Jung Downunder - Jan - Jun 2008
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Transcript of Jung Downunder - Jan - Jun 2008
Psychology Podcasts Dr Dave of Shrink-Rap Radio, page 8
Images of horror and transformation, page 4
Alchemy and Technology, page 28
Jung & Sufism, page 22
Creative TensionsNew YeAR gReeTINgS to you all! My hope is
that your 2008 will be all the richer for your
connection to the Jung Society of Sydney.
Our Committee is constantly working on
new ways to nourish our community through
publications, website and meetings. I do
hope that you will be joining us this year to
partake of what is on offer.
A Jungian approach demands that we
encompass a multitude of polarities. In
Memories, Dreams and Reflections Jung wrote
of the necessity of experiencing ourselves as
“concurrently limited and eternal, as both one
and the other”. In our upcoming programme
of talks there will be ample opportunity to
reflect on these creative tensions.
Speaking directly to our human experience
of the eternal, Dr. ehsan Azari will explore
Jungian and Sufi approaches to the sacred
dimensions of psyche and imagination, while
Peter Dicker approaches human encounters
with the eternal through his revisioning of
the mythic Dionysus in his talk The Undivided
One. Jon Marshall’s attention also focuses on
myth making realms in Through Alchemy to
Technology, as he considers the psychological
realities of technologies and the hopes and
fears that they arouse. Amanda Dowd’s talk
Backgrounds of Beauty explores memories of
safety and terror to reflect on the effects of
colonisation in Australia, and how we grapple
with the presence of the other mind and
spiritual systems resident here. In Conscious
Femininity Kath McPhillips, through the work
of Marion woodman, contemplates both
the cultural and clinical repercussions of an
unlived spiritual life, and a disconnection
from the archetypal feminine and masculine.
I do hope you can join us for these talks with
their challenging and lively questions.
As well as looking ahead to 2008 in Jung
Downunder we revisit our 2007 Cinema and
Psyche event, A Deep Place Touched Only by
Monsters. So much came out of this evening
with Anne Noonan and Barbara Creed, that
Louise Fanning was inspired to write about
it, expanding on the wealth of themes and
images that this event evoked. Tim Hartridge
gives us a guided tour of online resources of
interest to Jungian folk, and Marc Marusic
reviews Robert Romanyshan’s book Ways of
The Heart, while Jon Marshall reflects on bliss.
My thanks to all these writers for their great
contributions.
I would also like to thank the team who
have worked with me on this edition of Jung
Downunder: Tim Hartridge who is so inspired
and generous with his considerable skills
and talent as a graphic designer, and Jon
Marshall and Lucy Davey who have been
skilled editors.
Sally Gillespie, President.
from the President
2
NewsC.G.Jung Society of Sydney
3
Library reporT
THe SOCIeTY maintains a small library
of books, tapes and journals available
to all current members. All items may
be borrowed for two months at a
time. The holdings consist of books
by Cg Jung, books about his work
and ideas; there are journals such as
Spring and The Journal of Analytical
Psychology; and a collection of audio
tapes of many of the monthly talks
presented at the meetings.
During the past year there have
been discussions about the best way
to preserve the older audio tapes
since they have a limited life. Any
assistance with transferring them
to CD would be gratefully accepted
and much appreciated. One of
our Committee members, Monica
Roman, is listening to older tapes to
check the quality and consider the
comparative value of the contents.
This ensures that talks of most
interest are transferred first.
There have been a few acquisitions
for the Library in 2007, and in 2008
we may be in a position to purchase
new items. All suggestions from
members are welcome.
Lucy Davey
From The CommiTTee
IT HAS BeeN an exciting and creative
time for the executive Committee
as i t has embarked upon new
enterprises. The transformation of our
old newsletter into the sophisticated
Jung Downunder magazine by Tim
Hartridge has delighted our members
and given us the ability to market
ourselves much more effectively to
the general public. watch out for
Tim’s redesign of our website next
with its added links to podcasts of
interest to our members.
Louise Fanning introduced the
very well-received Cinema and
Psyche symposium which this year
featured Pan’s Labyrinth. She is now
hard at work developing her next
Cinema and Psyche event for 2008.
Bo Robertson organised a superb
Christmas Party for 2007 and will
next turn her talents to marketing
and co-ordinating advertising in Jung
Downunder and on our website.
Jon Marshall has added to the
regular secondhand stock of our
bookstall by importing new stock
from Spring Publications and Spring
Journal, stimulating excellent sales
which are inspiring him to make
further imports for 2008. Marcel
Abarca and Monica Roman have
worked hard to streamline our
financial systems and reports, while
Lucy Davey has ref ined l ibrary
systems and databases, as well as
kept tabs on our work through her
minute- taking of our meetings.
As Honorarium Lenore Kulakauskas
manages and co-ordinates all the
organisat ional elements of the
Society, frequently suggesting new
ways to improve systems. when it
comes to technology Peter Mann
advises and supports us in a myriad
of ways, including overseeing the
monthly broadcast email . June
Reynolds continues her long-term
work of promoting the Society
through her excellent networking
abilities. Lesley Hamlyn turns her
hands to whatever tasks are at hand at
our monthly meetings. It’s a privilege
and honour to be the President of
such a talented, passionate and
generous executive Committee. On
behalf of the Jung Society I thank
them all for the terrific work.
Sally Gillespie
In the darkened auditorium of the
cinema, the threshold of consciousness
is lowered, opening the way to an
experience away from the day to day
world. an affect charged psychological
realm is created where images are
encountered and can be emotionally
engaged with, which, under everyday
circumstances, would be rejected.
especially, perhaps, the psychical
factors that are given no place in the
day to day world. In Jung’s words, the
gods that have become diseases - the
phobias, the obsessions, the intense
emotions, the unbearable histories, the
ghosts and evils, the terrible traumas
– these monsters can be given form and
experienced in the cinema.
In august 2007, the C. G. Jung Society
of Sydney hosted a discussion about
images of horror and transformation in
the latest film by the Mexican filmmaker
Guillermo del toro, Pan’s Labyrinth.
the film has captivated critics and
cinemagoers alike for its creative
aesthetics as well as its multi-layered
and complex themes. this discussion
was inspired by a quote from the
filmmaker himself: “I really think the
most creative, most fragile part of the
child that lives within me is a child that
was literally transformed by monsters.
