Religions, Values, and Peak-Experiences (Compass) [Paperback]

Maslow is to me one of the most insightful and enlightening person I can think of. His work is extremely thought provoking and to me goes far beyond seeing Psychology purely as a science or study of behaviour. Rather, Maslow truely is looking at life itself and what it is to be human.

His views on religion and conventional science and education are really a breath of fresh air in a society which seems so mechanistic and beauracratic.

The only slight criticism I have is that some of the language he uses is clearly directed towards the psychology profession and that he refers to a lot of his other work which the laymen may not be aware of.

Buying this book I and was admittedly a little sceptical about it. There was a nagging doubt that maybe it was one of those books generated during more hopeful times by well funded academics self-reporting their journey of personal development for an audience of hippies dropping out to "find themselves". Thankfully I can report it is anything but this sort of thing and I can highly recommend it, I give it four stars rather than five because of the ommission of an index which I think in a book of this kind would have been really helpful.

Maslow is a social psychologist of "hierarchy of needs" fame, an idea which failing to capture the imagination of fellow psychologists or therapists was instead embraced by management and motivational thinkers and consultants. The core of the theory being that human needs form a pyramid, the basis of which are the most basic of survival-subsistance needs, like food, shelter, air, water, the pinnacle of the pyramid being "self-actualisation", which is variously defined and possibly culturally specific (although Maslow himself didnt think so). As theories on the judgement of needs go its been pretty much unsurpassed, the idea that people are striving to satisfy these needs from the basic to complex, perhaps even unconsciously, has informed a lot of further research. In this book Maslow very much addresses the sorts of experiences which in sum amount to or contribute to self-actualisation and for this reason I found it very interesting, engaging and rewarding.

The contents follow an editorial introduction and preface and comprise the following, a further introduction; dichotomized science adn dichotomized religion; the "core-religious" or "transcendent" experience; organisational dangers to transcendent experiences; hope, skepticism, and man's higher nature; science and the religious liberals and non-theists; value free education? and conclusions. There are a number of appendices, which as it turns out in a shorter book can be as lengthy almost as some of the chapters, comprising religious aspects of peak-experiences; the third psychology; ethnocentric phrasings of peak experiences; what is the validity of knowledge gained in peak-experiences?; preface to "New Knowledge In Human Values"; Rhapsodic, Isomorphic Communication; B-Values as Descriptions of Perception in Peak-Experiences; Naturalistic Reasons for Preferring Growth-Values over Regression-Values under Good Conditions; An Example of B-Analysis. Finally the book has a bibliography for further reading.

All that said I would really, really hope that those chapter headings and titles wouldnt put people off, it is aimed at people with some sort of grounding in psychology and therefore there is a share of jargon but its not impenetrable to the general reader at all. There are many topics which should interest the psychologically, spiritually or religiously inclined, such as the boundaries and barriers between science and religion, which Maslow considers nebulous, obsticles in the way of true understanding and beneficial discoveries.

I particularly enjoyed the chapters describing how Maslow believes that practices discovered to facilitate peak experiences at one time become more important than the experience itself or an obsticle to achieving that experience at another time, likewise the conflicts in established religions between facilitating peak experiences and the transmission of knowledge and tradition to new generations was of particular interest too (I can see parallels not simply with ideology but also the practice of therapists, social services and other professionals as a kind of "hardening of the arteries" takes place). Less theroetically this is a book completely full of feeling, it is very humanitarian and speaks to real human needs, perhaps some people will find Maslow's attempt to cut across boundaries too much and a minimisation of real differences between theists and non-theists (for instance) or his perspective on culture and context too much of a generalisation but I'm sure they will still find something rewarding in reading the book.

While I would recommend this to general readers, the psychologically interested and spiritually interested I would also highly recommend it to anyone who has found spiritual insights and psychology Jung particularly enlightening or interesting.

I had a peak experience five years ago. IT was life transforming, much like an after death experience... The energy, comprehending everything about the universe, and most of all telepathic communication with a higher power. I thought I went completely mad, but finding this book a month after it happened was a miracle in itself. I found a lot of assurance in Maslows book. It happens and more frequently than you would think (and I am not mad!!!). Maslow mentioned 'peak experiences' happen during child birth and listening to classical music which I have a hard time with, but who am I to disagree? The odd thing about my peak experience is that my life improved greatly after it occurred. The sad thing is that 8 months after it happened my fiancee was killed in a traffic accident. In everyway that peak experience kept me alive. A simple knowledge that 'things happen for a reason -even though we may never comprehend it'. There is a downside to peak experiences which Maslow didn't discuss. That is the obligation one feels after it happens. I really identify with the character John Travolta played in the movie "Phenomenon". Why did it happen to me? What am I to do with this knowledge? I hate it. Anyway, if you have had a peak experience I would love to talk to you.