The Quest: Vision in an age of Crisis. Economic & Financial Crisis. Jungian Psychotherapy

S2 Ep86. The Light of Higher Consciousness

Human nature is the integrated but at the same time conflicting combination of six parts of our development: animal inheritance, emotional structure, conscious ego intelligence, the unconscious, higher consciousness, and what Jungians call the Self. These have evolved over millions of years and many of them are a unity of conflicting parts. Despite their conflict there is also a transformational intelligence, the Self, within the psyche of mankind, which is capable of creating harmony within itself, diminishing repression and malevolence.

At the same time as the emergence of death awareness the higher self is  simultaneously triggered into existence and this is closely related to love. Our higher self has many attributes such as higher intuition, illumination, revelation, music, art, poetry, and advanced forms of symbolic thought which are revolutionary in evolution. The level and range of our abstract symbolic understanding and expression are extraordinary.

The existence of the higher self in humans, we suggest, is a result of the inherent spirit in the cosmos, the anima mundi, an intelligence in nature and evolution. It cannot be really explained by a materialist view of evolution for it has little, if any survival value. It is grace, primal spirit, embodied in matter.

 

S3 Ep35. Jung y El Libro Tibetano de Los Muertos

El Libro Tibetano De Los Muertos describe las experiencias de la conciencia en el intervalo entre la muerte y el renacimiento y se divide en tres bardos:

El Chikhai Bardo - "el momento de la muerte" que tiene la experiencia de la "luz clara de la realidad".

El Chonyid Bardo - "la experiencia de la realidad" que presenta la experiencia de las ilusiones cósmicas.

El Sidpa Bardo o "bardo del renacimiento", que es el resultado del karma y tiene imágenes típicamente de hombres y mujeres copulando que conducen al renacimiento.

En el proceso de la muerte hay una posibilidad de liberación, pero muy pronto comienzan las ilusiones que conducen a la reencarnación. Las luminarias se vuelven más débiles y la visión más aterradora.

Jung dice:

“Las instrucciones son tan detalladas y están tan completamente adaptadas a los cambios aparentes en la condición del hombre muerto que todo lector serio debe preguntarse si estos sabios y viejos lamas no podrían, después de todo, haber vislumbrado la cuarta dimensión y rasgado el velo del mayor de los secretos de la vida.”

 

S2 Ep85. Origins of Evil. Part 2

Since mankind began to think morally the question of the origin of evil was a continual problem. We examine  some examples. We begin with the Ancient Egyptians and the Judaic tradition. Special focus is on the myth of Osiris and Seth on the one hand and Cain and Abel on the other.  The contribution of envy and malevolence to conflict and evil is noted.

 

S3 Ep34 Elementos básicos de la enseñanza budista y la metafísica tibetana. Spanish Language Series

Estamos encantados de continuar con los podcasts del Quest. Antes de continuar con la experiencia de Jung con la metafísica tibetana será útil cubrir algunos elementos básicos de la enseñanza budista, ya que el budismo es el fundamento de la espiritualidad tibetana.

“Si podemos reconocer las apariencias del bardo dharmata como la energía de sabiduría de nuestra propia mente, no hay diferencia entre el perceptor y lo percibido, y esta es una experiencia de no dualidad. Entrar completamente en esa experiencia es alcanzar la liberación que surge en ese momento en el estado posterior a la muerte cuando la conciencia puede darse cuenta de que sus experiencias no son más que la mente misma.”

S2 Ep84. Origins of Evil. Part 1

This is the first in a  miniseries on the origins of evil.  Creative and destructive forces exist as universal principles and underpin life on earth as well as the consciousness of humanity. The essence of evil in the psyche is the destruction of the good. This is  the "satanic", which is malevolently opposed to the life-giving and creative. A distinction is made to the "luciferian" which is a movement to consciousness and therefore while liberating is also the root of our alienation. Much of what we think of as bad, negative, egoistic  in humans originates in our animal ancestry and has evolved. However when primate  instincts, appetites and sexuality pass through the prism of human consciousness they are easily magnified and distorted. 