If It’S true aS JaMeS hIllMan tells us that the essence of psyche is
myth and that psychology is ultimately mythology - the study of the stories
of the soul - then the cinema certainly appears to have been created to open
ourselves to aspects of soul.
w e A V I N g V O I C e S
Images of horror and transformation in Pan’s labyrinth
4
Be they on the screen, or in myth or in
my own imagination.”
the panellists were dr. anne noonan,
a Sydney-based psychiatrist and Jungian
analyst, and Professor Barbara Creed
who lectures in Cinema Studies at the
university of Melbourne. I had the
pleasure of organising and chairing
the event and the following are some of
the interesting thoughts that emerged
on the night of the discussion and
afterwards.
anne noonan started by saying that
originally she thought she would try
to interpret this film in an alchemical
way, that is “that the narrative is a
prima materia, a dark leaden thing
which, through a series of processes,
is eventually transformed into gold.
Jung took this to be a metaphor of
individuation or the way the mind
matures.” this model could be applied
to the making of the film, the narrative of
the film, and the experience of watching
the film in the cinema.
“With the making of films” anne said,
“you start off with a base material, the
basic idea, and it is worked through
with a number of actions: writing the
script, getting the costumes together,
deciding on the setting and time, the
whole transferential thing of the film
director being moved and continually
reworking, reworking. del toro seems
to have a whole theory around how to
do it, including allusions to other films,
myths and art. It is not so much his
religion - he calls himself an ex-Catholic
- but it’s his faith-base or something,
taking the myths and art, using many
bodies of theory, and weaving them all
together.”
Images of horror and transformation in Pan’s labyrinthby Louise Fanning
5
A Deep Place Touched Only by Monstersanne then explained that as she got
more involved in the story she realised
it also had contained a ver y strong
presence of the eros and Psyche
story. “In Pan’s labyrinth Ofelia starts
of f as a human figure and she goes
through various tests. the last scene
in the Psyche myth is where Psyche
is immortalised and she goes up with
eros to Olympus/heaven. In the
Psyche myth she doesn’t really die:
she becomes unconscious when she
opens up the box and that gives eros
the chance to come and be with her.
‘Psyche’ is the Greek word for ‘butterfly’
and Persephone’s potion causes Psyche
to move out of her human guise, from
her physical level, and metamorphose
to a higher level.”
In a discussion later anne spoke of
James hillman’s interesting comments
about Psyche and eros: “he says
Psyche is actually just mind or even
habit, more or less day to day stuff. eros
comes along and that’s the transformer,
he burns, he pierces, he makes people
suffer. there is an ancient coin found
not too long ago which has on one side
eros and Psyche in an embrace. On
the other side poor old Psych is being
absolutely tortured. aphrodite’s pulling
her backwards by the hair, that’s an
archetypal thing - pulling her back, and
eros is underneath burning her genitals
with a torch. that’s a process: it’s only
by going through that kind of alchemical
suf fering, Ofelia’s tests in the film,
that she moves into this Psyche/eros
relationship.”
filmmaking in itself can be thought
of as a monstrously difficult experience.
del toro talks of having a great deal of
difficulty in the making of this film; in
fact he lost a lot of weight. “that’s a
burning off,” said anne. “holding the
complexity of the stories, the history,
various myths and possibilities in all
the details. the transformation of
natural images to technical images and
finally brought back together again as a
symbolic image.”
In terms of an alchemical experience
for the film viewer, anne thought that
a good film could transform or change
mind. She said, “that was Jung’s idea
with the difference between true and
false imagination. the old alchemists
used to say the true imagination is
when the images move and transform
whereas the false imagination is more a
repetitive day dreaming sort of thing.”
anne thought that while certain horror
films can just have a repetitive, kind
of addictive thrill, in del toro’s film 6
Ofelia enters the Labyrinth.
A Deep Place Touched Only by Monstersthe imagery suggests it’s moving you
along to another place. “You’ll hear a lot
of artists say ‘I went to see Gilbert and
Sullivan with my aunt when I was 9 and
from then on I knew’.”
“It’s also interesting to notice,”
anne went on to say, “that Joseph
Campbell, Mircea eliade and Jung
and also del toro, all had moments in
their childhoods, we know not why,
which became extremely significant,
moments in time that sort of held the
tension between the supernatural and
the natural: del toro’s monsters and
ghosts in the cupboard; Jung’s phallus
dream that always stuck in his mind;
eliade thought he was in a green grape.
With Campbell he says in Cowboy and
Indian games he thought he looked
like the Indian, at the image level he
identified a lot with them.”
the key motif for Barbara Creed in
her response to Pan’s Labyrinth relates
to the symbolism of the labyrinth
throughout. and Barbara along with
anne found a strong resonance in
the way that the key motif they each
identified is not just a description of
the story’s narrative structure but also
a template of the way the viewer can
get involved in the film psychologically.
Barbara said: “the labyrinth of ancient
myth or of modern film symbolises
a kind of dreamlike journey in which
the traveller must confront, and by the
traveller I mean not just the protagonist
of the film such as Ofelia but also the
viewer, via the protagonist, the main
character we’re asked to identify with,
must confront the important issues in
life, particularly those of birth, betrayal,
loss and separation, death and rebirth.”
for Barbara the labyrinth is essentially
a place where the body becomes lost
and the mind embarks on a journey of
its own in order to find resolution to a
problem.
Barbara provided an extensive
etymology of the word ‘labyrinth’ and
history of the evolution of the labyrinth
and, of particular interest to storytellers
a description of the four primary types
of labyrinth that she has identified: the
spiral, the maze, the matrix and the
rhizome. “Whereas the maze,” she said,
“offers a comparatively straightforward
journey of entrances and exits, the spiral
offers a more complex journey, spinning
according to it’s own laws. the post-
modern matrix and the rhizome offer
paths ... without entrances and without
exits suggesting perhaps that in the late
20th and early 21st century the journey
into the unconscious to discover the self
Above left & below posters from the movie.
