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Roberto AssagioIi


The talian Roberto Assagioli (1888-1974) was the first Western psychologist
to seriously incorporate religion and spirituality into an overall view of the
human psyche. When we look at his predecessors in the field of psycho-
analysis, Freud was downright contemptuous about religion. He considered all
forms of religion and spirituality to be a regression into childlike states of
consciousness. For Freud, the highest and most healthiest state the psyche
could ever attain, was a strong rational and full grown consciousness,
presided over by a realistic ego, that was able to integrate and regulate as
many aspects from the conscious and the unconscious as possible.
Everything irrational had to be avoided or at least scrutinised and given its
place by the mind. The unconscious drives had to be canalised. The ego had
to be a mediator between the rules and regulations of the superego (the sum
total of all internalised commandments and advises you have ever learned)
and the demands of the d (the unconscious and all its drives). Religion and
spirituality were low forms of consciousness, which had there place and
function in the psychological world of the child, but had to be left behind in
reaching maturity.

Freud's student, the Swiss Karl-Gustav Jung, disagreed with the old master.
He was more positive about the role religion played in the human psyche. For
he discovered that deep down in the collective unconscious of man there
were symbols at work which he called 'archetypes'. These symbols were
unconscious images of certain psychological realities, charged with
tremendous psychodynamic energy, like the image of the archetypical Mother,
who would always look after you, or eg. the White Horse, as a symbol of
freedom. Some of these symbols were of a religious nature, like the Guardian
Angel or the Son of God, the Saviour.

Jung made it his lifetime work to study these archetypical symbols and
thereby unravel the secrets of the unconscious. He showed us with a wealth
of material that we could find these archetypes at work in myths and stories all
over the world. Also in our dreams could we discover the workings of these
symbols. These archetypes had meaning to the individual psyche and could
be studied for the purpose of diagnosis and used in therapy.

For Jung contended that the archetypes had the power to integrate the
different psychological functions, both of the conscious and the unconscious.
They were like batteries filled with high energy, able to ignite the psyche into
lofty aspirations, high goals and images of a better human being, of a better
world. Especially religious archetypes, like the hero, the avatar, the incarnate
god, or the saint, to name only a few, had the power to harmonise and
stabilise the psyche. They seemed to be the images of the Self, the higher
part of the psyche.

So Jung was more positive about the role religion and spirituality played in the
life of the psyche. He did not reduce all religious feeling and thought to be
expressions of lower, immature drives in the unconscious. But, as Ken Wilber
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ea. has convincingly shown, Jung in the end did not do spirituality much of a
favour. He was not able to give spirituality and religion a well deserved and
highly esteemed place in psychology. For he did not make a clear distinction
between archetypes of the higher, spiritual realms (supra conscious and
transpersonal facets of the psyche) and archetypes of lower, mythological
(infra conscious and infra personal) origin, that sometimes even originated
from the very beginning of the evolution of consciousness. He treated them as
if they had no hierarchical values. For not all archetypes and psychological
symbols are spiritual and of higher value by nature. Freud was indeed right in
labelling some religious feelings as primitive and childlike, eg. images
produced by the lower magical layers of our (sub)consciousness.

For what psychology until Jung failed to offer us was an overall map of the
spectrum of consciousness, that gave credit to all aspects of the human
psyche, including the religious and the spiritual. n order for this overall map to
be accurate and in accord with all psychological data it also had to be in one
way or another hierarchical, ie. fields of higher and lower value had to be
delineated. For we needed desperately to make distinctions between one
(religious) feeling and another, between one archetype and another, in order
to understand the different levels of integration the different archetypes
offered our psyche. n other words we needed a scientific map that could give
us a detailed survey of the different meanings and values each psychological
phenomenon had.

Roberto Assagioli was the first scientist in psychology to give us such an
overall map. His view of the human psyche is here presented. This view offers
us a more accurate view of consciousness than both the systems of Freud
and Jung. n the system of Freud 1, 2 and 3 taken together formed the d and
the Superego, both being irrational and unconscious, and 4 the field of
consciousness, with 5, its agent, the Ego. But Freud never spoke about both 3
and 6. He placed the field of 4 more up high in consciousness, as he
considered the Ego within its field of consciousness the highest form of
evolution. Jung spoke about 6 but did not clearly differentiate between 1, 2 or
3.
















