Zhi Mian and Existential Psychology

Abstract

This article addresses how existence and Zhi Mian are related by looking at existence through the eyes of Zhi Mian. Although Zhi Mian has no direct translation, Westerners can most clearly come to an understanding of Zhi Mian through the term existence, as rooted in existential psychology. From the perspective of Zhi Mian, illness is believed to come about through an overreliance on escape as a defense mechanism, in which clients are escaping from their life. It is also believed that this way of being arises out of conditions related to trauma and suffering. Zhi Mian teaches one to face their suffering directly and transform that suffering through the discovery or construction of their personal meaning. Escape leads to meaninglessness; Zhi Mian is directly concerned with meaning and is a quality that can be cultivated if one has the courage. The purpose of Zhi Mian growth is to become oneself through renunciation, which can be understood as daring to refuse and resist those forces and powers that obstruct and damage one's ability to fully become oneself. In a Zhi Mian approach to therapy, the therapist empathically understands that the clients are faced with all sorts of limitations and concurrently support and encourage clients to exercise their will and choice within the confines of such limitations. At the same time, the Zhi Mian therapist has a sensibility to helping clients develop relationships which are built upon love and service.

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Appreciation is given to Trent Claypool, Mark Yang, and Louis Hoffman for their assistance in the preparation of this manuscript through offering editorial assistance and feedback.

Notes

¹There are many versions of this story that have been passed on through oral and written traditions. A similar version in English can be found on pages 38–39 of Fromm's (1950) Psychoanaylsis and Religion.

An earlier version of this paper was given as part of a keynote address at the First International Conference on Existential Psychology, Nanjing, China, April. The quotes from Lu Xun were translated into English by the author for use in this article.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Xuefu Wang

Xuefu Wang, Ph.D., having obtained degrees in the fields of literature, theology, psychology and pastoral counseling, is the founder and leading psychotherapist of Zhi Mian Institute for Psychotherapy in Nanjing, China. He developed an indigenous Chinese approach called “Zhi Mian Therapy,” which finds its deep resonance with existential-humanistic psychology of the West. Xuefu Wang has published numerous articles and six books. He is also the Chinese translator of Irvin Yalom On Psychotherapy and the Human Condition by Ruthellen Josselson. Currently, he is the editor coordinating and overseeing the Chinese translation of five of Kirk Schneider's books and Existential Psychology East-West by Hoffman, Yang, Kaklauskas, and Chan.