Ecologies of the self in practice - meditation, affect and ecosophy

Abstract

Drawing upon current concerns within non-representational and post-humanist theory, this paper explores the potential of meditation to trigger non-modern forms of affect. Supported by qualitative methodology which included participant observation at mindfulness and Vipassana retreats and semi-structured interviews with meditators, the paper analyses a number of subjective transformations characterized by struggle, embodiment, porosity and fragmentation. Following the call for deeper and more comprehensive forms of affect within ecosophy, the paper offers a step-by-step analysis of the emergence of meditative subjectivities, suggesting that they point towards ways of being in the world that challenge the autonomous modern self.