 

S2 Ep83. Tibetan Buddhism. Light in the Darkness.

The famous painting of the Tibetan wheel of life is in the grip of the Lord of Death. At its centre are two concentric circles: the outer shows the ascending and descending paths with souls in the death and rebirth cycle; the inner shows three animals, a pig, a snake, and a rooster which symbolise forces within human nature that perpetuate this cycle and are responsible for the suffering in life.

 

The pig represents ignorance, avidya, which is a basic misrepresentation of reality. The snake represents aggression which in the human species reaches a malignancy unprecedented in the rest of nature. The third is the rooster symbol – lust, desire and insatiable greed. These three are surely responsible for much of the darkness in the human species.

 

The Tibetan Book of the Dead can be used to guide the dying person through the experiences of consciousness after death, but it is also used during life by those who want to prepare for what will come after death. Liberation from the wheel of rebirth is actually possible in the after-death states or bardos.

S3 Ep33. Jung y El Libro Tibetano de la Gran Liberación. Spanish Language Series

Este episodio continúa una miniserie sobre las observaciones de Jung sobre textos orientales y explora sus comentarios sobre El Libro tibetano de la Gran Liberación, desconocido para Occidente hasta su primera publicación en 1954. El próximo episodio examinará sus comentarios sobre el Libro tibetano de los muertos.

Al igual que otros de sus comentarios, como los del I Ching y El Secreto de la Flor de Oro, aquí Jung pretende construir un puente desde el budismo tibetano a su escuela de Psicología Analítica. Por ejemplo escribe:

“… el inconsciente es la mente matriz con la cualidad de la creatividad adjunta, el lugar de nacimiento de todas las formas de pensamiento y similar a la Mente Universal de Oriente. Estas formas de pensamiento o arquetipos son omnipresentes y atemporales ... Por medio de la función trascendente no solo ganamos acceso a la Mente Universal sino que también llegamos a comprender porqué Oriente cree en la posibilidad de la autoliberación.”

S2 Ep82. Jung and the Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation

This episode continues a miniseries on Jung’s observations on oriental texts exploring his comments on The Tibetan Book of the Great Liberation unknown to the West until its first publication in 1954. The next episode will examine his comments on the Tibetan Book of the Dead.

Like other of his commentaries, such as those of the I Ching and the Secret of the Golden Flower, Jung is here aiming at a building a bridge from an unfamiliar Eastern religion, in this case Tibetan Buddhism, to a Western psychology, namely his school of Analytical Psychology.

For example he writes:

“… the unconscious, for Analytical Psychology, is the matrix mind with the quality of creativity attached to it, the birthplace of all thought forms and akin to the Universal Mind of the Orient. These thought forms or archetypes are omnipresent and timeless ... By means of the transcendent function we not only gain access to the “One Mind” but also come to understand why the East believes in the possibility of self liberation. If, through introspection and the conscious realisation of unconscious compensations, it is possible to transform one’s mental conditions and thus arrive at a solution of people’s complex, one would seem entitled to speak of self liberation”.

S2 Ep81. The Turning of the Year

No matter what the crises of the collective the individual has the opportunity of realising the inner light that lies in us all. This episode explores the Taoist text The Secret of the Golden Flower which describes in an extraordinary manner how to access this light through the meditation process.

The episode ends with a beautiful song The Turning of the Year by Mark Dunn of The Bringers of Change whose music albums can be found on Spotify etc. and as CDs at www.fallingarecords.com

The free meditation programme following the Secret of the Golden Flower starts Jan 23rd.

The Quest Lecture series (as distinct from these podcasts) starts Jan.28th.

There will be no podcast episode in January. The next one will be Feb.15th 2023.

 

 

 

S2 Ep80. Answer to Job. Part 8. Appraisal.

In this last episode of this miniseries I give Jung’s main argument and its pros and cons.

My feelings about the difficulties of the work are as follows:

Firstly, relevance. How much can it offer the modern world?

