| Titel: | Spirited flesh: An intuitive inquiry exploring the body in contemporary female mystics |
|---|---|
| Autor: | Esbjorn, VC |
| Mediengruppe: | --- |
| Herausgeber: | --- |
| Zeitschrift: | Dissertation Abstracts International: Section B: The Sciences and Engineering |
| Jahr: | 2003 |
| Band: | 64 |
| Heft: | --- |
| Seiten: | 309 |
| Sprache: | englisch |
| Abstract: | This dissertation explored the body in relationship to spirituality—flesh and spirit—in particular, as they are experienced in contemporary female mystics. This study used a hermeneutic research method called intuitive inquiry, a process of interpretation that includes as part of the method, the subjectivity of the researcher. The research included an intuitive and systematic analysis of various historical spiritual texts on the body, and then widened to include texts from interviews with 12 contemporary female mystics. These women represent a variety of mystical traditions and spiritual paths including Christianity, Sufism, Tibetan Buddhism, African Spirituality, Yoga, Indian Tantra, Authentic Movement, and Diamond Logos. Ages range from 40 to 76; one participant is Chinese-American, one is African-American, and the others are European-American. At least three participants are celibate. Themes that were explored through the semi-structured interviews include the body in relationship to self, sexuality, death, physical transformation, and spiritual liberation. Results included the interpretations of the researcher, presented in the format of discussion. The primary interpretation was that women who have devoted their lives to a path of spiritual inquiry tend to go through a process of disidentification and re-identification with the body that is dialectic in nature, taking place in cycles, deepening throughout one's lifetime. Secondary interpretations were that (a) childhood experiences, from visions to trauma, serve as a catalyst for spiritual sensitivity in the body; (b) the body serves as a barometer, where intuition becomes physicalized; (c) transformation of the body occurs on a cellular level; (d) being embodied is a choiceful act; (e) sexuality is integral to embodiment; (f) bringing spirit into matter is purposeful; (g) spiritual maturation includes an energetic awakening of the body; (h) boundaries—between you and me, world and self—are experienced as permeable; (i) self reference, or awareness of ‘I’, is fluid and flexible and is not fixed in the body; (j) the contemplation of death brings into focus the immediacy of life; (k) women are teachers of conscious embodiment; and (l) inquiring into the relationship between body and spirit deepens and enlivens one's experience of living as a body. The researcher concluded that this process of inquiry holds the potential to change the participant, researcher, text, and method. |