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Let's get into details about Assagioli's map of the human psyche.

1. the lower (infra) unconsciousness
n this part of our unconscious psyche all our unconscious drives and instincts
are stored. Much of what unconsciously motivates our acting and thinking has
its ground here. This is also the place where all our repressed thoughts and
feelings are being put away, far remote from our field of consciousness, that
we can't be bothered in the waking state by fears, griefs and anxieties. Or to
put it negatively, this is the place where all mental pathologies have their
roots. This is 'evil territory' for most people, truly a 'dark ground' and a 'hellish
abyss'. When the nervous system is very tensed and ill, this is the place from
where neuroses, phobia's and psychoses enter consciousness.

2. the middle unconsciousness
This is the part of the unconscious we have access to during our waking state.
t is a kind of 'waiting room' for things we've recently experienced. Here we
unconsciously elaborate and develop much of our thoughts and feelings, that
solutions or insights might later on enter our field of consciousness. t's some
sort of an intermediate state between waking and sleeping.

3. the higher unconsciousness
This is the field from where all our higher feelings and thoughts enter
consciousness, like artistic or scientific intuition and inspiration. All our noble
ethical feelings, like altruistic love or self sacrifice, derive from this higher
unconsciousness. t's also the place of genius and higher spiritual forms, like
ecstasy and the power of enlightenment. Here the hidden psychic energies
are enormous and can not only extol the psyche but can also disrupt and
disintegrate its functions by its sheer power. This is a field in consciousness
that is not accessible, or only rarely, for most people.

4. the field of consciousness
This part of our personality is accessible to us during the waking state: 'a
never ending stream of sensations, images, thoughts, feelings, desires and
impulses that we can observe, analyse and judge.'

5. the conscious self or ego
This is designated by the black dot in the diagram. t's the centre of our
consciousness from where we regulate, observe and judge all content of our
consciousness. t can be compared to a 'helmsman' or 'a charioteer' in
steering and controlling everything that is going on in our consciousness. t is
the definite name of a person, the feeling of '-ness'. t gives the impression
that it is something permanent amid the fleeting content of consciousness
(though this is only seemingly the case). Freud gave it the central place in his
psychology, because of its great power to regulate and integrate. But it is also
the mechanism that represses and makes unconscious. So in a sense the
ego is also responsible for keeping much of our psychic functions and content
unconscious.



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6. the higher Self
When we are asleep, hypnotised or numbed by narcotics, our self, or
conscious , seems to be totally lost and gone. But when we awake and come
to our senses, we regain our consciousness again. So there must be 'a Self
behind the ' that keeps our consciousness alive, when we can not control it.
For otherwise we would die every time we had fallen asleep or had become
intoxicated. t is also responsible for keeping alive all our involuntary
functions, both biological and psychological. For can we start or stop
breathing?

So it must be inferred that the ground of our feeling of '-ness' is something
higher. Assagioli states that this Self is something permanent and that t is not
afflicted by the daily stream of our consciousness, nor by the physical process
of our body, but that it can be felt and experienced as the Source of our
consciousness. Kant called it the noumenal ego to distinguish this higher Self
from the empirical ego. The ego seems to be some kind of an image of this
higher Self.

The concept of the higher Self is an important one in the psychology of
Assagioli, because he wanted psychology to be a science that could integrate
all the different functions of the human psyche into a harmonious whole. He
contended that of all the fields in consciousness the Self had the highest
potentials to bring about this harmony. He wanted in therapy to build up the
whole structure of the personality around this concept of the higher Self and
use all its potentials in unifying individual consciousness. He wanted to
synthesise the different psychological functions, after the ground for
integration was laid by a thorough analysis, with the aid of methods and
techniques developed by Freud and his successors. For Assagioli also
believed with Freud that the ego and its field of consciousness were very
important in making integration possible. But a true synthesis was brought
about when we also made use of all the energies of the higher Self. That was
his major objective and that's the reason he called his new psychology
psychosynthesis.

