Beginners Guide to Quantum Psychology

by Stephen H. Wolinsky

This user-friendly guide is like a Cliffs Notes for Quantum Psychology. making the discipline accessible to both professionals and non-professionals, as well as students, non-students, and seasoned spiritual aspirants. It surveys eleven books and over 3000 pages of published material, leading readers through the most pivotal and crucial understandings and experiential exercises of over thirty years of research, development, and practice.

Genres: Psychology

183 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2000

About the author

Stephen H. Wolinsky is a founder of Quantum Psychology, integrating Western Psychology, Advaita-Vedanta’s Non-duality, Quantum Physics, Neuro-Science, and Buddhism. He is the author of fourteen books, audio tapes and a DVD series, I Am That I Am.
Wolinsky has a PhD in Clinical Psychology and began his psychotherapy practice in 1974. From 1975 to 1985 he met over thirty different Gurus, Teachers, Rinpoches, and Meditation Masters.
Wolinsky presently resides in Aptos, California.

Reviews

[Anna Feshchenko · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most fascinating books I have read. The description is misleading and sets the wrong expectations, it is not a guide despite the book has exercises throughout the chapters. This book requires a lot of thinking and reading between the lines, it is not a recipe for how not to feel lonely, loveless, and worthless. It gives a general idea of False Core - False Self, how to identify and dismantle it every time it comes up. In addition, it introduces an interesting concept of multidimensional awareness: external, thinking, emotional, biological, Essence, I am, Collective Unconscious, Not-I-I; and later the levels where the awareness ends: Void, Nameless Absolute, The Beyond. Only by reading the entire book, one can see the path through all of these levels.

[Gharam El-Hendy · Rating 1 out of 5]

It's amusing that this book has no reviews so far. I may say that's because nobody bothered finishing it (which I haven't either).
At first I thought the book was going to be great and have guiding exercises through organized thoughts and procedures.
Disappointingly, I got none of that. I just got someone assuming that we all are not what we are because we're under the effect of a trauma caused by being separated from our mother. What the hell?
It goes deeper than that. First I have to explain some definitions:
Realization of Separation: Is when the newborn realizes that he and his mother are not in fact one person (Around 5-8 months)
False core: Is a complex we got due to the "Realization of separation". Eg: My mother left me; therefore I am worthless. Or: My mother left me; therefore I am not lovable.
False self: Is a false identity you provide for yourself to compensate for your negative feelings that result from the false core.
Eg: I am worthy. I am lovable.


The author of this book was driving me crazy by saying that we are not our "false self", and that we should let go of our "false core" (False core is the complex we got due to "Realization of separation" and the author circulates this complex around being afraid of loneliness or being unworthy or of no value.

Personally I think people who do not have self-esteem and think they are lonely, loveless, or worthless are in fact lonely, loveless, and worthless. Because their belief that they are any of these traits makes them act upon it by wallowing in despair and thereby not taking any sort of positive action, or in an extreme: pretending to have a lot of friends by forcing themselves on others, or giving themselves false value and acting in a narcissistic way.
What a person with low self-esteem should do -in my humble opinion- is to get up and gain value by doing positive things and adding to themselves and contributing in society.
And denying that you are characterized by a negative trait is by no means a way of developing yourself.

I know the author says that you should focus on knowing what your "false core" is, not focus on eliminating it as it can never be eliminated; and realize that you are not defined as your false core and the actions you take as your "false self" are not the real you.
This could be explained simply by Freud's ego, super-ego and ID.
Your false self is just your ego at work! So your false self is a part of you and a very defining part at that.

And what's with all this "Without using your thoughts, memories, emotions, associations, perceptions, attention, or intentions...do so and so". How can you do anything without these things? How can you KNOW anything if you exclude all of these? Your thoughts, memories, emotions,etc. are what define you; if everyone leaves those out we are all rendered NOTHING.
It sort of seems that this is what the author is trying to come to, but it just seems stupid to me.

I could say that I could use this load of bullshit to make someone believe I'm not a bad person after committing something that is generally looked down upon (say: stealing), I could just go on about how this is my "false self" at work and it's all because of my "false core".

I'm not sure if I was incapable of understanding the point of this book or if it is in fact pointless but I was thoroughly disappointed with it to be honest and I don't think I will read Wolinsky's "Quantum Consciousness".

[James Byron · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book I keep on reading, one of my favorites.