7
A Deep Place Touched Only by Monstershas become increasingly complex and
increasingly difficult.” Pan’s Labyrinth,
in Barbara’s opinion, interweaves two
cinematic forms of the labyrinthine
journey. “In the above ground story
the labyrinthine workings are fairly
straightforward and operate around
the labyrinth as a maze where there
are entrances and exits in the stories
surrounding the sadistic captain and
the freedom fighters in the countryside
attacking the forces of franco. the story
of Ofelia is much more complicated and
resembles much more the labyrinth as
a rhizome or a place where there are no
clear entrances or exits at all. But the
two forms of the labyrinthine narrative
and structure in the film intersect
throughout so it becomes an incredibly
complex film in terms of the way the
above ground political story relates to
the underground fantasy story.”
Barbara took us through the story of
the labyrinth and a description of the
monster at its centre. “the classical
labyrinth was built on the order of the
Cretan king Minos, the moon king,
because the king’s wife had mated
with a white bull and given birth to the
human/animal hybrid, the Minotaur
that possessed the body of a man but
the head of a bull. and of course, in
this myth it is the half-animal/human
hybrid that is so monstrous whereas
interestingly, in Pan’s Labyrinth the
faun is the human/animal hybrid, and
although he’s a monster he’s a very
sympathetic monster. In fact all of the
monstrous creatures, except the pale
man, are sympathetic, it’s the human
monster that is truly horrific. So,
every seven years the Minotaur fed
on human flesh, seven young men and
seven maidens sent from athens as a
tribute to the Minotaur. It was the hero
theseus with the help of ariadne, the
king’s daughter, who was able to finally
slay the Monster with the help of her
famous thread.”
Barbara said she feels del toro’s story
draws on a number of motifs from the
ancient legend. “In a sense the mother
has mated with the monster, the captain,
but this time it is Ofelia the daughter
whose task it is to leave the captain, or
father if you like, and journey into the
depths of the labyrinth using his own
son, her brother as a lure, in the hope
of bringing new life to the bloody land.”
Barbara pointed out that the pattern
becomes much more complex than in
the classical story. “the Monster feasts
on the blood of innocents in this film
but it is fully human. the central change 8
The pale man.
A Deep Place Touched Only by Monstersto the myth apar t from the familial
relationships is that the dominant
character is female. the hero theseus
has been replaced by a heroine, Ofelia
and the monster is in a sense the false
king, the patriot and the fascist.”
In the scene where Ofelia encounters
the pale man, Barbara observes that
the labyrinth is not presented as a
comforting place, but “as a place of
terror ruled over by the blind man
who symbolically cannot see anything
literally, morally or psychologically.
he’s the only underground monster
in the film who is not sympathetic.”
Barbara sees him as being linked to
the captain. “Vidal and the pale man are
both monsters that dwell deep within
their own labyrinths and are natural
enemies of the worlds of children and
fantasy. they are particularly linked
where they are holding their hands up.
In Vidal’s hand, his stigmata, his cross
to bear, is his watch, which is cracked
from when his father was shot. that’s
his pain to bear. When the pale man lifts
his hands up what we see here are eyes
which is his way of seeing through the
maze but he cannot see clearly.”
“So, what is it that Ofelia achieves
by the end of the journey?” Barbara
thought that it’s all contained in the line
at the end of the film when the captain
staggers out of the labyrinth holding his
son and walks straight into the arms of
the rebels. he says he wants them to
tell his son the hour of his death, just
as he knew his own father’s. “this,”
said Barbara, “is symbolically a very
important hour, the hour when the
son becomes the new patriarch.” this,
of course, does not happen. “What
Ofelia has done is, she gives the next
generation of children a chance never
to know the fascist, sadistic form of
patriarchy as monster. as with many
horror films the only real monsters are
human ones.”
as I peruse the comments from our
panellists I am amazed by the complex
and enigmatic images that have sprung
forth, further enriching not only our
understanding of Guillermo del toro’s
fascinating film but the ever yday
experience of our lives.
9
Posters from the movie.
guillermo del Toro
unleSS YOu have been living under
a rock you have no doubt heard of the
world’s most popular portable media
player, the Apple iPod. this nifty
device is used with your computer,
although new iPods are now capable
of connecting you wirelessly to the
Internet. Once connected to the net you
can download the mostly free audio and
video broadcasts called podcasts to your
iPod and play at leisure. Of course most
commercial music and movies are still
only available by purchase, but a lot of
great material is free.
So why would you want one of these
devices or to download endless hours
of podcasts to your computer? I had
no idea either until about 18 months
ago I navigated my way to podcast
central, itunes, typed into the search
window “psychology” and up popped a
small selection of psychology-based
programs. thinking back, I was oddly
rather encouraged by this meagre result
and began exploring straight away the
podcast Shrink Rap Radio.
Shrink Rap Radio is a weekly
podcast hosted by the ver y likable
and knowledgeable dr dave (alias, dr
david Van nuys). dr dave interviews
the most interesting collection of expert
guests in the field of psychology, many
iPod Psychology
Self help has long been the domain of book and magazine publishers, but today it’s all just a click away via your computer or iPod
10
Dr David Van Nyse of Shrink Rap Radio
Top: Maureen Murdock Below: Douglas A.Davis
podcastAccording to the web-based,
encyc loped i a wik iped i a :
“A podcast is a collection of
digital media files which is
distributed over the Internet
u s i n g s y n d i c a t i o n f e e d s
for p layback on portab le
media players and personal
computers.”
W E A V I N G V O I C E S
It’s All in Your EarSelf help has long been the domain of book and magazine publishers, but today it’s all just a click away via your computer or iPod
having published on a wide variety of
subjects. recent subjects and people
include: The Authoritarian Personality
with robert altemyer; Psychopathology
in The Workplace with laurence Miller;
Adventure-Based Psychotherapy with
Jason holder; Using Hypnosis and
EMDR to Repair Broken Maternal/
Infant Bonds with tony Madrid; and
The Psychological Impact of Materialism
with tim kasser.