7. the collective unconsciousness
n the diagram consciousness seems to be isolated and cut off from the field
around it by a marked line. This is only done for the convenience of
representation. For in fact there is a constant exchange going on between the
world inside individual consciousness and consciousness surrounding it
(much like the cell inside a body is continuously 'osmoting' with the world
outside). Our consciousness is not isolated but relates to past, present and
future consciousness working in our world, both in man and outside. This
overall consciousness can be termed the collective unconsciousness,
because most people are not conscious of the fact that they are embedded in
this larger field of consciousness.

We must give Assagioli the credit for introducing the concept of the higher
Self into western psychology. He deserves our gratefulness in opening up
psychology to all sorts of investigations into the higher, and afterwards called
'transpersonal', realms of consciousness. Assagioli was the pioneer who laid
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the foundation for future explorers of the human psyche, like Ken Wilber and
all his colleagues in the transpersonal psychology of today. He is sometimes
blamed for not stating his sources. For Assagioli based his psychosynthesis
on esoteric psychology and the work of Alice Bailey, a theosophical scholar, in
particular. But we can see now why he was so reluctant to point out the
Eastern sources of his psychosynthesis. The scientific world of his days was
not ripe to acknowledge the deep wisdom of esoteric traditions and was very
sceptical about 'everything higher'. So he chose to frame his findings about
the Self in Western, 'scientific', vocabulary. This prudence made his writings
more acceptable in academic circles. He was wise in doing so.

His method of psychosynthesis is a very thorough one. He started therapy
with focusing the attention of the patient on field 4, the field of consciousness,
because that was for the average person the closest at hand. With
strengthening this field of consciousness and in particular the ego as the
controller, the next steps would give more results. So he tried to fortify the
conscious will of the ego. For a strong will facilitated therapy and
strengthened the patient's ability for self knowledge. Perseverance and
braveness were needed for a successful psychosynthesis to take place.

The second step was to analyse the unconscious of fields 1 and 2. All fears
and anxieties, all blockades and inhibitions, all trauma's and neuroses had to
be made conscious. The deep anchored habits of the personality had to be
scrutinised to estimate and value the patterns of behaviour the patient was
prone to. Why did the patient always behave the way he or she did? What
was the root cause of all troubles? Assagioli agreed with Freud that bringing
awareness to unconscious feelings and thought brought about a catharsis: to
be aware, to know thyself had a healing and integrating effect upon
consciousness.

For most people success in this first and second step would be already a
major improvement in their mental health. f the field of consciousness could
be enlarged and could be brought to also include field 1 and 2 (if, in our
representation above, field 1 and 2 could also become red), then therapy
would be already of some success in most cases. Most people would surely
benefit from this enlargement of their consciousness. For the majority of
patients only wanted and were only capable of realising a personal
psychosynthesis. The higher unconscious is not easily accessible to most
people. ts energies in most cases are still dormant. So Assagioli worked very
hard to develop techniques to promote this limited form of psychosynthesis.
He wanted to take into account the limitations most patients have in realising
their self.

But he also developed techniques for realising a spiritual psychosynthesis, the
highest form of synthesis that could be achieved. For he was very assured
about the fact that only this kind of synthesis could really make and end to all
suffering and mental illness. Only if the whole spectrum of consciousness had
become conscious (if the whole circle had become red, including field 6, the
Self), could there be harmony, contentment and blissfulness in the human
psyche. That truly would be a synthesis indeed.
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So let's discuss the third step Assagioli wanted to take in treating his patients,
the spiritual psychosynthesis. For as concerns the study of mysticism, that's
what interests us the most here at the Mystical Site.

