On  November 17, the Center for Buddhist Studies at Fo Guang University hosted the first expert lecture of its "Buddhism and Psychotherapy" research project at Yunshuixuan. Prof. Yang Pei, Director of the Master Program in Life Education at Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts, presented on the topic "Cultivation and Transformation: A Dialogue between Meditation and Counseling." The session was moderated by Prof. Guo Chao-Shun, General Director of the research project and Dean of the College of Buddhist Studies. Nearly seventy faculty members and students from the Department of Buddhist Studies, Department of Psychology, and Graduate Institute of Religious Studies attended.ember 17, the Center for Buddhist Studies at Fo Guang University hosted the first expert lecture of its "Buddhism and Psychotherapy" research project at Yunshuixuan. Prof. Yang Pei, Director of the Master Program in Life Education at Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts, presented on the topic "Cultivation and Transformation: A Dialogue between Meditation and Counseling." The session was moderated by Prof. Guo Chao-Shun, General Director of the research project and Dean of the College of Buddhist Studies. Nearly seventy faculty members and students from the Department of Buddhist Studies, Department of Psychology, and Graduate Institute of Religious Studies attended.

　　Prof. Yang pointed out that the professional development of psychotherapy includes both a pathologizing medical orientation and a de-pathologizing growth orientation. The development of various schools has gradually shifted from being guided by seeking medication to cure illness toward being guided by self-acceptance, placing greater emphasis on the spiritual dimension. Jon Kabat-Zinn’s MBSR (Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction) extracted meditation techniques, decontextualized them, and combined them with medical evidence. While this trend became popular and reflects a profound ingenuity in understanding Western and modern culture, it has also drawn some criticism from the Buddhist academic community.

　　Prof. Yang reflected on the scope of dialogue between Buddhadharma and psychotherapy, such as comparing "Psychoanalysis" to "karmic dependent origination," "Cognitive Behavioral Therapy" to "transforming consciousness into wisdom," and "Humanistic-Existential Therapy" to "phenomena abiding in their dharma-positions." She maintained a reserved attitude toward these comparisons, believing that the differences between the two sides outweigh the commonalities, especially regarding the gap in terminology.


　　She then focused on the dialogue between meditation and psychotherapy, citing humanistic theories to explain that normal people are often in a state of "manipulating" to maintain survival. If one can shed various armored masks, one can move toward becoming "Growing Normals" and even achieve self-actualization. This is the path "from purity to enlightenment," explained through the process of self-transformation: "knowing the self, affirming the self, growing the self, and dissolving the self." This is a psychological interpretation derived from Master Sheng Yen’s stages of "scattered mind, concentrated mind, unified mind, and no-mind." Conversely, wearing a distorted mask over a long period leads to mental illness, which is the path "from defilement to turbidity."

　　The directions of meditation and psychotherapy are consistent, but the advantage of meditation lies in transcending the pathological orientation, problem-solving orientation, and passive treatment. It does not easily define conditions as "illness" or "abnormality" but views all beings as equal, enabling individuals to actively inquire into the essence of life and advance transformation.

　　Finally, she affirmed that meditation and psychotherapy can be used interactively and urged more people to get involved to allow psychotherapy to flourish in diverse ways.

　　During the exchange, Prof. Guo raised that Buddhism’s emphasis on "no-mind" regarding non-self and emptiness increases the difficulty of dialogue with psychotherapy; this lecture offered the self-growth process of meditation as a dialogue strategy. However, he is concerned with how to turn from self to non-self, from unified mind to no-mind, and how to transcend the perspective centered on meditative concentration (Samadhi) to construct a psychological healing model based on the enhancement of the Threefold Training (Sila, Samadhi, Prajna). In response, Prof. Yang pointed out that applying the skills learned on the meditation cushion to daily life is the main body of cultivation, while formal meditation is an auxiliary aid.

　　Other topics discussed included the similarities and differences between the psychotherapeutic goal of "self-actualization" and the Buddhist goal of "non-self"; the nature of "language" as a predicament of existence, meditation’s "transcendence of language," and Mahayana Buddhism's use of language as "skillful means"; the shedding of "masks" required for survival; and how to combine psychotherapy with sociological approaches to resolve mental illnesses caused by social problems.

(Right) Prof. Yang Pei, Director of the Master Program in Life Education at Dharma Drum Institute of Liberal Arts, proposed the self-growth process of meditation as a model for dialogue with psychotherapy. (Left) Prof. Guo Chao-Shun, General Director of the "Buddhism and Psychotherapy" research project and Dean of the College of Buddhist Studies, moderated the lecture.
 

(Right) Chair Lin Wei-Lun of the Department of Psychology focused on the similarities and differences between the psychotherapeutic goal of "self-actualization" and the Buddhist goal of "non-self." (Left) Prof. Lin Hsin-Yi of the Department of Buddhist Studies asked how to deal with mental illnesses caused by social problems.
 

The first lecture of the "Buddhism and Psychotherapy" research project by the Center for Buddhist Studies at Fo Guang University attracted teachers and students from various departments. (Right) Prof. Huang Guo-Zhang of the Department of Psychology, Ven. Miao Shu of the Fo Guang Shan Canon Editorial Office, and Prof. Tseng Chih-Mien of the Department of Buddhist Studies.
 

The first expert lecture of the "Buddhism and Psychotherapy" research project for the 2021 academic year was held, attended by nearly seventy faculty members and students from the Department of Buddhist Studies, Department of Psychology, and Graduate Institute of Religious Studies.
 

Dean Guo Chao-Shun presented Prof. Yang Pei with a calligraphy piece by Ven. Master Hsing Yun from the Xin-Chou year (Year of the Ox).