Emergence and Experience of “Peace of Mind”: What Can Classic Writers Tell Us?

Abstract

Across history and among diverse civilizations, human beings have been interested in attaining a state of peace of mind and how to educate people in attaining so. However, the conceptualization of such phenomenon has not been accurately discussed within psychology and furthermore is a lack of awareness on the diversity between conceptualization and the experience of a state of “peace of mind”—this being one of the main aims of the present article. Though this transitory and dynamic state of mind has been related to affective processes such as acceptance, contentment, and surrender, more descriptive and explanatory accounts about the emergence and experience of peace of mind could expand our understanding meaning-making and affective processing in everyday life. Dimensions of semiotic mediation theory are beneficial in the exploration and understanding of the phenomenon of “peace of mind”, as well as this phenomenon greatly can illustrate dynamics of sign levels. In order to expand the theoretical understanding of what peace of mind entails, we make use of an innovative method: using literature as data that allows peace of mind to be investigated from a perspective of cultural psychology.