A Course in Miracles & Buddhism – Part 4: Psychology and Psychotherapy

This is a course in mind training. T-1.VII.4.1, A Course in Miracles

Psychology
1: the science of mind and behavior
2a : the mental or behavioral characteristics of an individual or group
b : the study of mind and behavior in relation to a particular field of knowledge or activity
3: a theory or system of psychology, eg. ‘Freudian psychology’, ‘the psychology of Jung’Psychotherapy
the treatment of mental or emotional disorder by psychological means

- Merriam-Webster

P-in.1. Psychotherapy is the only form of therapy there is. Since only the mind can be sick, only the mind can be healed. Only the mind is in need of healing. This does not appear to be the case, for the manifestations of this world seem real indeed. Psychotherapy is necessary so that an individual can begin to question their reality.

Both A Course in Miracles and Buddhism are deeply rooted in psychology.

In fact, one could say that both A Course in Miracles and Buddhism are forms of psychotherapy. Both systems acknowledge that the external world is a projection of the mind, thus, the mind itself must be healed for any kind of meaningful result. If we are watching a film in a cinema, and the picture suddenly becomes out-of-focus, there would be little point in trying to adjust the screen – clearly, it is the projector that requires the fixing. Unlike many other religious systems where the emphasis is on performing particular deeds or actions in the world, both A Course in Miracles and Buddhism seek to heal where the root cause of all perceived problems exist – in the mind.It would be entirely possible for you to practice the kind of spirituality we’ll be discussing without anyone else ever knowing it. Pg. 13, The Disappearance of the Universe

Projection makes perception. The world you see is what you gave it, nothing more than that. But though it is no more than that, it is not less. Therefore, to you it is important. It is the witness to your state of mind, the outside picture of an inward condition. As a man thinketh, so does he perceive. Therefore, seek not to change the world, but choose to change your mind about the world. Perception is a result and not a cause. T-21.in.1. A Course in Miracles

Here, it is difficult to over-emphasize the absolute nature of this paradigm. Even amongst Course teachers, there is a tendency to dilute this message. ‘Seek not to change the world’ does not mean that we do not carry on living a normal life, or caring for others, or attending peace rallies, or campaigning for causes that we believe in. It does not mean disengagement and renunciation of the world.

What is does mean is that our focus has to be on how we view events in our life. That is the only sure way to have control over how we feel. As human beings, we will certainly try to ‘change the world’ in ways big or small – that cannot be avoided. It is the attachment to the results of our attempts to ‘change the world’ that the Course is cautioning us against.

A good summary of the Buddhist psychological approach is described in this article:

Buddhism does not distinguish between emotions and other mental processes. Instead, it is concerned with understanding which types of mental activity are truly conducive to one’s own and others’ well-being, and which ones are harmful, especially in the long run.

In Buddhism, a clear distinction is made between affective states that are directly aroused by the experience of pleasurable stimuli (sensory, as well as aesthetic and intellectual) and sukha, which arises from the attentional, emotional, and cognitive balance of the mind. (For a similar distinction, see Sheldon, Ryan, Deci, & Kasser, 2004.) The experience of pleasure is contingent upon specific times, places, and circumstances, and can easily change into a neutral or unpleasant feeling. When one disengages from the pleasant stimulus, the resultant pleasure vanishes, whether or not it is connected to any afﬂictive state.

The initial challenge of Buddhist meditative practice is not merely to suppress, let alone repress, destructive mental states, but instead to identify how they arise, how they are experienced, and how they inﬂuence oneself and others over the long run. In addition, one learns to transform and ﬁnally free oneself from all afﬂictive states. This requires cultivating and reﬁning one’s ability to introspectively monitor one’s own mental activities, enabling one to distinguish disruptive from nondisruptive thoughts and emotions.

Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being, Paul Ekman, Richard J. Davidson, Matthieu Ricard, and Alan Wallace

In taking a medical approach, a table comparing Buddhism, Western psychology and A Course in Miracles (my addition) is perhaps helpful for the scientifically minded:

	Buddhism (Four Noble Truths)	Western psychology	A Course in Miracles
problem	suffering (dukkha)	significant distress, disability, pain, loss of freedom, suicidality	loss of peace of mind, fear, anger, suffering, victim mentality
etiology (cause of the problem)	craving (tanha), ignorance (avijja)	conditioning, genetics, biology, childhood development, socialization	identification with the ego thought system
goal	Enlightenment (bodhi), Nirvana	normal or higher functioning, lack of initial symptoms	complete identification with Christ, complete inner peace
treatment	Noble Eightfold Path	counseling, therapy, medication, systems advocacy	workbook lessons, Course-based forgiveness

Source: Wikipedia

On a practical level, the therapeutic effects of Buddhism and A Course in Miracles are very similar. Both encourage a deep sense of inner peace. Both build an within the individual a psychological resilience that enables him or her to deal with life’s challenges in a calmer fashion.While I do not know of any similar studies done with A Course in Miracles (bearing in mind A Course in Miracles has been around for 40 years compared to Buddhism’s 2000 years), there has been significant research done on forgiveness.