Some of the more unusual inter-
views have included: Artificial Life
and Artificial Intelligence; Two Blokes
in an Aussie Pub Discuss Psychology;
Psychological Survival in Baghdad;
Computer-Assisted Dream Interpretation;
and Shamanic Psychology.
there are so many dif ferent and
fascinating interviews conducted by
dr.dave, but a couple which stood-
out were The Heroine’s Journey with
the articulate Maureen Murdock who
studied with Joseph Campbell, and
the discussion on the relationship
between freud and Jung based on
the investigative work of douglas a.
davis.
the Jung Podcast, with Jungian
analyst John Betts, is one of the most
comprehensive programs on Jung’s
analytical Psychology. It provides
by tim hartridge
11John Betts of the Jung Podcast.
an introduction to the fundamentals
of analytical Psychology through
which the listener is able to develop
a thorough understanding of Jungian
psychological principles.
the Jung Podcast also applies a hands-
on approach to working with dreams.
the early episodes provide the listener
with a detailed understanding of the
terms and application of Jungian
dreamwork and then invites the
listener to do the inner work. there’s a
brilliant workshop in later episodes on
the application of fairy tales to inner
work using the tale of the “Nixie of the
Mill-Pond”.
navigating therapyProgram lengths vary hugely, even with
some well structured podcasts. far from
being a disadvantage, the wonderful
thing about podcast programs is that
they are able take as long as they need
to discuss the topic. Podcasts can run as
short announcements, as information
pieces, or as mini inter views of 10
minutes or less, to more in-depth
interviews and discussions lasting over
an hour.
the texas tech univers i ty ’s
department of Psychology provides
brief episodes of less than 10 minutes
for their Psychology Podcast show
created by student doctors and dr
frank durso. this surprisingly brief
show covers some very useful material
for anyone lost in life’s struggles.
an Introduction to Psychology
lectures with dana C. leighton is at
the other end of the spectrum with in-
depth podcasts running over an hour.
these are a lecture series from classes
run at the Portland Community College
in Oregon uSa. leighton created the
iPod Psychology : PODCAST
aNZap SaTUrDay morNiNG SemiNarSat the Australian Museum, College Street Sydney CUT! FebrUary 9ThThis will be another ‘live’ presentation of a session between a real therapist and an actor/patient. Russell
Meares will lead a panel in commenting on what is occurring in the therapy while it is happening.
A LENS ON EMPATHY apriL 5Thwell-known psychotherapist, Alan Kindler, will be here from America to present a fascinating and
educational seminar on empathy using video.
PSYCHOTHERAPY GOES TO THE MOVIES JUNe 14ThPsychiatrist, psychoanalyst and movie-buff, Professor Carolyn Quadrio, will take us on a journey about
the presentation of therapy and therapists in film.
aNZap: (02) 8399 3787 · [email protected] · www.aNZapweb.Com
Natasha Mitchell of the ABC's All in the Mind
12
podcast as way of making his classroom
lectures available to his students and
has even made available some visual
notes, so that you feel like you are
actually in the class.
I am happy to inform you that Aunty
aBC produces some of the best
programs to be found anywhere on the
internet. their psychology podcast All
in the Mind is recommended by the
astute dr dave. the program presenter
is natasha Mitchell, part of the aBC’s
radio national team, who has a science
background and list of media awards
longer than this article.
All in the Mind freely combines
“unexpected voices, themes and ideas” and
“engages with both leading thinkers and
personal stories” and so the program’s
scope is considerably broader than pure
psychology. It is well worth the listen.
a wonderful thing about itunes is that
it automatically checks for new episodes
on programs I have subscribed to for
free, like the Jung Podcast presented by
John Betts.
today when I searched on itunes
for Psychology there were more than
150 podcasts listed. these programs
become a virtual audio-library on every
conceivable subject. You don’t have to
have an iPod to listen to them, as you
can listen straight off the website, its
just more convenient that way. to
get you started I have put links to all
the podcasts mentioned here on our
website – www.jungdownunder.com
Online there’s a wonderfully rich
source to be found through podcasts,
offering us unparalleled flexibility to
listen and re-listen whenever we want.
dr dave’s catch-phrase “Its All in Your
Mind” might be better said as “It’s All
in Your Ear”.
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iPod Psychology : PODCASTipod + iTunesiPod is a brand of portable
media player designed by Apple
Computers. They are external
data storage devices for playing
audio and video.
iTunes software is used to
transfer music to the iPod or
other MP3 device from stored
audio and video libraries on the
user’s computer.
abC nowABC NOw is a yet another
innovation. It’s a small piece
of software that will help you
navigate the collective stream
of the ABC’s titanic media
collection, particularly their
more recent shows. Currently
the ABC does not have all
programs in an audio or video
format for downloading, but
they do however transcribe
programs and you can read
them online.
Jung Society Members are offered a 10% Discount on all purchases
13
On ‘Following your Bliss’
InItIallY thIS SOundS attractive,
but although Campbell did not intend
it this way, it can become a destructive
demand, and we might wonder what
happens with a life where it is not clear
what your bliss is, or that you can find
it, or that once found you could pursue
it? Perhaps other things are also
demanded; perhaps there are other
imperatives which are just as real, or
obstacles which cannot be crossed? Is,
for example, a life irredeemably lost if
you care for a child or a spouse who is
incapacitated and do not follow bliss
alone? Might you develop just as much
from pain or restriction?
the implied message that if you do
not follow your one path, your one
enjoyment, your one bliss, then your
life will be wasted, is reinforced by
the Christian parable of the monetary
talents, from whence we get the idea
of personal ‘talents’. It is not surprising
that religion and myth lurk beneath an
imperative. In this story the servant
who fails to increase or use his talents,
but merely keeps them safe, displeases
the master and is thrown outside into
the darkness where there is “weeping
and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 25:
14-30 and a similar tale at luke 19:12-
27). those who do not use their talents
correctly are clearly damned. the
message of using talents can thus
become a dictum to oppress and flog
ourselves with. the story also seems
to make a perfectly confused emblem
for life in modern society; if we don’t
make money or increase our selves, by
ourselves, then we have failed.
