Transrational

Transrational, transrational experience or transrational reality refers to the experience of phenomena occurring within the natural universe where information and experiences does not readily fit into the typical cause and effect structure; the kinds of experience that are often dismissed as unfathomable or superstitious .[1] It differs from the ‘supernatural’ and the ‘rational’ in that it neither directly controverts nor affirms rational reason. A transrational experience is not pathological. One of the most popular examples of transrational experiences are individuals witnessing blessed/evil omens which turn out to become true, or feelings of extremely intense dread which helped staved an individual from disastrous catastrophes, even if the individual has zilch prior knowledge or context (see Examples below). The transrational does not engage with the question of how it sensibly fits into a rational framework, instead, it is about allowing the experience to be felt and witnessed, uninterpretable by sensemaking or meaning-making.

The concept was conceptualized in Western literature by Jungian analyst Jerome Bernstein in 2000.[2] However, it has also been used to very different effect by Ken Wilber in his 1995 academic book, Sex, Ecology, Spirituality.

People are often so afraid of being considered "pre-rational" that they avoid and deny the possibility of the transrational. Others believe religious and spiritual experiences belongs with "pre-rational" experiences, but may actually belong with transrational instead (Ken Wilber).

Examples

1. [After an account of human communication with animals and stones] “Of course, many of us shudder when we think of some of our companions who do talk with inanimate objects or invisible friends. Yet even here, I think that psychologists’ scholarly prejudices have often overcome their common sense and analytical skills. The point is not whether people talk to animals and plants, but the validity of the messages that are given and received. In other words, people picking up gibberish should be given therapy. When a person is told, however, that a certain plant, used in a particular way, is excellent for curing boils, stopping bleeding, or reducing fevers—and the cure works—that is another matter altogether.”[3]
2. “Grim omens…Premonitory dreams and waking fantasies prior to the events of 9/11”, and “synchronous experiences that saved their lives: people who reported inexplicable dread or sudden illness that kept them away from their jobs; people who ‘simply’ turned around and went home, inexplicably, before any of the events at the WTC or pentagon occurred.”[4]
3. Tales of people deferring university, or citing feelings of dread, before the COVID-19 pandemic hit globally.
4. The common experience of waking up just before an alarm clock is ringing.
5. Modern examples of animal communication (e.g. Anna Breytenbach).[5]
6. See also Zaum.[6]

References

1. Bernstein, Jerome S. Introduction. Living in the Borderland: The Evolution of Consciousness and the Challenge of Healing Trauma. London: Routledge, 2005. xv-xvi.
2. Bernstein, Jerome. "Listening in the Borderlands." The Salt Journal 2.2 (January/February 2000): 13-21. [The concept was first published, though not named, by Bernstein in this article, and was later coined “transrational” in lectures that year and in subsequent publications.]
3. Deloria, Vine. C. G. Jung and the Sioux Traditions: Dreams, Visions, Nature and the Primitive. Ed. Philip Joseph. Deloria and Jerome S. Bernstein. New Orleans: Spring Journal, 2009. 130.
4. Bernstein, Jerome S. Introduction. Living in the Borderland: The Evolution of Consciousness and the Challenge of Healing Trauma. London: Routledge, 2005. 174-5.
5. http://www.animalspirit.org/content/animal-communicator-documentary
6. Zaum