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HUMAN ARCHITECTURE: JOURNAL OF

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ISSN: 1540-5699. Copyright by Ah ead Pu blishing H ouse (imp rint: Okcir Press). All Rights Reserved.

HUMAN

ARCHITECTURE

Journalofthe Sociology ofSelf-

A Publication of OKCIR: The Oma r Khayyam Center for Integrative Research in Utopia, Mysticism, and Science (Utopystics)

Michael Washburn, in the second edi-

tion of his seminal work, The Ego and the

Dynamic Ground: A Transpersonal Theory of

Development(1995)

, provides a rich discus-

sion of a pivotal feature of his dyn amic-di-

alectical model of development. His con-

cept of regression in the serv ice of transcen-

den ce is a twist of the phrase, regression in

the service of the ego. The Freudian appli-

cation of using regressive techniques to

help restructure the personality is trans-

formed almost a century later to address

themes and debates within the field of

transpersonal development. Washburn em-

ploys the concept to illustrate a stage in

spiritual development where there is a cri-

sis or dark night of the soul preceding a

spiritual awakening. What was lost or re-

pressed in the psyche through the primal

repression of the ego is retrieved once again

throu gh regression (p. 171).

Regression is mediated by a renewed

Shoshana Lev is a doctoral student in the Clinical Psychology program at The Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, in

Palo Alto, CA. Her w ork includes counseling traum a survivors and those suffering from acute mental illness. She is

interested in illuminating that place of communal self-discovery where the work of social transformation meets the

process of self-healing. A pr actitioner of various mind -body integrat ion and sp iritual healing pr actices, Shoshana sees life

as a d elicate dance of balance where the self may be u nderstood as an intrapsychic community seeking to un ite with all

that exists.

Regression in the Service of Transcendence

Reading Michael Washburn

Shoshana Lev

The Institute of Transpersonal Psychology

rose32lev@comcas t.net

Abstract: Michael Washburns idea (1995) of using regression as a process that may actually

serve spiritual development is attractive for many reasons. First, it transmutes a more pa thologi-

cal orientation toward manifestations of psychological suffering into one that has the ability to

hold greater value for the life pu rpose of an ind ividual. Instead of viewing p eople as clusters of

symptom s needing to be treated, or as less spiritually evolved when suffering is present, Wash-

burn offers a mod el that places suffering within a larger p aradigm of spiritual un folding. This

app roach may be qu ite helpful to those in the sp iritual and psychotherapeutic commun ities, as

clients or pra ctitioners, because it allows a frame from w hich to view wh at ma y seem like a m ere

snapshot m etamorph ose into a full motion picture by allowing presenting symptoms to hav e a

larger meaning. However, it is also important not to reify theoretical concepts by creating a kind

of orthodox dogma w ith potential to do more harm than good. Fortunately, Washburn himself is

not a Washburn fundam entalist and d oes address issues surround ing instances of severe pathol-

ogy. Though he d oes not provide treatm ent options or an y clinical solutions, he does provide an

overarching framework w ithin which regressive experience and suffering can h ave m eaning. He

constructs a place where the p rism of experience is never severed from the d ynamic ground ofwhich it and all things emerge.

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served better if regression was not a shame-

ful experience to be avoided or concealed a t

all costs but instead another opportunity

for growth?

There are already m any p ractical app li-

cations at work u sing the concept of regres-

sion in the service of transcendence. Many

therapists in th e field of transpersonal psy-

chology employ a host of specialized tech-

niques that allow signs and symptoms of

spiritual emergence to be shared and man-

aged without pathologizing their clients.

There are also cultures and communities

that allow for a w ider spectrum of expres-

sion where suffering is a natural part of

spiritual development. Seeking integration

and wholeness through the transcendentpotential of Washburns conception of re-

gression may be p romoted as a larger phi-

losophy of holistic human development

with applications to global conflicts or one

persons life journey. If all can be honored

for having value toward something greater

rather than experiences to be feared or

jud ged, there m ight be more p ossibility for

peaceful resolutions to conflict.

The problem w ith the adoption of any

orientation, however redem ptive its poten-

tial, is that it is never a one-size-fits-all solu-

tion. Invariably, situations or groupings ofexperiences arise which simply cannot be

accounted for by a particular model. This

might be especially true for developmental

models. There is always new research and

data that either supp ort or detract from the

theoretical construct, and usually do both.

That is why it is so imp ortant n ot to re-

ify theoretical concepts by creating a kind

of orthodox dogma with potential to do

more harm than good . In this case, the po-

tential would be to consider any manifesta-

tion of suffering a regression in the service

of transcendence. For example, a transper-

sonal psychotherapist or spiritual guide

does not assess for risk of suicide when

there is clear indication but instead is swep t

up by the transpersonal dimension of a per-

sons story. They mistakenly use Wash-

bur ns model as a sort of stencil to wh ich all

da ta is app lied so th at the clients accoun t is

made to fit the right stage, ego opening to

dyn amic ground but also the potential sui-

cide of the patient.

The particularly d ogmatic might throw

out the p roverbial baby with the bathwater

and not at all employ useful mental health

solutions. It is similar to those who w ill not

use any form of allopathic treatment be-

cause they have found a countervailing

mod el. One d oes not have to look far to see

the applications of supposedly ameliorat-

ing theories used in the most grievous of

ways. Marxism under Chinas Cultural

Revolution and Stalinist Russia are prime

examples of how a stage theory of develop-ment designed to liberate becomes em-

ployed to opp ress.

From a less sinister but still critical

stand point, it is possible that regression for

some peop le will not have any special affin-

ity with transcendent potential. Where

does the ego meet the dynam ic ground for

trauma patients or the developmentally de-

layed? For those wh o have severe d issocia-

tive or severe person ality disorders, ego de-

velopment may not be congruent with

Washburns model of spiritual develop-

ment. Those who have a borderline person-ality disorder, for example, may not have

the ego stability to safely integrate experi-

ences emerging from the realm of the dy-

namic ground . Some m ay never experience

the p romise of regeneration of spirit.

A Washburn fundamentalist, if there

were such a thing, might intervene in ways

that could be contraindicated for those suf-

fering from acute psychosis and not fully

acknowledge the d evastating d epths of suf-

fering. This could be a case of w ea r in g -

t h e - r o s y - t r a n s p e r s o n a l - g l a s s e s s y n -

drome. Lastly, there is no specific clinical

data that Washburn refers to in order to

support the claim that regression may in-

deed be used in the service of transcen-

dence. To be fair, he is neith er a clinician nor

a scientific researcher. It might not interest

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Washburn to scientifically prove that his

model is correct. Instead he may desire his

mod el to be und erstood as h euristic in p ur-

pose.

Fortunately, Washbu rn himself is not a

Washburn fundamentalist and does ad-

dress issues surrounding instances of se-

vere pathology. Though he does not pro-

vide treatm ent options or any clinical solu-

tions, he does provide an overarching

framework within which regressive experi-

ence and suffering can have meaning. He

constructs a place where the pr ism of expe-

rience is never severed from the dynamic

ground of which it and all things emerge.

R

EFERENCES

Grof, Stanislav. 1975. Realms of the HumanUnconscious

. New York: Viking Press.

Otto, Rudolph. 1917. The Idea of Holy

. Trans. J.W. Harvey. New York: Oxford UniversityPress, 1950.

Reich, Wilhelm. 1942. The Function of theOrgasm

. Trans. R. P. Wolfe. New York:Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

Washburn, Michael. 1995. The Ego and the Dynamic Ground: A Transpersonal Theory

of Human Development

. Albany, NY: StateUniversity of N ew York Press.