Campbell also seems to be saying that
if you follow your bliss then problems
will be cleared away. Jung suggests that
we should beware of philosophies that
imply that we can make our life simple,
certain and smooth. Problems, in his
view, rather than success, force us to
greater consciousness and to separation
It is well known that towards the end of his life Joseph Campbell said: “My general formula for my students is ‘Follow your bliss’.
Find where it is, and don’t be afraid to follow it” and “if you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there
all the while, waiting for you... doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be” (The Power of Myth, pp. 120, 149).
14
W E A V I N G V O I C E S
Joseph Campbell
On ‘Following your Bliss’
from childhood. “Ever y problem...
brings the possibility of a widening of
consciousness”. “The serious problems
of life are never fully solved. If ever they
should appear to be so it is a sure sign
that something has been lost” (Jung
“The Stages of Life”, CW 8). neither is
it that clear that there is really only one
potential path through our lives; the Self
is capable of many expressions, and if
one is taken then others may have to be
surrendered. there is at the end of our
lives, only the one path we have taken. If
we have a fantasy of bliss which we did
not fulfil, does that mean our life was
misspent? Or can we use our problems
to get somewhere?
there may be two solutions to this
issue. firstly, the mystical; our bliss is
within us already, and can be brought to
whatever we do and, as a result, we do
not have to follow some path in order to
be satisfied or become whole. Secondly,
our ambition is a symbol of something,
but not necessarily that something
itself. In which case, the ambition can
be explored like a dream, or an active
imagination. What does, say, “being a
professional writer” symbolise to you?
What does it feel like in your body?
We can make associations, we can see
where the unconscious wants to go,
and perhaps face our misconceptions.
We can do the same with our reactions
to our supposedly prosaic realities. In
both cases the depth is already present
in our being, rather than in something
we might have done or might achieve.
Perhaps following either track will help
us act in a new way, perhaps different
from what we thought we wanted.
Perhaps it can help us be. In either case,
through work and facing problems, we
can move beyond a fantasy and social
based imperative towards something
valid for the soul.
It is well known that towards the end of his life Joseph Campbell said: “My general formula for my students is ‘Follow your bliss’.
Find where it is, and don’t be afraid to follow it” and “if you do follow your bliss you put yourself on a kind of track that has been there
all the while, waiting for you... doors will open where you didn’t know they were going to be” (The Power of Myth, pp. 120, 149).
by Jonathan Marshall
Carl gustav Jung
15
rOBer t d. rOManYShYn is a
senior faculty member at Pacifica
Graduate Institute in the uSa, and
founder of its doctoral programme in
depth Psychology. In this collection
of essays, he draws upon philosophy,
history, literature, art and poetry to
reanimate psychology and allow it to
reflect on how soul can live and thrive
in the contemporar y world. Just as
dream is the royal road to the soul,
romanyshyn proposes reverie as the
royal road to the soul of the world.
reverie is a mode of consciousness
completely dif ferent from fantasy.
Whereas fantasy has ego in its centre,
reverie allows us communion with the
depth of our existence, the existence of
the world, and the otherworldly (such
as gods, spirits, angels, the dead) – all
at once. Yet this is not a book about
psychotherapy: rather it describes a
therapeutic way of living. It explores the
imaginal world and invites the reader to
do so too.
Odd as it may seem, technology can
help us rediscover soul in the modern
world. romanyshyn demonstrates
this in essays on television and virtual
reality. the experience of television
(the television body) is an image
consciousness (rather than verbocentric
and literate consciousness, both still
dominant aspects of Western culture).
for the television body, knowing is
emotional, participatory and sensuous,
rather than rational, detached and
logical. Waking and dreaming can blur
each other. although this position may
not be without its problems, the author
affirms that television consciousness
helps us to reconnect with the imaginal
world, and that our situation is not
helped by confining television to the
task of amusement. Similarly, virtual
reality, although reinforcing the
Cartesian separation of body/dream and
mind/reason, is helping to reintroduce
the body of the dream, as the user
par ticipates in an imaginal, vir tual
world. however, romanyshyn does raise
questions about the consequences – to
be a presence without substance is to
be without humanity, and if participation
in electronic communities occurs at
the expense of interaction in organic
communities (ie in communal space)
we risk losing our sense of home.
Ways of the Heart B O O K R e V I e w
16
Ways of the Hear t is steeped in
phenomenology. the author sees Jung
as at times a radical phenomenologist.
One instance of this lies in Jung’s
work with alchemy – a way of knowing
through intimacy and relation rather
than through separation and distance.
a radical phenomenology “is devoted to
those subtle bodies which are neither facts
nor ideas... a work of the heart which is
neither that of mind nor eye, a poetics of
the soul’s landscape where a mind feels
its way into those imaginal presences who
always haunt the margins of the sensible
world”.
as a practising poet myself, I found
the author’s reflections on poetr y
very enriching. Poetry corresponds
with reverie, in that one is a witness
to what has been lost, forgotten, left
behind, or otherwise marginalised and
neglected. One of my poems, pertinent
in this respect, concerns my present
fascination with the display homes that
I visited when I was very young, and the
visions I then had in them of a possible
future life. Indeed, the imaginal world
is poetr y itself. romanyshyn draws
many cor respondences involving
poet, phenomenologist and depth
psychologist. for all three, what
appears, matters first before one
asks what it might mean. the author
encourages a state of being coined by
keats – “negative capability”, in which
one is “capable of being in uncertainties,
mysteries, doubts, without any irritable
reaching after fact and reason.” In other
words, having the patience to linger in
the moment and wait for the presence in
the present to appear.
“The capacity to dream with the world”
forms the heart of what the author is
trying to reawaken in this book. he
outlines some of the developments in
Western culture that have militated
against this capacity, such as the
fifteenth century invention of linear
perspective in art. this has influenced
us to become distant spectators of
the world. the appeal of this work is
enriched by extracts from poets such as
rilke, Blake, keats and tagore – each
helping “to redress the imbalance which
exists in favour of the empirical over the
aesthetic.”
by robert d. romanyshyn
reviewed by Marc Marusic
Essays Toward An Imaginal PsychologyWays of the Heart
17
TALKS
C.G.Jung Society of Sydneythe C.G. Jung Society of Sydney was formed in 1975 to promote discussion of the
ideas of the Swiss analyst and psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung. each month the Society
arranges Guest Speakers to present a diverse range of Jungian topics in the form
of talks, workshops and special events, which can be found in the following pages.
the Society is open to all members of the general public and offers a rich and varied
monthly programme of speakers both australian and international.
