that talks about psychotherapy. b) write a thesis statement c) The thesis statement would have to have an approach to therapy in a way which can be proven either wrong or right from a person, with a good argument. For example, How come therapists are not able to sleep with their clients. An approach like that can be rediculous but that is what our teacher wants us to write. Now, I have choosen your book and it is very interesting in catching the eye of the reader. I would really be content and overwelmed if you could help me with some imput in writting this paper. See your book Awakening The Heart deals with an approach that is so different than just regular therapy and drugs. For example, Prozac is, to me, a drug that is over prescribed to people. Meditation is different. People might critisize that but I believe that it could assist relationships with the therapist and the patients.If that could be possible for you to help me I'd really appreacheate it. Thank you Thank you, Chris

A wonderful overview of a holistic counseling approach

AWAKENING THE HEART is a classic introduction to the contrast between eastern and western perspectives on the mind and counseling. It is an edited collection of essays on meditation, self-awareness, humility, and the interaction between "patient" and "counselor" - indicating that the counselor is affected by the process, as is the patient. It was a good book for me when I was early in my counseling career (ca. 1985), having exited an engineering career and become re-educated as a social worker. I gave gift copies to colleagues when I recently changed positions, and it was well-received, some 13 years after its initial publication. A good read for any counselor or any of his/her customers who are somewhat educated.