Upcoming Event: "Embodied Spirituality" (September 23rd)

We are going to hold an online symposium on September 23rd, 2022.

Tokai University Online Symposium "Embodied Spirituality: Meditation practices in the contemporary world" Date: September 23rd, 2022 Time: 10:00 - 12:00 CET / 17:00 - 19:00 JST

All those who are interested in embodiment and spirituality are welcome. Please follow the link below and register your name and e-mail address. You will get the webinar link after the registration.

REGISTER HERE

My Talk: "On the spiritual dimension of embodied experiences"

My talk is titled "On the spiritual dimension of embodied experiences." My main idea is simple: Our bodily experiences, such as sports and dance, inherently have spiritual dimensions.

If you are interested in how the physical and the spiritual intersect, please join us!

Best, 

Shogo

Embodiment Conference 2020

I am pleased to announce that I will be participating in The Embodiment Conference 2020 as a speaker. The conference will be held from October 14–25, 2020, via Zoom. It offers a wonderful opportunity to explore diverse perspectives on embodiment through a wide range of lectures and sessions.

If you are interested in the conference, you can obtain free access here:

https://theembodimentconference.org/

My British colleague, Dr. Adrian Harris, has informed me that a crowdfunding campaign was recently launched. These funds will support a stable online platform for the sessions and facilitate the translation of conference materials into several languages.

https://www.teccrowdfund.org/

As a speaker, I will be joining a panel organized by Adrian. I will provide further details as they are finalized.

Best,

Shogo

New Publication: A Phenomenological Account of Depersonalization

I am pleased to share that my paper on depersonalization, published last year, is now available for download. You can access it through the following link:

"What is it Like to Be Disconnected from the Body?: A Phenomenological Account of Disembodiment in Depersonalization/Derealization Disorder" [Journal of特 Consciousness Studies, Vol. 25, No. 5-6] Link to Paper

As outlined in the abstract, this paper examines the experience of disembodiment in depersonalization disorder, with a specific focus on the minimal self.

I believe this work will be of interest to those specialized in the phenomenology of embodiment, phenomenological psychopathology, and the philosophy of psychiatry.

I hope you find the paper insightful.

Best, 

Shogo

New Chapter: Reconnecting the Self to the Divine

I am pleased to announce that a new book edited by Dr. Olga Louchakova-Schwartz is set to be published this November. I am honored to have contributed a chapter to this insightful collection, titled "The Problem of Religious Experience."

My contribution is titled:

"[Chapter 2] Reconnecting the Self to the Divine: The Body’s Role in Religious Experience"

Interestingly, this is the first time I have formally explored religious experiences through the lens of embodiment. While my work often focuses on the phenomenology of the body in more secular or psychological contexts, investigating the "divine" through our physical existence has been a profoundly rewarding challenge. For those interested, here is the abstract of my chapter. I hope it sparks some reflection on how our bodies "know" more than we often realize.

[Abstract]

This chapter explores spontaneous religious experiences—those that occur outside traditional religious beliefs or institutions but remain inherently religious in nature. These can range from a deep feeling of unity with nature to the peak states in sports, or even the sudden ecstatic sensation one might feel when listening to a harmonious chorus. Although these moments are not always labeled as "religious," they are intense enough to awaken spiritual feelings. What is experienced as "something beyond the self" may be the foundational source of divinity underlying all religious activity. My goal is to explore this experience from the perspective of the embodied self and the sense of agency. William James (1902) famously listed "passivity" as a hallmark of mystical experience: the feeling that one's actions are guided by "the Other" even while maintaining a sense of agency. In my view, this state originates in the function of the body schema coordinating actions with the environment. Just as the body schema organizes new actions beyond our conscious intentions in unfamiliar situations, the body in spontaneous religious experiences operates beyond habit, acting as if it were following a divine will.

 

Cheers,

Shogo

New Publication: The Bodily Origin of Self-Reflection

I am pleased to announce that my latest chapter will be featured in the upcoming book, Thinking About Oneself: The Place and Value of Reflection in Philosophy and Psychology, edited by Waldomiro J. Silva Filho and Luca Tateo (Springer).

Book Details:

• Title: Thinking About Oneself: The Place and Value of Reflection in Philosophy and Psychology

• Series: Philosophical Studies Series

• Publisher: Springer

• View on Springer's Website

Chapter 9: Bodily origin of self-reflection and its socially extended aspects Shogo Tanaka (Tokai University)

While we often presuppose that reflection is a purely mental act—a tradition stemming from Descartes—I argue that its true origin lies in our bodily experience.

In this chapter, I provide a genetic account of self-reflection through the lens of phenomenology and cognitive science. While traditional phenomenology often focuses on the body as a "subject" of action, I explore the "body-as-object." Our ability to perceive our own body as an intentional object precedes and underpins the psychological experience of self-reflection.

Furthermore, I discuss how this "body-as-object" is shared with others, extending the act of reflection into the realms of intersubjectivity, empathy, and social anxiety. Ultimately, the analysis suggests that being a self-reflective agent and being a social agent are two sides of the same coin.

I hope you find the perspective insightful.

Best regards,

Shogo

New Publication: Rethinking the Japanese Self through Embodiment

I am pleased to share a new contribution to the field of cultural psychology, recently published by Routledge:

Book Details:

• Title: The Challenges of Cultural Psychology: Historical Legacies and Future Responsibilities

• Editors: Gordana Jovanović, Lars Allolio-Näcke, and Carl Ratner

• Publisher: Routledge (2018)

• View Book on Routledge

This volume offers a comprehensive look at the historical foundations and future directions of cultural psychology. My contribution focuses on a re-examination of the Japanese self.

Chapter 17: The Self in Japanese Culture from an Embodied Perspective Shogo Tanaka (Tokai University)

In this chapter, I aim to move beyond the traditional "West vs. East" dichotomy that has long dominated cross-cultural psychology.

While existing literature often defines the Japanese self as "interdependent," "collective," or "relationship-dependent," I propose that these characteristics can be better understood through the lens of embodiment. By shifting the focus to the embodied mind—a paradigm that has radically changed the cognitive sciences since the 1990s—we can find a more universal path to understanding the self.

If the self is fundamentally embodied, then "independence" and "interdependence" are not merely cultural labels, but different ways an embodied self can be constituted regardless of background.

This chapter may be of particular interest to those exploring the intersection of phenomenology, embodiment, and culture. If you would like to discuss these themes further, please feel free to reach out.

Best,

Shogo

 

New Paper: The Bodily Basis of the Self

I am happy to announce that my new paper on embodiment has been published in Human Arenas (Springer). 

Paper Details:

• Title: Bodily basis of the diverse modes of the self

• Journal: Human Arenas, 1, 223-230 (2018)

Core Concept

In this paper, I argue that bodily experiences underpin all facets of the mind—from pre-reflective action to social and individualistic modes of being. I explore the self through three distinct bodily dimensions:

1. Body-as-subject (The body as the "I" that acts)

2. Body-as-object for oneself (The body as something we observe)

3. Body-as-object for others (The body as it appears in the social world)

Toward a "Phenomenology of Clothing"

In the final section, I use the everyday experience of wearing clothes as a concrete example. Drawing on personal experience, I describe how clothing illustrates the complexity and dynamism of the self’s relationship with the body.

While this "phenomenology of clothing" is still in its early stages, I believe it is a promising area for further inquiry. If you are interested in exploring this topic or developing these ideas together, please let me know—I would welcome the conversation!

Regards,

Shogo