Jean Houston
Encyclopedia
Jean Houston is an American scholar, lecturer, author and philosopher who has helped pioneer and motivate the human potentials movement. As a teacher and visionary thinker, Houston holds conferences and seminars with social leaders, educational institutions and business organizations worldwide. She has worked in over 40 cultures and 100 countries, helping leaders maintain cultural uniqueness as their countries become part of the global community. As an author, Houston has written or co-written nearly 30 books. She has been an advisor to political leaders and to UNICEF and, since 2003, has worked with The United Nations Development Group training leaders in the new field of Social Artistry.
Houston participated in many school and outside activities, coming in contact with a number of the personages who at that time resided in New York. As president of a group of school journalists, she met both Helen Keller
and Eleanor Roosevelt
during this period, but it was an accidental encounter that would bring her into contact with the man who would become the greatest influence on the young scholar. While walking her dog near her own home, Houston literally ran into Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
, a French philosopher and Jesuit priest whose revolutionary ideas of spirituality were quite beyond his time. The two became friends, though Houston knew him only as "Mr. Thayer," and they would walk together regularly, conversing on subjects that helped form an insatiable thirst for ideas and an openness to spirituality that would serve Houston for the rest of her life.
While participating in a government sanctioned research project on the effects of LSD (before such research was banned), Houston became acquainted with Robert Masters
, a writer and a researcher into the varieties of human behavior and potentials. The two married in 1965 and soon became known for their work in the Human Potential Movement
. They are considered to be among the movement's principle founders. Together they established The Foundation for Mind Research.
Houston's early work in LSD research led her to a deeper awareness of the potentials of the human mind. She became a regular lecturer on college campuses, encouraging students to seek their potential without the use of drugs.
Further research into the human mind and capacities led to associations with many high achieving people as she and Masters sought a better understanding of characteristics that led to greatness. Among many others, she worked closely with Carl Jung
, Buckminster Fuller
, and Aldous Huxley
. During the years of NASA
moon landings, she worked with returning astronauts, including Edgar Mitchell, to help them uncover details of what they saw in space.
and taught at Marymount College
. She has guest lectured at a number of universities, including The University of California, Santa Cruz
. During this period, Houston began an association with the anthropologist Margaret Mead
that would last until Mead's death and included periods during which Mead lived in Houston's home. Through Margaret Mead, Houston began to work in cultures around the world and expanded her knowledge of societies and cultural ethos. Another strong influence on Houston's work came from her association with mythologist Joseph Campbell
. Houston worked closely with Campbell on his PBS television series. This work increased her understanding of and appreciation for the role of mythology and storytelling on societies. She had first become impressed by Campbell and his work as a young girl, when she read Campbell's groundbreaking work on world mythologies, The Hero with a Thousand Faces
.
. Drawing on methods she had developed to help people access wells of their own knowledge, Houston suggested an imaginary meeting between Clinton and Eleanor Roosevelt
, one of the historical figures Ms. Clinton admired. This visualization was aimed at tapping into Clinton's own inner wisdom. While no actual attempts were made to contact spirits and no dead people were harmed in this process, the politically fired media frenzy that resulted when the practice was reported as a seance led to an immediate redirecting of Houston's career. However, the weight of Houston's accomplishments up to that time, and the reputation she had established, allowed her to survive this temporary setback.
Jump Time: Shaping Your Future in a World of Radical Change Sentient Publications (2nd Ed. 2004) ISBN 1591810183
The Passion of Isis and Osiris: A Union of Two Souls Wellspring/Ballantine (1998) ISBN 0345424778
A Mythic Life: Learning to LIve our Greater Story HarperSanFrancisco (1996) ISBN 0062502824
Manual for the Peacemake: An Iroquois Legent to Heal Self (with Margaret Rubin) Quest Books (1995) ISBN 0835607097
Public Like a Frog: Entering the Lives of three Great Americans Quest Books (1993) ASIN B0026SIU0G
The Hero and the Goddess: The "Odyssey" as Mystery and Initiation Ballantine Books (1992) ISBN 0345365674
Godseed: The Journey of Christ Quest Books (1988) ISBN 0835606775
A Feminine Myth of Creation (with Diana Vandenberg, in Dutch) J.H. Gottmer (1988) ISBN 9025721184
The Search for the Beloved: Journeys in Mythology and Sacred Psychology Tarcher (2nd Ed. 1997) ISBN 0874778719
The Possible Human: A course in Extending Your Physical, Mental, and Creative Abilities Tarcher (2nd. Ed. 1997) ISBN 0874778727
Life Force: The Psycho-Historical Recovery of the Self Quest Books (2nd. ed. 1993) ISBN 0835606872
Listening to the Body: The Psychophysical Way to Health and Awareness Delta (1979) ISBN 0385285779
The Varieties of Psychedelic Experience Park Street Press (2000 edition) (1966) ISBN 0892818972
Early years
Houston was born May 10, 1937, in New York City, to Mary Todaro Houston, of Sicilian American descent, and Jack Houston, descended from Sam Houston of Texas. Jack Houston was a comedy writer who developed material for stage, television and the movies. His work required him to move frequently, and the young Houston experienced life in many places, attending over 20 schools by the time she was 12. She also met many celebrities through her father. After the breakup of her parents' marriage, she spent her teen years in New York City.Houston participated in many school and outside activities, coming in contact with a number of the personages who at that time resided in New York. As president of a group of school journalists, she met both Helen Keller
Helen Keller
Helen Adams Keller was an American author, political activist, and lecturer. She was the first deafblind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree....
and Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
during this period, but it was an accidental encounter that would bring her into contact with the man who would become the greatest influence on the young scholar. While walking her dog near her own home, Houston literally ran into Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin SJ was a French philosopher and Jesuit priest who trained as a paleontologist and geologist and took part in the discovery of both Piltdown Man and Peking Man. Teilhard conceived the idea of the Omega Point and developed Vladimir Vernadsky's concept of Noosphere...
, a French philosopher and Jesuit priest whose revolutionary ideas of spirituality were quite beyond his time. The two became friends, though Houston knew him only as "Mr. Thayer," and they would walk together regularly, conversing on subjects that helped form an insatiable thirst for ideas and an openness to spirituality that would serve Houston for the rest of her life.
Education and early career
While earning her BA from Barnard College, Houston became involved in acting and combined her efforts to earn an academic degree with a stage career, spending most of her spare time in theaters and enjoying a measure of success as an actor. When the time came to make a decision for a life path, however, Houston found herself choosing to further her studies into the human mind. She subsequently earned a Ph.D. in psychology from Union Graduate School and a Ph.D. in Religion from the Graduate Theological Foundation.While participating in a government sanctioned research project on the effects of LSD (before such research was banned), Houston became acquainted with Robert Masters
Robert Masters
Robert Masters was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal Party, and a cabinet minister.He was Minister of Education in the Liberal-Reform coalition Government of New Zealand from 1931 to 1934 as a member of the New Zealand Legislative Council, after being a Minister without Portfolio from 1930...
, a writer and a researcher into the varieties of human behavior and potentials. The two married in 1965 and soon became known for their work in the Human Potential Movement
Human Potential Movement
The Human Potential Movement arose out of the social and intellectual milieu of the 1960s and formed around the concept of cultivating extraordinary potential that its advocates believed to lie largely untapped in all people...
. They are considered to be among the movement's principle founders. Together they established The Foundation for Mind Research.
Houston's early work in LSD research led her to a deeper awareness of the potentials of the human mind. She became a regular lecturer on college campuses, encouraging students to seek their potential without the use of drugs.
Further research into the human mind and capacities led to associations with many high achieving people as she and Masters sought a better understanding of characteristics that led to greatness. Among many others, she worked closely with Carl Jung
Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...
