Exploring Xīn 心 the Heart-Mind: Daoism, Psychology and Psychotherapy

This talk will introduce some of the key principles and themes that are central to Daoist thought and cultivation such as xin 心 the heart-mind, wuwei 無為 effortlessness, ziran 自然 naturalness or spontaneity, whilst also introducing integral practices such as neidan 內丹 inner alchemy.

It was the alchemical elements of Daoism, first encountered in a mysterious text called ‘The Secret of the Golden Flower’, that originally inspired Carl Jung to embark on a lifelong study of alchemy and which had a formative impact on his development of Analytical Psychology.

Other pioneering figures such as the Psychotherapist Carl Rogers and Psychologist Abraham Maslow, were also deeply influenced and informed by Daoist teachings, which went onto shape Humanistic and Transpersonal approaches to Psychology and Psychotherapy.

In addition to the philosophical and psychological parts of this talk, there will also be an experiential component where Dr Cohen will introduce a Daoist cultivation practice.

Speaker: Dr Elliot Cohen is a Chartered Psychologist and Associate Fellow of the British Psychological Society. He is the current Chair of the British Psychological Society’s Transpersonal Psychology Section. He lectures in Social Psychology and Interdisciplinary Psychology at Leeds Beckett University, where he also supervises MA and PhD students.

He has been studying Daoism and Asian Religions for over thirty years, is the former director of the Northern School of Daoist Studies, and a current member of the British Daoist Association.

In addition to several academic articles related to Daoism and Psychology he also recently wrote ‘The Psychologisation of Eastern Spiritual Traditions’ in 2021, published by Routledge Press.