| Titel: | Experience of Self in Advanced Yogis: A Preliminary Verification of Upanishadic Theory |
|---|---|
| Autor: | Nagle, Carol |
| Mediengruppe: | dissertation |
| Herausgeber: | --- |
| Zeitschrift: | Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering |
| Jahr: | 2005 |
| Band: | 65 |
| Heft: | --- |
| Seiten: | --- |
| Sprache: | English |
| Abstract: | The purpose of the present study was to determine if the theory of the Self presented in the Upanishads could be verified in contemporary human experience. Using the qualitative methodology of a multiple case study design, the reported experience of the Self was examined in three advanced yogis. The ways this inner experience manifested in the relations of each with the outer world was also explored. Participants were three advanced Hindu yogis who, by expert opinion, were believed to have attained Self-realization. Sources of data for the case studies included participant-observations of the yogis in their daily environments, semi-structured interviews, indirect interviews with key informants, and other relevant documentation such as biographies, personal writings of the yogis, printed interviews and dialogues, videos, and schedules. Using the five-stage analysis for the long qualitative interview in combination with the case study method of analytic generalization, the themes of the Self revealed in the narratives and lives of the cases were found to correspond to the essential qualities of the unconditioned Self distilled from a content analysis of the Upanishads. Therefore, the Upanishadic descriptions of the essence of the Self as being universal; at one with the Absolute; beyond thought, mind, and senses; immortal and unchanging; free of suffering, fear, and desire; in supreme peace and bliss; and of paradoxical nature has been replicated in the lived experiences of contemporary human beings who have reached extraordinary levels of consciousness. Thus, the theoretical propositions of the Self put forth in the Upanishads were verified through consistent pattern-matching across cases. Furthermore, three additional significant qualities of the Self were found in the contemporary cases which were not mentioned in the Upanishads: universal love and compassion expressed as service to others, humility, and the quality of living in the present moment. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved) |