Charlotte Witvliet of Hope College studied forgiveness, emotion and psychophysiology among victims and transgressors. People who forgave others had more positive physiological responses than those who harbored revengeful thoughts. June Tangney at George Mason University researched forgiving the self to discover the role of self-forgiveness and forgiveness of others. Her studies replicated recent research showing that people inclined to forgive others are generally well-adjusted, agreeable, other-oriented individuals with a well developed capacity for self-control.

To Forgive Is Divine: The Scientific Study of Forgiveness, A Campaign for Forgiveness Research

Also, many of the principles of A Course in Miracles have been distilled and taught in a secular form by physician, psychiatrist and author Gerald Jampolsky, who founded the Attitudinal Healing movement in 1975.

An overview of Attitudinal Healing is given on the website:

What is Attitudinal Healing?

Attitudinal Healing is based on the belief that it is not people or external situations that cause us to be upset. Rather, what causes us conflict and distress are our thoughts, feelings, and attitudes about people and events.

Attitudinal Healing is letting go of fear and our negative, hurtful thoughts from the past.

Attitudinal Healing allows us to correct our misperceptions and to remove the inner obstacles to peace. This begins at life, and at death; to have peace of mind as our only goal; and to make forgiveness our primary function. It is discovering the effect that holding on to our grievances, blaming others, and condemning ourselves has, so that we can choose to no longer find value in them.

Attitudinal Healing asserts that when we let go of fear, only love remains and that love is the answer to all of the problems we face in life. It is the recognition that our true reality never changes and that Love is all there is.

The inception, development and teaching of A Course in Miracles is inextricably linked with psychology. Three instrumental figures in the inception of the Course, Helen Schucman, Bill Thetford, and Kenneth Wapnick, were all trained clinical and research psychologists. This is a list of all the psychologists (I am aware of) who have been involved with A Course in Miracles in the mainstream:

Helen Schucman, Ph.D. (Co-scribe of A Course in Miracles and Associate Professor of Medical Psychology at Columbia University)
Bill Thetford, Ph.D. (Co-scribe of A Course in Miracles and Professor of Medical Psychology at Columbia University)
Kenneth Wapnick, Ph.D. (Clinical Psychologist and head lecturer at the Foundation for A Course in Miracles)
Gerald Jampolsky, M.D. (Physician, child and adult psychiatrist, and founder of Attitudinal Healing)
Diane Cirincione, Ph.D. (Psychologist, therapist, businesswoman, international lecturer, and author/co-author of several books)
Roger N. Walsh, M.D., Ph.D. (Professor of Psychiatry, Philosophy and Anthropology at the University of California, Irvine)
Frances Vaughan, Ph.D. (Author, educator and psychologist in Marin County, CA)
Joe R. Jesseph, Ph.D. (Psychologist, author of ‘A Primer Of Psychology According To A Course In Miracles’)

The psychological principles of A Course in Miracles, while universal, are largely made understandable through the work of Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis in the early 20th century.

Kenneth Wapnick goes as far as to say,

In view of this emphasis on looking at the ego, or false self, I have through my many years of teaching often spoken of A Course in Miracles as resting heavily on the earlier work of Freud, so heavily in fact that the Course would indeed be inconceivable without it. - The Significance Of A Course in Miracles As A Spiritual Path, The Lighthouse, Volume 13, Number 2 June 2002

Here, it is important to note that the ego as referred to in the Course is not the same ego as defined by Freud, but is more akin to Freud’s concept of the psyche – the total composite of the id, ego, and super-ego. To remind us of what the ego is, a definition from Kenneth Wapnick:

the belief in the reality of the separated or false self, made as substitute for the Self Which God created; the thought of separation that gives rise to sin, guilt, fear, and a thought system based on specialness to protect itself; the part of the mind that believes it is separate from the Mind of Christ

While the concept of the ego does exist in Buddhism (the Atman), Buddhism does not have the same psychological sophistication, nor does it elucidate the workings of the ego thought system as clearly as A Course in Miracles. It is through the study of the ego’s mechanisms of denial, repression and projection that enables us to be aware of these processes within us, and to stop playing the ego’s game.

A Course in Miracles seems to have arrived on the world stage at the right time – in a modern day and age where these psychological concepts are in much greater public understanding. It certainly would not have been possible for many to understand the message of the Course had it arrived at the time of the Buddha!

Next: A Course in Miracles & Buddhism – Part 5: Being in the present moment

Back: A Course in Miracles & Buddhism – Part 3: The Middle Way

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