Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Transpersonal Anthropology

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Mild Altered States of Consciousness

  • 16 Accesses

Abstract

In this chapter I focus on  Transpersonal anthropology and examine the work of some of its key authors. I look at the history of this sub-discipline. I introduce the scientific approach taken by Charles Laughlin and then focus on those who reject such an approach. I explore the work of Victor and Edith Turner who were pioneers in  Transpersonal anthropology. I examine some key characteristics of Transpersonal anthropology: accepting the spiritual world as valid including a recognition of anomalous experience; an interrogation of methodology including participation of the researcher; a focus on shamanism and healing; and the importance of the natural world as partners in this and other realities. I also consider studies of shamanism including Michael Harner who is a renowned expert, Robin Wright and Paul Stoller. In these ethnographies we see a much wider understanding of consciousness and ASCs than in the West: interaction with the natural world and with spirits involving ASC experience is a vital part of many non-Western cultures. A collective consciousness which includes all living things and the spirit world is recognized. Finally I offer a summary which (a) points to the need to study non-Western multiple levels of consciousnesses and realities, (b) looks at a common pathway shared by Transpersonal Psychology and Anthropology, and (c) examines the possibility of more cross-pollination between them.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 89.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Hardcover Book
USD 119.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Bibliography

  • Albarracin, D., and S. Shavitt. 2018. Attitude Change. Annual Review of Psychology 69: 299–327.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Apffel-Marglin, F. 2012. Subversive Spiritualities: How Rituals Enact the World. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Benson, P., and R. Lester. 2013. New Editors’ Comment. Anthropology of Consciousness 24 (1): 1–6.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowie, F. 2008. Anthropology of Religion. Religion Compass 2 (5): 862–874.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowie, F. 2011. Miracles in Traditional Religions. In Cambridge Companion to Miracles ed. G. Twelftree. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowie, F. 2013. Building Bridges, Dissolving Boundaries. Journal of the American Academy of Religion 81 (3): 698–733.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bowie, F. 2020. Experience and Ontology in the Study of Religion. In Explanation and Interpretation: Theorizing About Religion and Myth, ed. T. Ryba and N. Roubekas. Leiden: Brill Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Buehler, A. 2012. A Twenty First Century Study of Collective Effervescence. Fieldwork in Religion. Academia.edu. https://doi.org/10.1558/fiel.v7i1.70.

  • Calabrese, J. 2001. The Supreme Court Versus Peyote. Anthropology of Consciousness 12 (2): 4–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deflem, M. 1991. Ritual Anti-structure and Religion. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 30 (1): 1–25.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Edgar, I. 1996. Report on Society for the Anthropology of Consciousness Conference 1996. Anthropology of Consciousness 12 (4): 16–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Eliade, M. 1974. Shamanism. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Evans-Pritchard, E.E. 1987/1937. Witchcraft, Oracles and Magic Among the Azande. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ferrer, J. 2002. Revisioning Transpersonal Theory. New York: State University of New York Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freeman, A. 2006. A Daniel Come to Judgement. Journal of Consciousness Studies 13 (3): 95–109.

    Google Scholar 

  • Galanti, G.-A. 1996. Teaching the Anthropology of Consciousness. Anthropology of Consciousness 7 (1): 1–3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glass-Coffin, B. 2012. The Future of a Discipline. Anthropology of Consciousness 23 (2): 113–126.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Goulet, J.-G., and D. Young. 1994. Theoretical and Methodological Issues. In Being Changed, the Anthropology of Extraordinary Experience, ed. D. Young and J.-G. Goulet. New York, NY: Broadview Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, F. 2014. Vessels for the Gods: Tang-Ki Spirit Mediumship in Singapore and Taiwan. In Talking with the Spirits ed. J. Hunter and D. Luke. Brisbane: Daily Grail

