Spotlight on Sufism
ITP is one of the few accredited institutions in the world that offer a broad range of Masters and Ph.D. level courses in various fields related to Transpersonal Psychology. Sufism is one such area of study. The Institute's graduate level distance learning and residential degree programs often offer courses in Sufism that are taught by ITP's distinguished faculty. This faculty includes professors who are nationally recognized leaders in their field of specialty.
The following is a list of Sufism courses. Most of these classes have been offered in the past. The particular electives offered by the Institute vary at any given time. The School tries to be responsive to the particular interests of the current student body and aims to have the curriculum reflect those interests. The number of current classes that fall under the category of Sufism depends on both teacher availability and student interest. Information on current classes can be found in the academic catalog.
Sufism and Western Psychology:
Interfacing Two Visions of Human Possibility
This symposium is dedicated to expanding and quickening the dialogue between Sufism and modern Psychology. Despite important cultural and methodological differences, these two disciplines potentially complement each other. Each broadens the other's approach to human development and maturation.
Symposium participants will have a unique opportunity to explore the similarities and differences between these tradition, with a view toward developing a synthesis of both. We hope that this symposium will begin a deepening trans-cultural dialogue, a dialogue which will contribute to the development of a coherent, transformative, and effective science of being. Traditional Sufi approaches will be combined with modern investigative procedures, including phenomenological, hermeneutical, and cross-cultural analysis.
Sufism
Sufism, known as part of Islam, also contains a well developed psychology that has personal, theoretical, and clinical applications that have been developed and refined for at least the last 1200 years. In class we will read, work with, and discuss stories, poems and short selections from a wide range of Sufi sources. Students are expected to read and write about additional stories and poems as well as to observe their own reactions to these materials.
Spiritual Dimensions of Human Behavior
This course explores images of spiritual development with special emphasis on James Fowler’s stages of faith development, and the themes of spiritual emergence and spiritual guidance. Students will become conversant with a variety of maps and models of the spiritual path, including identifying one’s own perspective on spiritual development. Fowler’s model will be contrasted with an alternate perspective on spiritual growth as presented by Sam Keen. The course will also familiarize students to the phenomena of spiritual emergence and spiritual emergency. The potential psychopathological disturbances that may accompany spiritual emergence will be elucidated, and students are encouraged to become familiar with energy systems from a variety of spiritual and psychological perspectives in order to gain an understanding of the numerous areas of expertise that may contribute to the role of spiritual guide.
Research Group: Spiritual Guidance
The field of spiritual guidance is an ancient tradition, dating back to the Desert Fathers and Mothers of the 3rd and 4th centuries. Yet in spite of its recent “renaissance,” there is a paucity of research in the field. This research group will explore the art and practice of spiritual guidance in the context of a research project that might serve to enhance the field, illuminate the transpersonal qualities of spiritual guidance, and further an understanding of a spiritual practice that has endured for centuries. We will pay particular attention to (a) the value of spiritual guidance for seekers who are on a spiritual path; (b) how to research a sensitive topic like spiritual guidance and still maintain the integrity of the process; and (c) the relevance of doing such research.
Our research project includes the development of a survey questionnaire which will inquire into the varieties of spiritual guidance being practiced by individuals in the U.S. and Canada; selected individuals who describe themselves as practicing spiritual guidance/direction based on whatever method or tradition they use. The survey will explore each guide’s practice, how and why they became guides/directors, how they are making an adequate living in their practice, and other relevant questions. The intention of this project is to benefit the existing spiritual guidance program at ITP by providing further information on the art and practice of spiritual guidance in today’s world.
An additional and equally important intention of this project is to demonstrate that the field of spiritual guidance is an area worthy of scholarly research, and to contribute solid research to the field of transpersonal psychology as it applies to the art and practice of spiritual guidance. Individual projects are also encouraged in this class that may contribute to participating students’ dissertations, focusing on specific aspects of spiritual guidance: e.g., the use and effects of spiritual guidance in various settings such as in business, with certain populations of people, in relationships, to heal religious wounding, etc.
