From Dualism to Oneness in Psychoanalysis A Zen Perspective on the Mind-Body Question Psyche and Soul Series

From Dualism to Oneness in Psychoanalysis: A Zen Perspective on the Mind-Body Question focuses on the shift in psychoanalytic thought, from a view of mind-body dualism to a contemporary non-dualistic perspective. Exploring this paradigm shift, Yorai Sella examines the impact of the work of psychoanalysts and researchers, such as Winnicott, Bion, Daniel Stern and Kohut, and delineates the contributions of three major schools of psychoanalytic thought in which the non-dualistic view is exemplified: (1) intersubjective; (2) neuro-psychoanalytic; and (3) mystically inclined psychoanalysis.

Reaching beyond the constraints of dualism, Sella delineates the interdisciplinary approaches leading to psychoanalysis's paradigm shift. Focusing on the unique contribution of Zen-Buddhism, the book draws on Ehei D?gen's philosophy to substantiate the non-duality of subject and object, body and mind - ultimately leading from alienation and duality to what Bion has termed "at one-ment". The way in which psychoanalytic theory and practice may develop further along these lines is demonstrated throughout the book in a variety of clinical vignettes.

This book will inform the practice of all psychoanalysts, mental health professionals, psychotherapists and clinicians interested in mind-body issues in psychotherapy, in the philosophy of psychoanalysis, and in East-West dialogue.

Preface

Foreword

Chapter One: A mysterious leap

Chapter Two: Mysterious leaps: from psychosomatics to the psyche-soma

Chapter Three: The ascension of the body: representation and presentation

Chapter Four: Unitive experience and a unitary turn

Chapter Five: The unitary turn: overarching conceptual structures

Chapter Six: Non-duality in Zen-Buddhism: implications on the mind-body question in contemporary psychoanalysis

Chapter Seven: The body of the Buddhist 'body-mind'

Chapter Eight: Embodiment and interpretation - not two

Chapter Nine: A non-dualistic body-mind-set in psychoanalysis?

Chapter Ten: From duality to oneness: Zen contributions to psyche-soma meta-theory in contemporary psychoanalysis

Conclusion and future directions

Yorai Sella, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist, a psychoanalytic and Humanistic-integrative psychotherapist and a member of Tel Aviv Institute for Contemporary Psychoanalysis, Israel. He co-directs the East-West Integrative Psychotherapy training in the School of Social Work and teaches in the Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University. He has practiced Tai-Chi and martial arts for the past 30 years and is a student of Zen-Buddhism.