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Roberto Assagioli (1888–1974), an Italian psychiatrist, contemporary of Freud and Jung, and early leader with Maslow of the transpersonal movement, argued for spiritual psychosynthesis. He was influenced by Greek philosophy, especially Plato’s transcendent philosophy and the concept of entelechy and Aristotle’s teleology. Assagioli, unlike Jung, placed the transpersonal more prominently in his psychological theory and practice.

In Psychological Mountain Climbing and Meditation, Assagioli addressed the importance of symbol and meditation practices in psychosynthesis. With the support of the spiritual wisdom of the ages, mountain climbing symbolized the lifelong struggle to reach the highest peak of spiritual consciousness.