Deepening Consciousness: What Phenomenology, Yogic, and Buddhist Meditation Can Contribute From a Psychological Perspective

Yogic and Buddhist meditation, as well as phenomenology, all aim to deepen conscious experience, but they differ significantly in their methods, goals, and outcomes.Yoga and Buddhism present pathways wherein individuals advance through meditation. Within these traditions, except for the ultimate and most profound state of consciousness, intermediate conscious experiences typically function as a means to an end. The delineations of these experiences primarily serve pragmatic rather than purely descriptive purposes, aiding in assessing personal progress and establishing future objectives. Proficiency in these practices can catalyze profound alterations in conscious experience, yielding enduring effects.Phenomenology aims to provide a scientific, intersubjective description of consciousness. It does so by focusing attention on the unnoticed aspects of everyday consciousness and its different layers. Phenomenology thus deepens awareness of what is always "there" in everyday consciousness, even though it passes unnoticed. Instead of being completely immersed in the existing world, one shifts one's attention to the world phenomenon. However, the objective is not transformation but rather description. So much so that there is even a fear that the reflection or shifting of consciousness might already change the phenomenon, thus leading to inadequate descriptionsThis research project aims to delve into the interrelation and potential merging of consciousness and conscious experience as understood within these different traditions. Achieving this goal requires the traditions to transcend their conventional frameworks. Phenomenology must extend its focus beyond contrasting everyday consciousness with pathological conditions and instead explore the potential for healthier and more aware modes of conscious living. This raises the question: Can phenomenological methods such as reflection, reduction, and epoché be directly applied to transformed conscious experiences, or do they necessitate adaptation? In contrast, traditional depictions of alterations in consciousness and conscious experience within yoga and Buddhism frequently include elements that unmistakably associate them with a specific tradition. While these elements are inherent to the spiritual doctrine of their respective traditions, they pose challenges in comparing the descriptions of consciousness. Therefore, the establishment of an intersubjective and coherent vocabulary for clarifying the transformations of consciousness and conscious experience could substantially improve the acknowledgment of these experiences and their corresponding changes within scientific discourse. To further promote scientific acceptance, this research particularly encourages thoughtful reflection on the intersection of these inquiries with psychology. While meditation-induced transformations have been observed from a third-person perspective, phenomenology and descriptions of meditative states predominantly emphasize subjective experience. What methodological tools do these traditions possess to address the reservations that have contributed to the decline of introspection in psychology? How do they facilitate the establishment of methodological rigor in researching first-person consciousness?

We welcome contributions that explore the intersections of phenomenology, Buddhism, yoga, and psychology. For instance, contributions could investigate and compare the methodologies employed in each tradition to deepen conscious experience. How does one tradition's pursuit of transforming consciousness through this deepening relate to the other’s efforts to avoid it? How do the various traditions conceptualize consciousness, the mind, and the desired or undesired transformations? Contributions could analyze the approaches utilized by each tradition in describing conscious experience, including their respective criteria and methodologies. Comparisons between Buddhism, yoga, and phenomenology regarding their perceptions of everyday consciousness are of interest—where do similarities and disparities in characterization emerge? Furthermore, how do Buddhism and yoga conceptualize everyday consciousness in relation to the transformative stages achieved through meditation? What aspects undergo change during this process? How do these changes align with attempts to classify meditations as attentional, constructive, and deconstructive? Is it plausible to establish meaningful correlations between the deeper levels of consciousness outlined by phenomenology and the advanced meditative states attained in Buddhism and yoga? Can we cultivate a critical awareness of the perspective from which we analyze and compare such traditions? Moreover, how can we effectively integrate this first-person research on consciousness into psychology? What entrenched assumptions in psychology pose challenges, and how can we overcome them without compromising scientific rigor?

Keywords: deepening of consciousness, meditation, yoga, Buddhism, phenomenology, consciousness research

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