    Google Scholar 

  • Grindal, B. 1983. Into the Heart of Sisala Experience. Journal of Anthropological Research 39 (1): 60–80.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hackett, R. 2005. Anthropology of Religion. In Routledge Companion to the Study of Religion, ed. J. Hinnels. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harner, M. 1990/1980. The Way of the Shaman. San Francisco: Harper.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harner, M. 2013. Cave and Cosmos-Shamanic Encounters with Another Reality. Berkeley: North Atlantic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hartelius, G. 2016. Taylor’s Soft Perennialism. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies 35 (2): 42–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hellweg, J., and J. Englehardt. 2015. Raising the Dead: Altered States, Anthropology, and the Heart of Sisala Experience. Anthropology and Humanism 40 (2): 206–224.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heron, J. 1998. Sacred Science. Auckland: Endymion Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, J. 2015. Between Realness and Unrealness: Anthropology, Parapsychology and the Ontology of Non-ordinary Realities. Diskus: Journal of the British Association for the Study of Religion 17 (2): 4–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, J. 2016. Engaging the Anomalous: Reflections from the Anthropology of the Paranormal. European Journal of Psychotherapy & Counselling. https://doi.org/10.1080/13642537.2016.117006.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hunter, J. 2020. Spirits Gods and Magic. London: August Night Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Idel, M. 1990. Kabbalah: New Perspectives. New Haven CT: Yale University Press

    Google Scholar 

  • James, W. 1902. The Will to Believe. In Readings in Philosophy of Religion (2008), ed. A Eshlema. Oxford: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • James, W. 1982/1902. The Varieties of Religious Experience. New York, NY: Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • James, W. 1911. Memories and Studies. NY: Longman and Green

    Google Scholar 

  • Koch, C. 2004. The Quest for Consciousness: a Neurobiological Approach. Englewood CO: Roberts

    Google Scholar 

  • Kruszynska, S. 2015. Ecrasez l’Infame: Voltaire’s Philosophy of Religion. Miscellanea Anthropologica et Sociologica 16 (1): 125–137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lahood, G. 2007. One Hundred Years of Sacred Science. ReVision 29 (3): 37–48.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lancaster, B. 2011. The Hard Problem Revisited: from Cognitive Neuroscience to Kabbalah and back again. In Neuroscience Consciousness and Spirituality ed. H. Walach et al. Heidelberg: Springer

    Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin, C. 1993. Transpersonal Anthropology. In Paths Beyond Ego, ed. R Walsh and F. Vaughan. Los Angeles: J. Tarcher.

    Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin, C. 2003. Transpersonal Anthropology, then and now. www.zynet/transpersonal.

  • Laughlin, C. 2013. Dreaming and Reality: A Neuro-anthropological Account. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies 32: 64–78.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin, C. 2017. Conceptual Systems Theory: A Neglected Perspective for the Anthropology of Consciousness. Anthropology of Consciousness 28 (1): 31–68.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin, C., and M. Takahashi. 2020. Mystical Love—The Universal Solvent. Anthropology of Consciousness 31 (1): 5–62.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Laughlin, C., and J. Throop. 2009. Husserlian Meditations and Anthropological Reflections. Anthropology of Consciousness 20 (2): 130–170.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Locke, R.G. 2011. Existential Grammars: A View of the Anthropology of Consciousness. Anthropology of Consciousness 22 (2): 106–135.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Malinowski, B. 1984/1922. Argonauts of the Western Pacific. Long Grove, IL: Waveland Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maraldi, E., and S. Krippner. 2019. Cross-Cultural Research on Anomalous Experiences: Theoretical Issues and Methodological Challenges. Psychology of Consciousness: Theory Research, and Practice 6 (3): 306–319.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maso, I. 2007. Phenomenology and Ethnography. In Handbook of Ethnography, ed. P. Atkinson, et al. London: Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mentore, G. 2008. Spiritual Translucency and Pornocratic Anthropology: Waiwai and Western Interpretations of a Religious Experience. Anthropology and Humanism 32 (2): 192–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Osher, D., et al. 2020. Drivers of Human Development: How Relationships and Context Shape Learning and Development. Applied Developmental Science 24 (1): 6–36.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peters, L. 1990. Mystical Experience in Tamang Shamanism. ReVision 13 (2): 71–85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Porath, N. 2013. “Not to Be Aware Anymore”: Indigenous Sumatran Ideas and Shamanic Experiences. Anthropology of Consciousness 24 (1): 7–31.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reichel-Dolmatoff, G. 1976. Training for the Priesthood among the Kogi of Colombia. In: J. Wilbert (ed.) Enculturation in Latin America: an Anthology. LA: University of California Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Said, E.W. 1978. Orientalism: Western Conceptions of the Orient. London: Penguin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schroll, M. 2010. The Future of a Discipline: Considering the Ontological/Methodological Future of the Anthropology of Consciousness. Anthropology of Consciousness 21 (1): 1–29.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Schwartz, S. 2019. The Transformation—Nonlocal Consciousness Becomes a Fundamental in Our Reality. Explore: 1–3. www.elsevier.com. Accessed June 2021.

