The brilliant philosopher Jacob Needleman passed away one year ago today. Needleman is the one who famously said, “We’re built to serve something greater than ourselves.” In a letter to the president of the Fetzer Institute, Needleman wrote something else that has continued to inspire me throughout my career: “I believe that the group is…
The existential psychologist Rollo May published a ton of books while he was alive. I’ve read two: My Quest for Beauty and The Courage to Create. Rollo May helped develop and popularize existential psychology—a branch of therapy that explores universal aspects of human existence, including concepts like death, freedom, responsibility, and meaning. It’s a psychology…
“Most of us typically associate metaphor with the flowery language that poets use or with things that are made up: ‘That’s just a metaphor.’ In other words, we typically treat metaphors as outside of ourselves, when in fact they are the deep, sensory, intuitive language of the feeling center of our brain. To say that metaphor is…
After I finished my Ph.D. at the University of Chicago, I tried very hard to do what I was ‘supposed’ to do—interview for an academic teaching position at some sort of prestigious university. But I couldn’t do it. Instead, I moved to the wilderness of northwest Montana. Here’s what happened instead: I developed self-reliance. In…
There are certain metaphors for change and transformation that occur over and over again in the world’s literature. They are: Transitioning from caterpillar to butterfly Awakening from the dream of reality Uncovering the veils of illusion Moving from captivity to liberation Purification by inner fire Going from darkness to light Moving from fragmentation into wholeness…
End of content
End of content