The arcane dimension: Pursuing sanctity and emotional intimacy in romantic love

This depth psychological study examines historical and contemporary perspectives of romantic relationships and presents a model of what the author calls “the sacred dimension of romantic relationships.” Utilizing a heuristic and hermeneutic approach to psychological investigation, two basic research questions are explored: first, “What are some of the prevailing aspects of the lived understanding of romantic relationships in the present time?” and, second, “What might constitute a useful understanding of the sacred dimension of romantic relationships for the present time?” These research questions are used to guide the author's interpretation of cultural paradigms of romantic intimacy and his recommendations for improving intimate relationships by situating their essence as a spiritual endeavor.; The study addresses the research questions in several ways. Historical and multidisciplinary literature reviews disclose cultural perspectives regarding the social and interpersonal meanings of love. A hermeneutic analysis of professional literature on marital satisfaction and dissatisfaction is used to identify dominant but unexamined cultural complexes which interfere with the development of the sacred dimension in romantic relationships. Two primary complexes, the achievement complex and the power complex, are explicated as impediments to sacred relationships. The author then presents a heuristic model of the sacred dimension of relationships comprised of the components of beauty, mystery, and timelessness, and the concept of the beloved. This model, which is offered for consideration in clinical work with couples, is then illustrated by presenting a description of an actual case of couple therapy.; In essence, the study proposes that a recovery of the sacred in our spiritually impoverished age of technology will serve to enrich romantic relationships and, thereby, the quality of life in contemporary culture as a whole.