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Religious Ecstasy and Other Intense Emotions

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Religion and Spirituality Across Cultures

Part of the book series: Cross-Cultural Advancements in Positive Psychology ((CAPP,volume 9))

Abstract

Positive psychology and the psychology of religion share an interest in understanding positive emotions and their contribution to human flourishing. The focus of this chapter is upon ecstatic and mystical states framed within Fisher’s model of ergotropic and trophotropic arousal allowing for a neurophysiological correlate of two states of consciousness widely recognized in the psychology of religion that minimizes focus upon the ego in favor of union with a larger consciousness that may or may not be interpreted in religious terms. Whether ecstatic states based upon hyperarousal or mystical states base upon hypoarousal, the state of consciousness achieved by each means can be documented to be facilitated by a variety of procedures that when placed within a proper set and setting contributes to both human flourishing and a positive sense of the sacred.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, 615 McCallie Ave, Chattanooga, TN, 37405-2598, USA

    Ralph W. Hood Jr.

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  1. Ralph W. Hood Jr.
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Correspondence to Ralph W. Hood Jr. .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, The College of New Jersey, Ewing, New Jersey, USA

    Chu Kim-Prieto

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Hood, R.W. (2014). Religious Ecstasy and Other Intense Emotions. In: Kim-Prieto, C. (eds) Religion and Spirituality Across Cultures. Cross-Cultural Advancements in Positive Psychology, vol 9. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-8950-9_17

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