Secondly, isolationism -  its removal from the other analytic disciplines.

Thirdly, certain inconsistencies which may confuse the reader.

Fourthly, contradiction - whether the archetype of the Self is the totality or a specific archetype.

Fifthly, the inherent difficulty of the text.

Some of its strengths are as follows:

1: Its passion and tremendous personal conviction.

2:  Its roots in childhood experiences (visions, dreams).

3: Jung speaks with many voices, as it were out of the depth of many esoteric traditions.

4: The audacity of the text

5: Jung uses a new voice – that of archetypal psychology combined with mythology  and gnosticism.

6:  Answer to Job reinforces Jung’s impact on the practice of psychotherapy.

7: Answer to Job has a deep theological critique of Christian and Judaic civilizations.

8: Jung insisted on the dangers of an apocalypse in our times.

9: Jung insists on the overarching metaphysical dimension to human existence.

S3 Ep32. Respuesta a Job Parte 9. Relevancia al mundo moderno. Spanish language series

Este es el episodio final de la miniserie sobre la Respuesta  a Job de Carl Jung. Aqui presento un resumen de su argumento  y doy dos ejemplos de la relevancia para el mundo moderno. En primer lugar, su temor de un apocalipsis moderno. Sin embargo, el vio la posibilidad de un proceso de individuación al traer esto a la conciencia. En segundo lugar, la relación de este texto con la práctica actual del análisis junguiano.

S2 Ep79. Answer to Job. Part 7. Questions and Responses.

The penultimate episode in this miniseries on Jung's Answer to Job asks the following questions of this text:

Q. Why is there no "real" history, sociology, or political science in the Answer to Job and indeed in Jung’s work in general?

Q. Are there other interpretations of the Answer to Job.

Q. How unusual is Jung’s interpretation?

Q. Does Jung speak of God in different ways?

Q. Does the theory of evolution change all bible studies including the Answer to Job?

Q. How can God be the totality and at the same time be a specific component of the unconscious?

Q. What impact has Answer to Job had on the practice of Jungian psychotherapy?

S3 Ep31. Respuesta a Job. Parte 8. Valoración crítica. Spanish language series

Este es el penúltimo episodio de esta miniserie. Examinamos las dificultades y fortalezas del Respuesta a Job.

Las dificultades incluyen:

Su relevancia; su alejamiento de las demás disciplinas analíticas; ciertas inconsistencias que pueden confundir al lector; una contradicción - si el arquetipo del Self es la totalidad o un arquetipo específico; la dificultad inherente del texto.

Algunas de sus fortalezas incluyen:

Su pasión y tremenda convicción personal; una profundidad adicional debido a la cantidad de tradiciones esotéricas a las que está vinculada; Jung habla con muchas voces, como si saliera de muchas tradiciones; la audacia del texto; Jung usa una nueva voz - la de la psicología arquetípica; impacto en la práctica de la psicoterapia; una profunda crítica teológica de las civilizaciones cristiana y judaica; advertencia de los peligros de un apocalipsis en nuestros tiempos; inclusión de la dimensión metafísica global de la existencia humana.

 

S2 Ep78 Answer to Job. Part 6. God wants to create humanity ... but not quite

A resume is given of the episodes so far. Responses to the following questions are given:

Q. Is God separate from us?

Q. How can God be a personality as he mostly appears to be in the bible?

Q. If the dualism of good and evil is contained in God then what is the point of the individuation process in human beings?

Q. How can God be the archetype of the Self?

Q. Jung speaks of the God in different ways in Answer to Job. Is he inconsistent?

Q. How is it possible that God can be equated with the unconscious?

Q. What does Jung mean by God wants to create man but not quite?

S3 Ep30. Respuesta a Job Parte 7. ¿Hay una explicación en la historia judaica y cristiana para la literatura apocalíptica? Spanish language series.

En este episodio queremos responder a las siguientes preguntas

¿Por qué no hay historia 'real', sociología o ciencia política en el libro?

¿Qué explicación histórica podría ofrecerse para la literatura apocalíptica?

