ERIC Number: EJ944829
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2011
Pages: 10
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1052-2891
EISSN: N/A
The Wisdom of the Inner Life: Meeting Oneself through Meditation and Music
Sussman, Abraham; Kossak, Mitchell
New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, n131 p55-64 Fall 2011
Educating adults to tap into the wisdom of their inner life can happen in many contexts: (1) higher education classrooms; (2) workshop and retreat settings; and (3) psychotherapy settings. Adults can also facilitate the development of their inner life through various self-directed learning efforts, by learning from life experience, and through cultivating a spiritual life or meditation practice. Meditation and improvisational music are distinctly different pathways, but they share some essential features. Both are doorways of self-reflection and provide opportunities for aspects of self-realization that may never be found through the language of concepts and ideas, nor through knowledge of the workings of the outer world. Both pathways invite one into the wisdom of the inner life, the rich world that may open with the closing of one's eyes. Both meditation and music point toward the transformative experience of inner realization, which is a distinct feature of sacred wisdom in many cultures. This article discusses the psychology of the inner life and how music as meditation can tap into unitive states of being that lead to inner wisdom.
Descriptors: Adult Education, Self Concept, Metacognition, Learning Processes, Independent Study, Experiential Learning, Creative Activities, Music, Spiritual Development, Musicians, Stress Management, Religious Factors, Psychotherapy, Nonverbal Communication, Transformative Learning
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Descriptive
Education Level: Adult Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A