Peak Experience

My boss is interested in peak experience. He wonders if there is a recipe.

"You will search in vain for a Maslovian recipe to create peak experiences," writes life coach and 'philosophical counsellor' Tim Lebon.  "The reason is explained in Colin Wilson's New Pathways in Psychology (page 19).  Wilson asked Maslow whether you can create peak experiences at will.

"No, Or almost entirely no!", Maslow asserted. " In general, we are "Surprised by Joy".. Peaks come unexpectedly .... You can't count on them.  And hunting them is like hunting happiness. c's best not done directly. It comes as a by-product, an epiphenomenon, for instance, of doing a fine job at a worthy task you can identify with".

"Colin Wilson  thinks the above is only partly true. He thinks they have a structure that can be duplicated (p. 21). The preconditions are energy, vigilance, alertness, preparedness.

"The fact that the full text of Religions, Values and Peak Experiences is to be found in the Psychedelic Library suggests another possible way to have peak experiences ...  The current author would suggest that creativity, love, contact with nature, sport, meditation, parenting are other possible sources of peak experiences. There is also a connection worth exploring between peak experiences and flow, and between peak experiences and the writings of Viktor Frankl."

Let's Celebrate 365

Jeremy Hunter has spent 35 years documenting ancient rituals and festivals in 60 countries. His photographs can be seen in his touring exhibition Let's Celebrate 365.

"Sing-sings in Papua New Guinea form an important part of cultural life as they represent an opportunity for the clans to express their tribal solidarity. I saw the black snake dance performed by the Apenda clan when they attended a sing-sing in Leh, near Morobe." The Guardian 

See his website for more.

Rites of Life

"Everywhere people mark the decisive moments when they pass from one stage in life to another. For more than seven years photographer Anders Ryman has travelled the world documenting such rituals.

"His ambition has been to span all inhabited continents, all major religions and all stages of life, encompassing both the traditional and the modern."

www. ritesoflife.com