Annual General Meeting7pm SaTUrDay, marCh 8 2008, BeFORe THe TALk By DR eHSAn AzARi “JUnG & SUFiSM”
the Jung Society’s annual General Meeting is held each March before our
scheduled talk begins. the proceedings are always very brief and your attendance
as a member of the Society is very much appreciated in order to achieve our
necessary quorum. the main item on the agenda is to elect office bearers. We are
always delighted to welcome any member who wishes to contribute to our Society
by joining our Committee.
Should you be interested please contact Sally Gillespie on (02) 9552 3252 or email
18
2008 ProgrammeFebruary through June
SaTUrDay, FebrUary 9
Conscious femininityExploring the work of Marion Woodmankathleen McPhillips Page 20–21
SaTUrDay, marCh 8
brieF aNNUaL GeNeraL meeTiNG beFore TaLk
Jung & SufismThe Influence of Eastern Philosophydr ehsan azari Page 22–23
SaTUrDay, apriL 12
the undivided OneDionysian Consciousness in the ClinicPeter dicker Page 24–25
SaTUrDay, may 10
Background of BeautyMemories of Safety and/or Terroramanda dowd Page 26–27
SaTUrDay, JUNe 14
through alchemy to technologyWestern Dreaming & Myth MakingJonathan Marshall Page 28–29
19
SaturdaY, 9 feBruarY
6.30PM fOr 7.00PM
TaLk
blavatsky Lodge,
Level 2, 484 kent Street, Sydney
the COntrIButIOnS of Canadian
Jungian analyst and writer Marion
Woodman towards an understanding of
the repressed feminine in contemporary
Western cultures is explored in this talk.
In particular, Woodman cites addiction
and its behaviours as the outcome of an
unlived spiritual life, and disconnection
from the archetypal feminine and
masculine. this disconnection can
result in a ‘split’ feminine which is
clinically and culturally observable.
Conscious femininity is the process
of bringing this split to consciousness
and returning to the body. as well her
clinical and writing work, Woodman has
established a foundation which runs an
international training program BodySoul
rhythms, where in a supportive space
women participate in processes which
encourage the emergence of their
authentic voice. Processes include
dream work, dance, voice and art work.
I will introduce Woodman’s central
concepts, give a brief account of her life
and how she came to do this work, and
explain the split feminine via examples
in popular australian culture, including
the tV series kath and kim, and a
number of films.
Conscious femininityExploring the work of Marion WoodmanGuest Speaker Kathleen McPhillips
Marion woodman
20
kathleen MCPhIllIPS is a senior lecturer in humanities at the university
of Western Sydney. She has been reading the work of Marion Woodman for
25 years, and recently attended a Body/Soul rhythms workshop in Italy.
kathleen’s field of research is in gender, culture and religion. She has
published extensively in this area.
Conscious femininityExploring the work of Marion Woodman
members $5, Non-members $20, Non-members Concession $15
eVeNTS PROgRAMMe
Kathleen McPhillips21
Jung
In SufISM, human beings are likened
to thousands of different plants having
their roots imbedded in one and the
same soil. Sufism sees in the psychic
inheritance of ever y speaking and
thinking being, a primeval desire to
identify her/himself with that One. this
desire is both a personal and a supra-
personal psychic force that allows for
the experience of divinity to occur within
oneself. this desire, in other words, is an
instrument of cognition and behaviour
within the life of a Sufi. Similarly,
a spiritual motivation is of primal
importance in the Jungian unconscious,
and every human motivation is directed
by this spirituality — as a force.
Sufis believe that within every human
hear t a primordial image or what
Jung calls an archetype is present to
manifest the beauty and existence of
matter, the universe, and the divine.
thus a Sufi understands the mysteries
between the spirit and its embodiments
in the everyday life. Jung offers us a
prodigious insight into this complex
interaction by his notion of codification
in the universal set of archetypes. the
great Sufi poet, rumi, saw divinity in its
earthly manifestations:
In the early morning hour, just before
dawn, lover and beloved wake and take
a drink of water. She asks, “Do you love
me or yourself more?
Really, tell the absolute truth.”
He says, “There’s nothing left of me. I’m
like a ruby held up to the sunrise. Is it
still a stone, or a world made of redness?
It has no resistance to sunlight”.
for Sufis, as for Jung, the experience
J unG’S theOretICal development was influenced by his intensive
reading of eastern philosophy, in particular that of Sufism. dr ehsan azari
reflects on the foundation of Jung’s universal unconscious in the mirror of the
quest of Sufism.
Guest Speaker Dr. Ehsan Azari
Dr ehsan Azari
22
Sufis of Cairo
Sat. 8 MarCh
7.00PM Start
brieF aGm
10 MInuteS
TaLk FoLLowS
blavatsky Lodge
Level 2,
484 kent St, Sydney
of God was a possibility. Jung defines
the core of his depth psychology as
a “self confession”, which can only be
materialised after experience. Jung
postulates this in his own way: “I could
not say I believe, I know! I have had the
experience of being gripped by something
that is stronger than myself, something
that people call God”.
the Sufi doctrine of love necessitates
a reciprocal attraction between man and
God, the first call to love comes from
God and a Sufi’s heart is the mirror of
the light of God. for rumi the heart was
an interpreter between God and Sufi.
another Sufi philosopher said that the
light of the Sun of God illuminates the
heart. Jung also says the same thing, “I
had to wrench myself free of God, so to
speak, in order to find the unity in myself
which God seeks through man. It is rather
like the vision of Symeon, the Theologian,
who sought God in vain everywhere in the
world, until God rose like a little sun in
his own heart”.
Such a universal psychic predisposition
makes the foundation of Jung’s universal
unconscious mirror the Sufi quest for
oneness. Jung’s analytical psychology,
especially his analytical method of
synchronicity, explores an alignment of
universal forces in the life experiences
of an individual human being.