  • Schwartz, S. 2021. Boulders in the Stream: The Lineage and Founding of the Society for the Anthropology of Consciousness. Anthropology of Consciousness 32 (2): 129–153.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Searles, E. 2007. Prophecy Sorcery and Reincarnation. In Extraordinary Anthropology, ed. J.-G. Goulet and B. Miller. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Shostak, M. 2011. Return to Nisa. In Being There: Learning to Live Cross-Culturally, ed. S. Davis and M. Konner. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stockigt, B. 2014. Spirit Possession in East Africa. In Talking with Spirits, ed. J. Hunter and D. Luke. Brisbane: Daily Grail Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Stoller, P. 2008. The Power of the Between—An Anthropological Odyssey. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Stoller, P. 2017. In the Shade of the Jujube Tree. Anthropology and Humanism 46 (1): 69–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Stoller, P. and Olkes. C. 1989. In Sorcery's Shadow. Chicago, Ill. : University of Chicago Press

    Google Scholar 

  • Tart, C., ed. 1975. Altered States of Consciousness. New York, NY: Doubleday.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tart, C. 2002. Parapsychology and Transpersonal Psychology: Anomalies to be Explained Away or Spirit to Manifest? Journal of Parapsychology 66 (1): 31–47.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tart, C. 2019. On the Potential Role of Psi in an Expanded Science of the Physical, Experiential, and Spiritual. Journal of Scientific Exploration 33 (3): 359–405.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor, E. 1996. William James on Consciousness Beyond the Margins. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Tedlock, B. 1991. From Participant Observation to the Observation of Participation: The Emergence of Narrative Ethnography. Journal of Anthropological Research 47: 69–94.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, V. 1975. Betwixt and Between: The Liminal Period in Rites of Passage (Reprinted). In Betwixt and Between, ed. L. Mahdi. La Salle: Open Court Publishing.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 1992. Experiencing Ritual. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2004. Shamanism and Spirit. www.museum.upenn.edu.

  • Turner, E. 2006. Advances in the Study of Spirit Experience: Drawing Together Many Threads. Anthropology of Consciousness 17 (2): 33–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2010. Discussion: Ethnography as a Transformative Experience. Anthropology and Humanism 35 (2): 218–226.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2011a. This Is My Profession—Changes in African Ritual Consciousness over Thirty-One Years. Anthropology and Humanism 36 (1): 7–17.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2011b. Our Lady of Knock: Reflections of a Believing Anthropologist. New Hibernia Review/Iris Éireannach Nua 15 (2): 121–125.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2012. Communitas—The Anthropology of Collective Joy. New York, NY: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2015. The Spirituality of Africa. Anthropology of Consciousness 26 (2): 121–131.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Turner, E. 2016. Postscript—Anthropologists and Healers—Radical Empiricists. Social Analysis 60 (1): 129–139.

    Google Scholar 

  • Van Gennep, A. 1960. Rites of Passage. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Velmans, M. 2017. An Epistemology for the Study of Consciousness. In The Blackwell Companion to Consciousness, ed. M. Velmans and S. Schneider. Oxford: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Viveiros de Castro, E. 1998. Cosmological deixis and Amerindian Perspectivism. The Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 4 (3): 469–488.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Walsh, R. 2005. Asian Contemplative Disciplines. Transpersonal Psychology Review: Special Issue: 31(2) 141–160

    Google Scholar 

  • Winkelman, M. 2010. Introduction: Anthropologies of Consciousness. Time and Mind 3 (2): 125–134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Winkelman, M. 2021. Magic—A Theoretical Re-assessment. Anthropology of Consciousness 32 (2): 154–181.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wright, R. 2013. Mysteries of the Jaguar Shamans of the North-West Amazon. Nebraska: University of Nebraska.

    Book  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK

    Eileen Sheppard

Authors
  1. Eileen Sheppard
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2024 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Sheppard, E. (2024). Transpersonal Anthropology. In: Mild Altered States of Consciousness. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-53452-2_5

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation