Robert Frager is an American

social psychologist Social psychology is the methodical study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Although studying many of the same substantive topics as its counterpart in the field of ...

responsible for establishing America's first educational institution dedicated to transpersonal psychology. Frager is known for founding the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, now called

Sofia University Sofia University "St. Kliment Ohridski" () is a public university, public research university in Sofia, Bulgaria. It is the oldest institution of higher education in Bulgaria. Founded on 1 October 1888, the edifice of the university was constr ...

, in

Palo Alto, California Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

, where he currently holds the position of director of the low residency Master of Arts in Spiritual Guidance program and

professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

of psychology. Frager has previously acted as president of the Association for Transpersonal Psychology as well as a consultant, educator and a spiritual teacher in the Sufi tradition.

Early life and education

Frager was born in June 20th, 1940 in California to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family. He attended

Reed College Reed College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Portland, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1908, Reed is a residential college with a campus in the Eastmoreland, Portland, Oregon, E ...

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

from 1957 to 1961. He graduated with a B.A. in psychology. He earned a PhD in social psychology from

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

Cambridge, Massachusetts Cambridge ( ) is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is a suburb in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, located directly across the Charles River from Boston. The city's population as of the 2020 United States census, ...

, which he attended from 1961 to 1967. From 1963 to 1965, he was a fellow at the

East-West Center East West (or East and West) may refer to: *East–West dichotomy, the contrast between Eastern and Western society or culture Arts and entertainment Books, journals and magazines *'' East, West'', an anthology of short stories written by Salm ...

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Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

. From 1967 to 1968, he was a research fellow at

Keio University , abbreviated as or , is a private university, private research university located in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally established as a school for Rangaku, Western studies in 1858 in Edo. It was granted university status in 1920, becomi ...

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Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Career

Frager studies

transpersonal psychology Transpersonal psychology, or spiritual psychology, is an area of psychology that seeks to integrate the spiritual and transcendent human experiences within the framework of modern psychology. Evolving from the humanistic psychology movement, ...

and he established the country's first educational institution dedicated to it. He also teaches courses in spiritual psychology and "The Wisdom of Islam" at the online University of Philosophical Research and also in the online MA program of the Holmes Institute Graduate School of Consciousness Studies.

Selected bibliography

* ''Motivation and Personality'' (1986, supervising editor) * ''Love Is the Wine: Talks of a Sufi Master in America'' (1987, editor) * ''Personality and Personal Growth'' (1993 onwards) * ''Who Am I?: Personality Types for Self-Discovery'' (1994) * ''Essential Sufism'', an anthology of Sufi teaching materials (1997) * ''Heart, Self and Soul: The Sufi Psychology of Growth, Balance, and Harmony'' (1999) * ''The Wisdom of Islam: A Practical Guide to the Wisdom of Islamic Belief'' (2002) * ''Sharing Sacred Stories: Current Approaches to Spiritual Direction and Guidance'' (2007, editor) * ''Sufi Talks: Teachings of an American Sufi'' ''Sheihk'' (2012)

Personal life

Frager embraced Islam in 1981. He is also a

Sufi Sufism ( or ) is a mysticism, mystic body of religious practice found within Islam which is characterized by a focus on Islamic Tazkiyah, purification, spirituality, ritualism, and Asceticism#Islam, asceticism. Practitioners of Sufism are r ...

teacher, or

sheikh Sheikh ( , , , , ''shuyūkh'' ) is an honorific title in the Arabic language, literally meaning "elder (administrative title), elder". It commonly designates a tribal chief or a Muslim ulama, scholar. Though this title generally refers to me ...

, in the Halveti- Jerrahi order, A reprint from Issue 34, September to December 2006. in which he was initiated by Muzaffer Ozak and goes by the name of Sheikh Ragip al-Jerrahi, leading a '' dergah'' (Sufi community) in

Redwood City Redwood City is a city on the San Francisco Peninsula in the Bay Area of Northern California, approximately south of San Francisco and northwest of San Jose. The city's population was 84,292 according to the 2020 census. The Port of Redwo ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

Sensei The term "先生", read in Chinese, in Japanese, in Korean, and in Vietnamese, is an honorific used in the Sinosphere. In Japanese, the term literally means "person born before another" or "one who comes before". It is generally used ...

Frager practices

Aikido Aikido ( , , , ) is a gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art which is split into many different styles including Iwama Ryu, Iwama Shin Shin Aiki Shuren Kai, Shodokan Aikido, Yoshinkan, Renshinkai, Aikikai, and Ki Aikido. Aikido is now practic ...

, a spiritual Japanese martial art, and he holds the highest rank now issued by the International Aikido Federation, 8th Dan.

References

External links

Frager's CV at Institute of Transpersonal Psychology website

{{DEFAULTSORT:Frager, Robert American Sufis 21st-century American psychologists Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences alumni Living people Sufi psychology Reed College alumni Converts to Islam American people of Jewish descent Converts to Islam from Judaism Year of birth missing (living people)