In an interdisciplinary approach, I
will examine Jung’s reading of eastern
philosophy and religion, especially
Sufism. I will analyse Sufism and its
relevance to Jungian psychology and
provide examples of Sufi psychology
from various Sufi texts.
dr ehSan azarI is an afghan writer
based in Sydney. his Phd thesis is
Lacan and the Destiny of Literature:
Shakespeare, Donne, Joyce, and Ashbery,
from Macquarie university, soon to be
published by an international academic
publisher. his writings appear in both
the australian and international press.
members $5
Non-members $20
Concession $15
eVeNTS PROgRAMMe
23
Undivided
there are many obstacles to a true
and sympathetic understanding of
the figure of dionysus. Culturally, our
representations have tended towards
the caricature: from the truly mad and
dangerous to the perpetually drunk
old man, over weight and riding an
unsteady unicorn, as in the buffoon of
disney films like Fantasia. even Jung
sometimes slips in to the “Germanic
bias” of conflating dionysus with the
figure of Wotan, primarily a god of
hunting and battle.
all these portrayals have in common a
perception of the dionysian experience
as in some way “inferior” and therefore
either dangerous or ridiculous. however,
this defensive reaction is more a
commentary on the dominant structures
that rule both our cultural/political
SaturdaY, 12 aPrIl
6.30PM fOr 7.00PM
TaLk
blavatsky Lodge
Level 2, 484 kent St, Sydney
I n thIS PreSentatIOn Peter will contend that the subversive madness
of dionysian consciousness can, now more than ever, nourish our sanity in a
modern world. along the way it will be necessary to loosen our grip, permit
the ambiguous in all things and encounter the radical bisexual nature at the
heart of the God.
Dionysian Consciousness in the Clinic
The
Guest Speaker Peter Dicker
24
Undivided One
members $5, Non-members $20, Non-members Concession $15
and psychic worlds (ie. the ego). It is
therefore with good reason that many
of the tales and myths show dionysus as
being rejected and persecuted by male
patriarchal figures and by all forms of
worldly establishment.
eVeNTS PROgRAMMe
Peter dICker is a former President
of the Illawarra Jung Society. he works
as a psychologist in a public health
clinic, south of Wollongong. he has
been a frequent presenter at the Sydney
Jung Society where he has also been a
member for 25 years.
Over the past two decades Peter has
been exploring his interest in Jungian
and archetypal Psychology through
various creative projects – lectures,
essays, poetry and musical compositions
– and he continues to maintain an
ongoing passion for ideas, particularly in
relation to clinical and cultural matters.
Dionysian Consciousness in the Clinic
Peter Dicker
25
Reflections from an Australian consulting room on the interrelations between experiences of space, place, identity and God
IndIGenOuS WrIter and activist
alexis Wright, in her recent paper On
Writing Carpentaria, said this:
“The great force of history comes from
the fact that we carry it within us, are
unconsciously controlled by it in many
ways, and history is literally present
in all that we do. It could scarcely be
otherwise, since it is to history that
we owe our frames of reference, our
identities, and our aspirations.”
Wright also speaks of australia as
“the land of disappearing memory” just
as W.e.h.Stanner before her spoke of a
“cult of forgetfulness”. In a paper delivered
to the Jung Society in februar y of
last year I laid out something of the
psychological terrain of trauma that
collapses imaginative space and hence
contributes to this experience of ‘loss
of history’ and loss of psychohistorical
memory and hence mind.
In this talk the themes of displacement,
unsettledness, alienation, belonging,
emplacement, the uncanny, identity,
fear of the unknown and the unknown
Other, are deepened into an exploration
of the Backgrounds of Beauty – both
awesome and terrible - that underpin
our individual and hence collective
capacities to love and to dwell both in
body and in place. I would argue that
Guest Speaker Amanda Dowd
Alexis wright
Backgroundsof
26
memories of safety and/or terror
Reflections from an Australian consulting room on the interrelations between experiences of space, place, identity and God
SaturdaY, 10 MaY
6.30PM fOr 7.00PM
TaLk
blavatsky Lodge
Level 2, 484 kent St,
Sydney
members $5, Non-members $20, Non-members Concession $15
eVeNTS PROgRAMMe
such subtle geography informs our
relationships with this place in which
we live.
d r a w i n g o n t h e s t o r i e s a n d
experiences of individual patients and
the writings of Wright (especially her
novel Carpentaria), the american
philosopher of place edward Casey,
david abrams, Craig San roque,
deborah Bird-rose, donald Meltzer,
Winnicott, Bion and Jung we will follow
a line of thinking that asks “Where do
thoughts come from? Can we think of
country as mind?” and how does this
help us to come to terms with the
presence of the Other mind and spiritual
system resident here and the realities of
what colonisation has done.
aManda dOWd is a Jungian analyst and psychoanalytic psychotherapist in
private practice in Sydney. She trained with the australian new zealand Society of
Jungian analysts and has been practising for 15 years. She has a special interest
in the mythopoetics of relationship, and the formation of self, mind, identity and
cultural identity.
Carpenteria
BackgroundsofBeauty
27
memories of safety and/or terror
In the WeSt, technology is never
seen neutrally, but becomes a matter
for collective dreaming and myth
making. this can be seen in the potent
images which gather around electricity,
nuclear power and computers; images
which give the technologies a deep
psychological life which cannot be
simply separated from their supposed
‘reality’.
through this process, technology
becomes a living force we both fear for
alienating us from the ‘natural world’,
and something that we can hope will
solve all our problems.
In this talk I extend the ways that Jung
analysed alchemy, as both a projection
of, and working through, the dynamics
of psychic forces, to technology in
general. I fur ther suggest that our
projections then lead us to talk about
ourselves in terms of technology, and
manifest our collective waking dreams
and nightmares through technology.
Guest Speaker Jonathan Marshall
Western dreaming & myth making
SaturdaY, 14 June
6.30PM fOr 7.00PM
TaLk
blavatsky Lodge
Level 2, 484 kent St,
Sydney
ThroughAlchemy
28
members $5, Non-members $20, Non-members Concession $15
eVeNTS PROgRAMMe
JOnathan MarShall Phd is an
anthropologist and a QeII research
fellow at the university of technology
Sydney, studying the ways that
Information technology increases
disorder and disruption. he has also
investigated the ways that people live
online, and written about the history
of alchemy in the united kingdom. he
is the author of Living on Cybermind:
Categories, Communication and Control,
and Jung, Alchemy and History, and has
published numerous articles.
