HAN F. DE WIT received his PhD in psychology from the University of Amsterdam in 1977. On an honorary Fulbright scholarship he worked as a research fellow in 1976 at the University of California (Berkeley). In 1983 he was connected to Naropa University (then Naropa Institute) as a visiting scholar. There he began to study the psychological insights and theories that can be found in the contemplative traditions of the world religion themselves, which brought him international acclaim as the founder of a new branch of psychology called contemplative psychology. In 1985, at the Department of Theoretical Psychology of the Free University in Amsterdam, he continued his research and presentation of the insights and methods of this psychology in a form that enables a dialogue with contemporary psychology and psychotherapy. Trained as a Buddhist teacher by Ch gyam Trungpa and Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche, he is also involved through his writings in the dialogue of Buddhism with Western psychology, philosophy, and religion.
“A fascinating, inventive contribution to spiritual psychology.”—Daniel Goleman, author of Emotional Intelligence “The Great Within is an invaluable guide for contemplative practitioners, psychotherapists, spiritual teachers—indeed, for anyone wanting to go deeper in the path of their own becoming.”—Marilyn Schlitz, author of Living Deeply and Death Makes Life Possible “This book is a major contribution to the psychology of spirituality. In a clear and comprehensive way, it explores the psychological insights that can be discovered in the spiritual traditions and that aim at cultivating the essence of our humanness.”—John Welwood, author of Love and Awakening “A deeply mature vision of the spiritual heart of our human nature and the transformative path to human flourishing. The Great Within qualifies as a classic that will endure.”—Tilden Edwards, Founder of the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation, and author of Embracing the Call to Spiritual Depth