The Fourth Treasure: Psychotherapy’s Contribution to the Dharma

Abstract

It has been suggested that each of the three treasures (Buddha, Dharma and Sangha) becomes manifest in history in different ages. According to this view, our modern era would be the age of Sangha or community. The chapter explores some of its implications as well as the desirability of a fourth treasure, psychotherapy---understood as a road to the unknown and the unsaid that may help tackle the difficulties inherent in the notion of community. The relationship of psychotherapy to the Dharma expressed here charts a route away from both transpersonal psychology and the mainstream frame popularized by the mindfulness brand. Drawing instead on humanistic psychology and Zen, it affirms inquiry, social solidarity and the ability to perceive the elusive dimension of affect.