He begins by stating that it is a scientific fact that there is a tendency in the
human psyche to reach for higher forms of consciousness. The ego wants to
come into contact with its own Source of being, the Self, which is represented
in the diagram by the line drawn between 5 and 6. n fact it can be seen as a
strong pulling line, originating from the Self, to lift up consciousness to include
the supra consciousness and the higher Self. The Self out of its own nature
wants us to be lifted up. n what vocabulary we frame this tendency, be it
religious, metaphysical, philosophical or artistic is of no concern to the
psychologist. Assagioli only wants to state the fact that there is such a
tendency and that it works. t would be unscientific to deny the working of
these psychological tendencies. They have to be described for a psychology
that wants to be precise, accurate and factual. Furthermore these higher
tendencies seem to work in integrating and synthesising all normal
psychological functions. So they can be very helpful to a psychology that
wants also to be therapeutical.

The life and works of exceptional gifted artists and geniuses give us an
example, that it is possible indeed to enlarge consciousness and so to include
the higher realms. They have an expanded consciousness that is not confined
to field 4 alone, but stretches out into field 3. There they make use of
extraordinary potentials, that ordinary men only can dream about. But we
clearly must make a distinction between the higher unconsciousness and the
Self itself. For geniuses, artists or mystics may have (temporarily) access to
the supra unconsciousness, but that does not always mean that they have the
Self realised. Their personality may still have flaws. Only when the Self is
completely included in the expansion of consciousness, can there be full
harmony of all psychic functions. For we must not forget that the higher
unconscious can also be open at times for ordinary persons (the so called
peak experiences) and even for mentally deranged persons, like
schizophrenics, but that does not mean that they have the Self realised.
Realisation of the Self is the ultimate goal in human development and (still !)
happens very rarely.

But every human being feels the pull of the line and already this pulling force
can be beneficial. t is in the nature of the psyche to always reach higher and
beyond. This reaching is already salutary. So Assagioli wanted to develop
techniques that could enforce the pulling of the line, so to speak. Let's discuss
some techniques that can be helpful in reaching for the Self.

1. the use of spiritual archetypes and symbols
Spiritual symbols are not only reflections of the higher tendencies of our
psyche, but they can set these tendencies in motion also. n this way symbols
are used in all sorts of spiritual settings, like liturgies or in art. These
archetypical images open up consciousness to the higher fields. Abstract and
nature symbols repeatedly come up in these settings, like the image of the
sun, the star, the eye (often images of the Self) or images of flowers as the
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rose or the lotus. Also wine and bread in the West are used as symbols of our
spiritual hunger.

But also can the image of certain persons be used as symbols of higher
spiritual growth, like the internalisation of certain holy men and women (Jesus,
Krishna, Buddha etc.). Especially for religious persons these images are of
enormous potency in bringing about a synthesis, but also atheists or
agnostics make progress when they visualise and internalise certain
exceptional persons, like the nner Teacher, or the Old Wise Woman, the
nner Warrior, to name only a few. Everyone is able to name such a person
and reflect and internalise the realised qualities these persons represent.

2. the inner dialogue
This is one of Assagioli's most beautiful techniques. He asked the patient to
visualise before him with closed eyes an nner Teacher. He invited the patient
to express his or her problem before this nner Guide and ask for explanations
and solutions. n most cases the expressed problem was not instantaneously
solved, but in the long run, on unexpected moments, some insights did come
up, that proved beneficial. Assagioli explained the working of this technique by
stating that the nner Teacher of the patient was none other the Self itself, that
offered wisdom and balance to the mind of the questioner.

Personally much applaud this technique, because the person who asks the
questions is looking for the answers and solutions himself. Gradually the
insight will dawn that the problems can be solved from the inside. That there
is no need anymore of any therapist or any outside authority to give guidance.
Then the patient will be a healer onto himself, which is the only way to ever
have progress on the spiritual path.

The therapist must take great pains in making the patient see this, that it really
is himSelf that is giving the solutions and procuring all the mental recoveries.
That the nner Teacher or the Wise Woman surely is a mere symbol and
nothing more. That way the patient will find the self assurance and the trust,
that all the healing potentials really reside inside. For eventually we can only
heal our self. t can be damaging to the mental health of the patient if he or
she is too much relying on the help of some outside authority.