, Buckminster Fuller
Buckminster Fuller
Richard Buckminster “Bucky” Fuller was an American systems theorist, author, designer, inventor, futurist and second president of Mensa International, the high IQ society....
, and Aldous Huxley
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
. During the years of NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
moon landings, she worked with returning astronauts, including Edgar Mitchell, to help them uncover details of what they saw in space.
Academic career
Houston lectured in Psychology and Philosophy at Hunter CollegeHunter College
Hunter College, established in 1870, is a public university and one of the constituent colleges of the City University of New York, located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hunter grants undergraduate, graduate, and post-graduate degrees in more than one hundred fields of study, and is recognized...
and taught at Marymount College
Marymount College
"Marymount College" may refer to:* Marymount College, a Roman Catholic school located in Gold Coast, Queensland, Australia* Marymount College, a Roman Catholic school located in Adelaide, South Australia...
. She has guest lectured at a number of universities, including The University of California, Santa Cruz
University of California, Santa Cruz
The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California...
. During this period, Houston began an association with the anthropologist Margaret Mead
Margaret Mead
Margaret Mead was an American cultural anthropologist, who was frequently a featured writer and speaker in the mass media throughout the 1960s and 1970s....
that would last until Mead's death and included periods during which Mead lived in Houston's home. Through Margaret Mead, Houston began to work in cultures around the world and expanded her knowledge of societies and cultural ethos. Another strong influence on Houston's work came from her association with mythologist Joseph Campbell
Joseph Campbell
Joseph John Campbell was an American mythologist, writer and lecturer, best known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work is vast, covering many aspects of the human experience...
. Houston worked closely with Campbell on his PBS television series. This work increased her understanding of and appreciation for the role of mythology and storytelling on societies. She had first become impressed by Campbell and his work as a young girl, when she read Campbell's groundbreaking work on world mythologies, The Hero with a Thousand Faces
The Hero with a Thousand Faces
The Hero with a Thousand Faces is a non-fiction book, and seminal work of comparative mythology by Joseph Campbell...
.
Controversy
By the 1990s, Houston was well known for her work as a writer, lecturer, and human potentials researcher. During the Clinton presidential years, Houston was invited by Hillary Clinton to work with her in The White House as an advisor while Ms. Clinton was writing her own book, It Takes a VillageIt Takes a Village
It Takes a Village: And Other Lessons Children Teach Us is a book published in 1996 by First Lady of the United States Hillary Rodham Clinton. In it, Clinton presents her vision for the children of America...
. Drawing on methods she had developed to help people access wells of their own knowledge, Houston suggested an imaginary meeting between Clinton and Eleanor Roosevelt
Eleanor Roosevelt
Anna Eleanor Roosevelt was the First Lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945. She supported the New Deal policies of her husband, distant cousin Franklin Delano Roosevelt, and became an advocate for civil rights. After her husband's death in 1945, Roosevelt continued to be an international...
, one of the historical figures Ms. Clinton admired. This visualization was aimed at tapping into Clinton's own inner wisdom. While no actual attempts were made to contact spirits and no dead people were harmed in this process, the politically fired media frenzy that resulted when the practice was reported as a seance led to an immediate redirecting of Houston's career. However, the weight of Houston's accomplishments up to that time, and the reputation she had established, allowed her to survive this temporary setback.
