Lawrence LeShan
Encyclopedia
Lawrence LeShan is a psychologist
, educator and the author of the best-selling How to Meditate (1974),Fields, Tracy (21 March 1995) Cancer Patients Call On Mind To Help Heal The Body, Ocala Star-Banner
one of the first practical guides to meditation
. He has authored or co-authored approximately 75 articles in the professional literature and thirteen books on a diverse range of topics including psychotherapy
, war
, cancer treatment, and mysticism
. He has also written science fiction under the pseudonym Edward Grendon.
LeShan holds a Ph.D.
in Human Development
from the University of Chicago
and has taught at Pace College, Roosevelt University
, and the New School for Social Research. He worked as a clinical and research psychologist for more than 50 years, including six years as a psychologist in the U.S. Army.
In the 1960s and 1970s, LeShan conducted extensive research in the field of parapsychology
. In books The Medium, the Mystic, and the Physicist and Alternate Realities, he investigated similarities between quantum mechanics
and mystical thought. In World of the Paranormal: The Next Frontier, LeShan advanced these ideas further, claiming that psychic abilities such as telepathy
, clairvoyance
, and precognition
can be explained using quantum theory. While shared by many in the New Thought
movement, LeShan's ideas have been criticized by skeptics as "quantum pseudo-mysticism."
In the 1980s, LeShan's focus shifted to the psychotherapy of cancer support, a field in which he is considered a pioneer. LeShan lives in New York City
.
LeShan was married to the late Eda LeShan
, who was also a writer.(20 August 1944). Eda Joan Grossman Wed, The New York Times
Psychologist
Psychologist is a professional or academic title used by individuals who are either:* Clinical professionals who work with patients in a variety of therapeutic contexts .* Scientists conducting psychological research or teaching psychology in a college...
, educator and the author of the best-selling How to Meditate (1974),Fields, Tracy (21 March 1995) Cancer Patients Call On Mind To Help Heal The Body, Ocala Star-Banner
Star-Banner
The Star-Banner is the daily newspaper in Ocala, Florida, United States and serves Marion County and the surrounding communities. Owned by the New York Times Company, the Star-Banner has a daily circulation of about 43,000, and is the 19th largest newspaper in the state of Florida.- History :The...
one of the first practical guides to meditation
Meditation
Meditation is any form of a family of practices in which practitioners train their minds or self-induce a mode of consciousness to realize some benefit....
. He has authored or co-authored approximately 75 articles in the professional literature and thirteen books on a diverse range of topics including psychotherapy
Psychotherapy
Psychotherapy is a general term referring to any form of therapeutic interaction or treatment contracted between a trained professional and a client or patient; family, couple or group...
, war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
, cancer treatment, and mysticism
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
. He has also written science fiction under the pseudonym Edward Grendon.
LeShan holds a Ph.D.
Ph.D.
A Ph.D. is a Doctor of Philosophy, an academic degree.Ph.D. may also refer to:* Ph.D. , a 1980s British group*Piled Higher and Deeper, a web comic strip*PhD: Phantasy Degree, a Korean comic series* PhD Docbook renderer, an XML renderer...
in Human Development
Developmental psychology
Developmental psychology, also known as human development, is the scientific study of systematic psychological changes, emotional changes, and perception changes that occur in human beings over the course of their life span. Originally concerned with infants and children, the field has expanded to...
from the University of Chicago
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois, USA. It was founded by the American Baptist Education Society with a donation from oil magnate and philanthropist John D. Rockefeller and incorporated in 1890...
and has taught at Pace College, Roosevelt University
Roosevelt University
Roosevelt University is a coeducational, private university with campuses in Chicago, Illinois and Schaumburg, Illinois. Founded in 1945, the university is named in honor of both former President Franklin Delano Roosevelt and First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. The university's curriculum is based on...
, and the New School for Social Research. He worked as a clinical and research psychologist for more than 50 years, including six years as a psychologist in the U.S. Army.
In the 1960s and 1970s, LeShan conducted extensive research in the field of parapsychology
Parapsychology
The term parapsychology was coined in or around 1889 by philosopher Max Dessoir, and originates from para meaning "alongside", and psychology. The term was adopted by J.B. Rhine in the 1930s as a replacement for the term psychical research...
. In books The Medium, the Mystic, and the Physicist and Alternate Realities, he investigated similarities between quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics
Quantum mechanics, also known as quantum physics or quantum theory, is a branch of physics providing a mathematical description of much of the dual particle-like and wave-like behavior and interactions of energy and matter. It departs from classical mechanics primarily at the atomic and subatomic...
and mystical thought. In World of the Paranormal: The Next Frontier, LeShan advanced these ideas further, claiming that psychic abilities such as telepathy
Telepathy
Telepathy , is the induction of mental states from one mind to another. The term was coined in 1882 by the classical scholar Fredric W. H. Myers, a founder of the Society for Psychical Research, and has remained more popular than the more-correct expression thought-transference...
, clairvoyance
Clairvoyance
The term clairvoyance is used to refer to the ability to gain information about an object, person, location or physical event through means other than the known human senses, a form of extra-sensory perception...
, and precognition
Precognition
In parapsychology, precognition , also called future sight, and second sight, is a type of extrasensory perception that would involve the acquisition or effect of future information that cannot be deduced from presently available and normally acquired sense-based information or laws of physics...
can be explained using quantum theory. While shared by many in the New Thought
New Thought
New Thought promotes the ideas that "Infinite Intelligence" or "God" is ubiquitous, spirit is the totality of real things, true human selfhood is divine, divine thought is a force for good, sickness originates in the mind, and "right thinking" has a healing effect.Although New Thought is neither...
movement, LeShan's ideas have been criticized by skeptics as "quantum pseudo-mysticism."
In the 1980s, LeShan's focus shifted to the psychotherapy of cancer support, a field in which he is considered a pioneer. LeShan lives in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
.
LeShan was married to the late Eda LeShan
Eda LeShan
Eda LeShan was an American writer, television host, counselor, educator, and playwright. She was a "voice of respect for the inherent integrity of children." LeShan was married to Lawrence LeShan, the American psychologist and writer.LeShan's books include When Your Child Drives You Crazy, The...
, who was also a writer.(20 August 1944). Eda Joan Grossman Wed, The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Select bibliography
- Beyond Technique: Psychotherapy for the 21st Century
- The Dilemma of Psychology: A Psychologist Looks at His Troubled Profession
- Cancer As a Turning Point: A Handbook for People with Cancer, Their Families, and Health Professionals
- You Can Fight For Your Life: Emotional Factors in the Treatment of Cancer
- The Psychology of War: Comprehending Its Mystique and Its Madness
- How to Meditate: A Guide to Self-Discovery
- The Medium, the Mystic, and the Physicist: Toward a General Theory of the Paranormal
- World of the Paranormal: The Next Frontier
- Alternate Realities: The Search for the Full Human Being
- An Ethic for the Age of Space: A Touchstone for Conduct Among the Stars
- Holistic Health: How to Understand and Use the Revolution in Medicine
- The Pattern of Evil: Myth, Social Perception and the Holocaust
- A New Science of the Paranormal: the Promise of Psychical Research (2009)