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01-09-2010 | Psychological Exploration

The Phenomenology of Rooting

Author: Bruce Stephen Kerievsky

Published in: Journal of Religion and Health | Issue 3/2010

Abstract

This paper examines the attractions of passionate involvement in wanting particular outcomes, which is popularly known as rooting. The author’s lifelong personal experience is the source of his analysis, along with the insights provided by spiritual literature and especially the work of Dr. Thomas Hora, with whom the author studied for 30 years. The phrase “choiceless awareness,” utilized by J. Krishnamurti, and attained via meditation, is seen as the means of transcending a rooting mode of being in the world.

The word root appears in the Oxford English Dictionary in the 14th century as meaning “to fix or establish firmly; to implant deeply, attach strongly,” and was adapted in the US colloquially in the late 19th century to mean “to cheer for a team, or to be active for a person or thing by giving support, encouragement, or applause.”

A recent, widely publicized example of this occurred when a prominent radio talk-show host, Rush Limbaugh, declared on his program on January 16, 2009, in response to a query about his hope for the new President, that he was earnestly hoping that the current administration’s Chief Executive, Barack Obama, would fail in his efforts to revive the struggling American economy so that he would not be re-elected. The radio personality apparently valued his personal view of what was best for the country more than the well-being of its citizens.

Kerievsky, B. (2000). Metapsychiatry and the elusive truth of being. Journal of Religion and Health, 39, 51–55.CrossRef

Metapsychiatry as used in this paper refers to the teaching of Thomas Hora M.D. (1914–1995). He defined Metapsychiatry as “an epistemological method of truth realization,” by which he meant that it is intended to facilitate knowledge of, rather than mere belief in, the truth of being. The PAGL (an acronym for peace, assurance, gratitude, and love) Foundation maintains a web site, www.pagl.org, that makes available all the books written and tapes recorded by Dr. Hora, who developed that particular spiritual teaching during the second half of the 20th century. There is also a concordance on the web site, developed by the author, which allows the viewer to see all references to any word in the 6 books and 12 booklets written by Dr. Hora.

Title: The Phenomenology of Rooting
Author: Bruce Stephen Kerievsky
Publication date: 01-09-2010
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Religion and Health / Issue 3/2010
Print ISSN: 0022-4197
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6571
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-010-9334-y

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