The Research Group will continue with the practice of students and instructor spending time in meditation and dialogue about the topic and its relationship to research. We will employ various experiential practices in class to allow the research project to continue to unfold in an organic and guided way. We will use specific readings to open our minds and our hearts to the topic in creative and varied way.
The Inner Experience: Thomas Merton on the Phenomenology of Contemplation
One of the principal and enduring characteristics of Thomas Merton’s life and work has been the universal appeal of his spirituality. He demonstrated an ability to touch into the basic religiosity of humanity, which he believed constituted the essence of our being. His writings served as a beacon for others to search their hearts and minds for the answers to life’s perennial questions about our origin, purpose, love, and the sanctity of life. Moreover, his own life and spirituality served as a balm for others with regard to the alienation and anguish that humanity inevitably encounters when attempting to extract meaning from the existential givens of birth, death, illness, emotion, despair, guilt, alienation, identity, etc. While Merton has certainly been recognized as one of the intelligentsia of his era, he will be remembered not so much for his acumen as a scholar as for his charismatic capacity to reach people’s hearts on the most fundamental issue of becoming fully human.
This course focuses on Merton not as a biographical figure, but as a spiritually awakened monk within the Christian mystical/monastic lineage. The course is structured as a sequence of 10 distinct yet interrelated modules that will give students a more immersed, experiential perspective into a subject matter that is sometimes difficult to perceive through the written word alone. Programmatically there will be an emphasis placed on cultivating a visceral sensibility of the subjective nature of contemplation through didactic lecture, Socratic discourse, and experiential practices that support phenomenological inquiry into direct experience. Each of the proposed modules will orbit around Merton’s personal revelatory and scholarly interpretations of the phenomenology of contemplation, as well as the more universal characteristics of contemplative life found in the mystics and diverse spiritual and philosophical traditions before him.
What benefits can students derive by participating in a course on contemplative life? As with other periods in human history, our modern world is teetering on an abyss of reckless self-destruction, manifesting in the daily occurrences of war, genocide, sexual violence, social injustices, racism, and economic inequality. Merton has expressed unequivocally that contemplative life, with its emphasis on solitude, silence, and surrender, can act as an antidote to the unbridled narcissism and passions of the false self that lives a life of alienation and inauthenticity.
Ignatian Spirituality for Transpersonal Psychologists
In this course we will consider the spirituality and spiritual practice of St. Ignatius of Loyola, a 16th century soldier turned Christian mystic, and founder of the religious order known as the Society of Jesus (“the Jesuits”). We will use Ignatian spirituality as a point of reference for examining our own spirituality and spiritual practice. The course will include an experiential learning component, allowing students to “test drive” approaches to prayer and meditation rooted in the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. There will be room in the experiential learning tasks to adjust them to your own understanding of the Divine, or Higher Power, or God. As we travel through the course, we will also consider psychological constructs that underlie the spirituality of St. Ignatius, such as the role of memory, imagination, intellect, and desire in prayer and meditation; the role of affect in the process of spiritual discernment and decision-making; and Ignatius’s notion of the intimate interpersonal quality of communion with the Divine.
Spiritual Perspectives
This experiential course explores psychological, mythical, and spiritual perspectives of personal growth and development. It is intended to help students reflect deeply on how each moment is a spiritual moment. The course explores the universal themes of inner spiritual journeys from different cultural and spiritual perspectives. An introduction to meditation helps students develop and apply practical tools for inner spiritual work.
By studying this material, students become familiar with universal spiritual themes found among all spiritual paths, all cultures, and all peoples. Metaphors of self-transformation from a cross-cultural perspective of myth, symbol, and religion will be explored. Students are encouraged to develop an understanding of the commonalties and differences between spiritual paths of wisdom and paths of devotion. In addition, the interconnectedness of psychological processes and spiritual development will be explored; including the psychological themes of individuation, relatedness, and triangulation.