3. the dramatic enacting of spiritual quests
Assagioli had confidence in the healing power of some great spiritual story's
from world literature. He for instance told his patients to play out, alone or in a
small group, some scenes from the Holy Grail legend or from Dante's Divine
Comedy. Through identification and role playing of the major characters in the
play, the patient(s) would psychologically undergo the same problems and
eventually the same catharsis as the main characters in the story. The acting
out of the spiritual story invited the patient to make a spiritual quest for
himself.

Though Assagioli admitted that the nature and the functions of the Self were
still relatively poor described in psychological literature and that much
research was needed to gain insight into the world of the supra unconscious
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and the Self, he nevertheless thought that much was to gain, when future
investigations would focus on this important domain. Assagioli's merit lies in
being one of the first to have widened the range of psychology to include also
the religious and spiritual aspects of consciousness. For the first time in
modern science religion was studied as a serious subject, worthy of our
profound attention. But to arrive at this critical point it was necessary for
religion to become a branch of psychology itself (what it is, in fact).

From the viewpoint of mysticism however, Assagioli's investigations into the
nature of the Self and his consequent recommendations as concerns the
contact with and the integration of this psychological domain, seem rather
shallow. He seems more interested in strengthening the line between 5 and 6,
than in a total expansion of consciousness to include all fields, to make the
whole spectrum of consciousness red. His approach to religion and spirituality
seems to be quite behavioral. He is more interested in what spirituality does
than what is actually is. He would have defended himself by stating that his
main concern was psychotherapy and that he wanted to heal his patients. But
for the mystic the reading of his books is sometimes a bit of a disappointment.
Let me give an example. A whole chapter of Psychosynthesis is devoted to
techniques on how to strengthen the personal will. Assagioli asserts that it is
crucial for the ego to have a strong determination and a strong resolution, to
be able to make progress and gain or restore mental health. Now it surely is
the case that the will of the person who realises the Self becomes strong, but
it is not his personal will, but something quite different, it is his spiritual will
that becomes strengthened and in fact becomes the all determinating force in
the psyche. n order to bring this about, the personal will needs to be
surrendered. n fact it is very detrimental for Self realisation to occur, if one
keeps on strengthening the personal will. From the standpoint of mysticism
the personal will needs to be of little concern. We must focus our attention
more on the higher will of all encompassing consciousness, or to speak in
more familiar images, we have to take heed of the Thy will be done.

Assagioli seems to be very realistic. As a therapist he wants to take into
account that not all his patients can reach out to the higher levels of 3 and 6.
That most patients will only be capable of synthesising the lower levels of 1, 2
and 4. But the mystic objects that only true mental health can be gained by
reaching out to the higher levels. Only from these levels of consciousness can
come the integrating force that really synthesises all our psychological
functions. All attention must therefore ultimately and for everybody be focused
on the Self. For staying at the conscious and infra unconscious levels is not
enough to free oneself of all pain and suffering. f we want to be truly free, if
we want full mental health, if we want everlasting liberation, then we have to
do more than strengthening our personal will, writing diary's, using colour
therapy or analysing our dreams, however helpful all these techniques surely
can be for most patients. f we want to get rid of it all, we have to be one with
Truth, one with the god/Brahman.

Assagioli seems to suggest 'well, in some cases and only for certain types of
patients, we can also try to reach for the Self. Maybe that will do also'. This is
a bit of a hypersimplification of his statements, agree, but he devoted only a
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small chapter in his book to spiritual synthesis, so there seems to be some
ground for thus ironically restating his theory. For the mystic this is too much
of an offer without engagement. For the quest for the Self can be the only
way. We surely can follow Assagioli's advise in taking each step at a time, but
we all have to end with the third step.

But Assagioli took the third step and in doing so he opened up the eyes of the
whole of Western psychology. Finally the forgotten wisdom of all ages and
cultures was beginning to re-enter Western science again. The results are
enormous. Now in the third millennium spirituality is a serious subject on
university curricula again. t's not being dismissed as 'unscientific' anymore,
but it again draws the attention of the serious Western scientist. So Assagioli
has done something of enormous value. He has taken away our prejudice. He
has united the worlds of the East and the West, though someone once said
'and never the twain shall meet'. Assagioli proved otherwise.

Arnhem, January 2003