What Is Wisdom? Cross-Cultural and Cross-Disciplinary Syntheses

This article explores the nature of wisdom using an integrative cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary approach by drawing on contemporary research as well as the philosophical and contemplative disciplines of both East and West. To do this the article first analyzes definitional issues. These issues include difficulties of definition in general, and of wisdom in particular, the common elements and limitations of current definitions, as well as possible varieties or subtypes of wisdom. It then uses integrative definitions of wisdom and its major subtypes as a framework to investigate the characteristics, capacities, and components of wisdom; the varieties of self-knowledge that foster and constitute it; the perceptual, cognitive, and developmental processes essential to it; and the existential issues—for example, meaning, mystery, suffering, and death—that wisdom ponders and responds to. The article then examines wisdom's intimate link with other virtues, especially ethics and benevolence, and questions the claim that emotional regulation is an inherent element of wisdom, arguing instead that emotional regulation and wisdom are distinct, yet mutually facilitating virtues. Finally, the article provides evidence for the “self-demanding” nature of wisdom which implies that to understand it fully we may need to cultivate it ourselves

Experiences of “Soul Journeys” in the World’s Religions: The Journeys of Mohammed, Saints Paul and John, Jewish Chariot Mysticism, Taoism’s Highest Clarity School, and Shamanism.

“Soul journeys” are a central practice of shamanism. However, they have also been important in many other religious traditions and have exerted a major impact on religions, cultures, and history. This article surveys some important journeys in the world’s religions such as those of Mohammed, the Christian saints Paul and John, Jewish Chariot Mysticism, Taoism’s Highest Clarity tradition, and shamanism. The article explores the experiences of these journeys, techniques for inducing them, culturally specific features, and the range of metaphysical interpretations of them. It also examines some of the surprising ways in which journeys are currently impacting Western culture, ranging from political movements to our understanding of states of mind

Entheogens: True or False?

Despite 40 years of dialogue, debate still continues over whether psychedelics are capable of inducing genuine mystical experiences. This paper first reviews the arguments against this possibility and shows that all of them contain shortcomings. One reason the debate still continues is that there has been no adequate theory of mystical states and their relationship to the factors which produce them. Consequently a theory of mystical states based on Charles Tart’s systems model of consciousness is proposed. This theory suggests how identical states of consciousness can be induced by very different means, including contemplative practices and chemical substances, and yet have different after-effects. Taken together, these ideas lead to the cautious conclusion that some psychedelics can induce genuine mystical experiences sometimes in some people, and that the current tendency to label these chemicals as entheogens may be appropriate

A Metric Inequality for the Thompson and Hilbert Geometries

There are two natural metrics defined on an arbitrary convex cone: Thompson's part metric and Hilbert's projective metric. For both, we establish an inequality giving information about how far the metric is from being non-positively curved.Comment: 15 pages, 0 figures. To appear in J. Inequalities Pure Appl. Mat

Lifestyle and mental health.

Mental health professionals have significantly underestimated the importance of lifestyle factors (a) as contributors to and treatments for multiple psychopathologies, (b) for fostering individual and social well-being, and (c) for preserving and optimizing cognitive function. Consequently, therapeutic lifestyle changes (TLCs) are underutilized despite considerable evidence of their effectiveness in both clinical and normal populations. TLCs are sometimes as effective as either psychotherapy or pharmacotherapy and can offer significant therapeutic advantages. Important TLCs include exercise, nutrition and diet, time in nature, relationships, recreation, relaxation and stress management, religious or spiritual involvement, and service to others. This article reviews research on their effects and effectiveness; the principles, advantages, and challenges involved in implementing them; and the forces (economic, institutional, and professional) hindering their use. Where possible, therapeutic recommendations are distilled into easily communicable principles, because such ease of communication strongly influences whether therapists recommend and patients adopt interventions. Finally, the article explores the many implications of contemporary lifestyles and TLCs for individuals, society, and health professionals. In the 21st century, therapeutic lifestyles may need to be a central focus of mental, medical, and public health

Health Care and Change Management in the Context of Prisons: Rapid reviews of the literature in two parts

First paragraph: The literature review of factors promoting or inhibiting change finds that there is no unified science of change management and that there is a general lack of empirical evidence across the board about change management in all domains of human industry. - We have proposed a general five-level evidence framework that can be used to categorise broadly the quality of evidence for and commission research into prison management. - We argue that proposals for change should be subjected to a formal decision making process in keeping with good practice in decision making in which alternatives to the proposed change are also evaluated. - We find that change can occur to structures, processes, outcomes and people (table 6) in planned or unintended ways, gradually or radically. - Despite the lack of empirical evidence we find that there is a broad consensus on the features of successful change management approaches