ABSTRACT
Transpersonal literally breaks down as "beyond/through" plus persona, meaning "mask" (Cowley, 1993, p. 527). Transpersonal, then, means beyond the person or beyond the ego. Transpersonalism is based on the assumption that there is a "higher or inner self distinct from the personal ego" (Guest, 1989, p. 63). Lajoie and Shapiro (1992) reviewed the first 23 years of trans personal literature in search of a comprehensive definition of transpersonal psychology. The most frequently discovered themes in the 40 definitions cited include: (a) states of consciousness, (b) highest or ultimate potential, (c) beyond ego or personal self, (d) transcendence, and (e) spiritual. The authors propose a "contemporary definition" of transpersonal psychology: "Transpersonal psychology is concerned with the study of humanity's highest potential, and with the recognition, understanding and realization of intuitive, spiritual and transcendent states of consciousness" (p. 91).