Mystery School
In 1984, Houston began teaching a seminar based on the concept of the ancient Mystery Schools, specialized trainings available to seekers of knowledge and the advancement of spirituality. In Houston's modern day version, seekers experience teachings on many levels and participate in experiential processes designed with the authority of the years of Houston's research and expertise into human potentials.Social artistry
Through her work in cultures around the world, Houston developed methods to spark cultural awareness and pride and to use these forces to help rejuvenate cultures. Always working with an eye toward what the human and society could be, Houston developed the concept of approaching social development and progress the way an artist approaches a work of art. This technique, Social Artistry, represents a new model for leadership. Houston, working through the United Nations Development Group, has been training leaders through this modality since 2003. Under the direction of Monica Sharma, then Director of Leadership and Capacity Development for the UN, Houston traveled to developing nations throughout the world bringing Social Artistry techniques to leadership groups. As of 2011, Social Artistry trainings and projects are ongoing in a number of countries and new leaders are being trained on a constant basis. This work is supported through The Jean Houston Foundation.Books by Jean Houston (Partial List)
Mystical Dogs: Animals as Guides to our inner Life Inner Ocean Publishing (2002) ISBN 1930722133Jump Time: Shaping Your Future in a World of Radical Change Sentient Publications (2nd Ed. 2004) ISBN 1591810183
The Passion of Isis and Osiris: A Union of Two Souls Wellspring/Ballantine (1998) ISBN 0345424778
A Mythic Life: Learning to LIve our Greater Story HarperSanFrancisco (1996) ISBN 0062502824
Manual for the Peacemake: An Iroquois Legent to Heal Self (with Margaret Rubin) Quest Books (1995) ISBN 0835607097
Public Like a Frog: Entering the Lives of three Great Americans Quest Books (1993) ASIN B0026SIU0G
The Hero and the Goddess: The "Odyssey" as Mystery and Initiation Ballantine Books (1992) ISBN 0345365674
Godseed: The Journey of Christ Quest Books (1988) ISBN 0835606775
A Feminine Myth of Creation (with Diana Vandenberg, in Dutch) J.H. Gottmer (1988) ISBN 9025721184
The Search for the Beloved: Journeys in Mythology and Sacred Psychology Tarcher (2nd Ed. 1997) ISBN 0874778719
The Possible Human: A course in Extending Your Physical, Mental, and Creative Abilities Tarcher (2nd. Ed. 1997) ISBN 0874778727
Life Force: The Psycho-Historical Recovery of the Self Quest Books (2nd. ed. 1993) ISBN 0835606872
Books with Robert Masters
Mind Games Doubleday (1972) ISBN 0385286503Listening to the Body: The Psychophysical Way to Health and Awareness Delta (1979) ISBN 0385285779
The Varieties of Psychedelic Experience Park Street Press (2000 edition) (1966) ISBN 0892818972
Film and television appearances
- Dalai Lama RenaissanceDalai Lama RenaissanceDalai Lama Renaissance is a feature length documentary film, produced and directed by Khashyar Darvich, and narrated by actor Harrison Ford. The film documents the Dalai Lama's meeting with the self-titled "Synthesis" group, made up of 40 Western "renaissance" thinkers who hope to use the meeting...
documentary. - Nightline Face-Off: Does God Have a Future?" ABC Nightline program March 2010. With Deepak ChopraDeepak ChopraDeepak Chopra is an Indian medical doctor, public speaker, and writer on subjects such as spirituality, Ayurveda and mind-body medicine. Chopra began his career as an endocrinologist and later shifted his focus to alternative medicine. Chopra now runs his own medical center, with a focus on...
, Sam HarrisSam Harris (author)Sam Harris is an American author, and neuroscientist, as well as the co-founder and current CEO of Project Reason. He received a Bachelor of Arts in philosophy from Stanford University, before receiving a Ph.D. in neuroscience from UCLA...
, and Michael ShermerMichael ShermerMichael Brant Shermer is an American science writer, historian of science, founder of The Skeptics Society, and Editor in Chief of its magazine Skeptic, which is largely devoted to investigating pseudoscientific and supernatural claims. The Skeptics Society currently has over 55,000 members...
.
External links
- Houston's official website
- Video of Jean Houston with the Dalai Lama during filming of the documentary "Dalai Lama Renaissance"
- Jean Houston MP3 audio - from Shift in Action, sponsored by Institute of Noetic Sciences
- Jean Houston's article on Skeptics Dictionary