Author: Amir Freimann
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Characteristics of “Transcenders”
I recently read an article by Abraham H. Maslow (one of the most influential psychologists of the last century) called “Theory Z”, in which he distinguishes between two sub-groups of “self-actualizers” (those at the peak of his “pyramid of needs”), which he called “transcenders” and “nontranscenders”. He wrote: “[Transcenders] may be said to be Read More ->
Enlightenment, Take 2
Blog, Philosophical-Spiritual, Spirituality
During the first dozen years of my spiritual journey, all I was really interested in was the possibility of “enlightenment”, which to me meant “direct, unmediated contact with reality.” I had to “get there,” no matter what. Then, at the age of 29, I was catapulted into an enlightenment experience or state, which lasted (at Read More ->
The Value of Philosophy
“The value of philosophy is, in fact, to be sought largely in its very uncertainty. The man who has no tincture of philosophy goes through life imprisoned in the prejudices derived from common sense, from the habitual beliefs of his age or his nation, and from convictions which have grown up in his mind without Read More ->
States of Unitive Consciousness and Their Implications
People start seeking enlightenment or unitive consciousness (aka transcendence, pure consciousness, mystical union, etc.) at different times and circumstances in life and for different reasons. One of the spiritual teachers I recently interviewed told me that when he was three years old, playing one summer afternoon with a Goofy toy on the front porch of Read More ->
Leonard Cohen’s Reason to Become a Zen Monk
In the 1990s Leonard Cohen spent a few years practicing Zen and serving as Zen teacher Joshu Sasaki’s personal assistant in Mount Baldy Zen Center. In an interview, Cohen said the following about his relationship with his teacher: “I still don’t have much interest in Buddhism, in any formal way. I bumped into a man Read More ->
The Nine Philosopher Types
The following is an original classification* to nine philosopher types, based on the questions each type is most concerned with. The nine types are the dialogic (concerned with interpersonal relationship, intimacy, love, responsibility and care for the other), experiential (interested in the human experience of love, hate, happiness, pain etc.), mystical (concerned with that which is beyond Read More ->