AlchemyToTECHNOLOGY
29
DiSCLaimerThe C.g.Jung Society of Sydney does not take responsibility f o r s e r v i c e s o f f e r ed by individual advertisers on the Noticeboard. we receive advertising in good faith. Caution and discrimination in responding is advised and is your responsibility. CopyriGhT © 2008Transmission or reproduction of protected items beyond that allowed by fair use as defined in the copyright laws requires the written permission of the copyright owners. aDVerTiSiNG Deadline for the next newsletter will be on 21 april 2008.
NewSLeTTeR:1 page $280, Half page $160, Noticeboard $10/line
BROADCAST eMAIL: $50 non member$30 member
weBSITe COLuMN AD: $80 non member$50 member
CONTACT: Bo [email protected]
webSiTe: www.jungdownunder.com
Thank You the Jung Society of Sydney wishes to express its gratitude to:
Alison Clark, a long term member, who made a very generous donation of books
to our book stall and library in 2007.
Toxteth Hotel in Glebe who donates the use of its functions room for our Committee meetings.
McMillan Print for their expertise and generosity.
NoTiCeboarDChaNGe oF aDDreSS: JaCiNTa FrawLeyJacinta Frawley has moved her practice to: Suite 6, 334 President Ave, gymea
Reach on 0414 532 690 for Jungian Analysis, group & individual supervision.
JUNGiaN aNaLyST: pSyChoTherapiSTMarcelle Lawrence, B.ec. Ll.B (Hons.) AnzSJA, iAAP
Trained at the C.g.Jung Institute of Zurich, her professional career in Australia
includes 20 years working in the therapeutic community. Her interests encompass
mythology, art, poetry and creativity, and the role that culture plays in shaping
the bodymind of the individual. She works with sandplay, dreams and images in
exploring unconscious processes.
Her private practice is in Paddington. Phone (02) 9361 3283.
SaNDpLay proFeSSioNaL DeVeLopmeNT Sarah gibson, Jungian Analyst, & Sally gillespie, Jungian Psychotherapist, offer small
professional development groups and supervision for sandplay therapy practitioners
from beginner to advanced levels, in the tradition of Dora Kalff and C.g. Jung.
groups commence February in Balmain.
For further information phone Sarah (02) 9810 1898 or Sally (02) 9552 3252.
emoTioNaL iNTeLLiGeNCe wriTiNG GroUpThe healing power of stories – Talking about painful events from the past can be
healing. writing a book about how an emotional wound occurred cleanses the
wound, supporting closure and healing. It also helps you to understand the
circumstances of past events and develop the emotional skills needed for coping
and change. Books about suffering and the ways in which disastrous events result
in survival or destruction are highly popular. every person has at least one story in
them. Have you written your story yet? For help join a monthly wRITINg gROuP.
Contact Bo Robertson M.Lib.Sc.,Dip.Cl.Hyp.,JP, emotional Intelligence
Trainer & Coach on 0404 565 388
30
C.G.JUNG SoCieTy oF SyDNeyNew members and visitors are alway welcome. If attending a lecture for the first time please feel
free to make yourself known to the Committee members, they will be happy to explain how
the Society works and to answer any questions. You are also welcome to register your email
address with us for our monthly broadcast of upcoming events.
hiSTory & aimSThe C.g.Jung Society of Sydney was formed in 1975 to promote the ideas of the Swiss analyst
and psychiatrist Carl gustav Jung (1875–1961). The Society is open to all members of the
general public and offers a rich and varied programme of monthly talks and seminars from
Australian and international guest speakers. In addition the Society provides a dedicated
research and reference library.
memberShipAnnual Membership entitles you to:
• DiscountsatallourmonthlyTalksandLectures
• AccesstoborrowfromourextensiveLibrary,whichincludesbooks,journals,audiotapes,cds,
dvds and videos
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• Youwillalsoreceiveamailedcopyofourbi-annualnewletterJung Downunder and any monthly
updates via email.
appLiCaTioNS Membership applications are available from our website – see under 'membership' for the local
Sydney society. You can either pay online via PayPal or print out a PDF copy of the membership
form and post to: the Cg Jung Society, gPO Box 2796 Sydney NSw 2001
Full annual membership is $50.
Concession, country members or organisation membership is $25.
eNqUirieS Membership enquiries directed to: Lenore Kulakauskas on tel.(02) 9365 7750
webSiTe Membership application and event information – www.jungdownunder.com
OUROBOROSThe symbol of C.g.Jung Society of Sydney is an ancient gnostic glyph which the Alchemists later used to depict the nature of their transforming work. The script in the centre of the images means self-digester or self-digesting one. The self-digesting Ouroboros slays itself and brings itself back to life. It illustrates the principle of human creativity and the development of personality as it devours itself and generates itself.
C.G.Jung Societyof SydneyTM
exeCUTiVe CommiTTee 2007 president: Sally GillespieTreasurer: Monica Romanassistant Treasurer: Marcel Abarcaminutes Secretary & Librarian: Lucy DaveyLiaison officer: June Reynoldsmembership officer: Bo Roberston
member: Lesley HamlynSpecial projects officer: Louise Fanningbookshop officer: Jon MarshallTechnical officer: Peter Mannhonorarium: Lenore kulakauskasCommunications officer & Graphic Design: Tim Hartridge
31
Saturday, February 9
Conscious Femininityexploring the work of marion woodman
kathleen mcphillips page 20–21
Saturday, march 8
brief annual General meeting before talk
Jung & SufismThe influence of eastern philosophy
Dr ehsan azari page 22–23
Saturday, april 12
The Undivided OneDionysian Consciousness in the Clinic
peter Dicker page 24–25
www.jungdownunder.com
Saturday, may 10
Background of Beautymemories of Safety and/or Terror
amanda Dowd page 26–27
Saturday, June 14
Through Alchemy to Technologywestern Dreaming & myth making
Jonathan marshall page 28–29