¿Por qué la interpretación de Jung es atípica?

Como la teoría de la evolución cambia todos los estudios bíblicos, incluido la Respuesta a Job.

¿Cómo puede Dios ser la totalidad y al mismo tiempo ser un componente específico del inconsciente?

Además, en el episodio de hoy contamos un sueño notable que Jung tuvo en 1920 en su visita al norte de África. Su interpretación del sueño es fascinante e ilustra material importante en la Respuesta a Job.

S2 Ep77. Jung’s Answer to Job. Part 5. The Contemporary Apocalypse.

In this episode we arrive at the last part of the Answer to Job, chapters 15-20. Three of Jung’s arguments stand out.

1. The actual dangers of an apocalypse in our own time.

2. The importance of a uniting symbol such as that of a child-hero or the Virgin Mary that is an attempt to heal the opposites and their terrible danger to humanity.

3. Reflections on the nature of God.

S2 Ep76. Answer to Job. Part 4. The Dark Side of the Creator

This episode covers chapters 11-14 of Answer to Job. Jung argues that the emergence of Christianity was an attempt to create a totally good God subsequent to the injury done to Job (i.e. mankind) by Yahweh. He focuses on the weakest part of the Christian argument, that which most reveals the dark side of god which cannot be repressed despite the best efforts of Christianity. This is the subject of the Book of Revelation otherwise known as the Apocalypse of John.

S3 Ep29. Jung y la Respuesta a Job. Parte 6. ¿Un Verdadero Apocalipsis? Spanish language series

Jung presenta el último libro de la biblia donde los cristianos presentan a su Dios con todas sus contradicciones. Detalla los eventos del Apocalipsis enfatizando el lado oscuro de Dios. Pero lo que perseguía a Jung era la posibilidad de un apocalipsis real. Jung pasó del Libro de Job al Apocalipsis y ahora avanza rápidamente a su propia época. Insinúa que la humanidad está pasando por un proceso de individuación colectiva.

“Respuestas” a los siguientes puntos siguen.

¿Está Dios separado de nosotros?

¿Cómo puede Dios ser una personalidad como parece serlo en la Biblia?

Si el dualismo del bien y el mal está contenido en Dios, entonces ¿cuál es el sentido del proceso de individuación en los seres humanos?

¿Cómo puede Dios ser el arquetipo del Self?

Jung habla de Dios de diferentes maneras en el Libro de Job. ¿Es inconsistente?

¿Cómo es posible que se pueda equiparar a Dios con el inconsciente?

Qué quiere decir Jung cuando dice “Dios quiere crear al hombre pero no del todo”?

S2 Ep75. Jung’s Answer to Job. Part 3. The Drama between Mankind and God.

Answer to Job has 20 chapters that formed a complex unity in Jung’s mind. This episode will summarize the first 10 of these. Themes include:

Jung is indignant at the injustice done to Job. The unconscious creator needs conscious humanity so as to develop but, at the same time it opposes this. The incarnation of God into man through Christ is a world-shaking transformation or objectification of God. God needs to become a man. The incarnation is not to make reparation for mankind’s sins but to make up for Yahweh’s damage to Job (i.e. humanity). Yahweh lacks a feminine side – the lost Sophia. Christ embodies the hero myth. The incarnation of Christ is insufficient to deal with the problem of evil. The belief that God is all good is simply not credible. The God image is a mixture of opposites.

S3 Ep28. Jung y la Respuesta a Job. Parte 5. Dios quiere entrar la humanidad. Spanish language series.

Jung había vivido las guerras del siglo XX y fue testigo del inmenso impacto de Hitler en las civilizaciónes alemana y europea. Se dio cuenta muy claramente, que con la realidad de la bomba nuclear, la humanidad ahora tenía los medios para la autodestrucción. Para él este era un escenario apocalíptico,  el lado oscuro de Dios expresado a través de la psique humana. En última instancia, Dios no es un ser separado, sino que es la realidad misma y, por lo tanto, también es la humanidad.