Jung Circle, which now has members from all walks of life - publishers, grandmothers, scholars, artists, shamans, writers - always welcomes new members. Contributors are free to toss logs, sticks, twigs - or the occasional magnesium strip into the fire.
Jung Circle's vision is loosely 'defined' as follows:
instead of putting Jung's ideas and philosophy on trial (as other lists have done), or
otherwise assuming that Jung needs to be upgraded, made respectable, modernized,
rationalized, or brought more in line with 'current consensus perspectives' in science,
medicine, academia, or whatever, this list inverts this perspective and instead looks
critically at existing paradigms, ideas and models in light of Jung's philosophy. In this
sense, reductionist, patriarchal
or materialist perspectives or paradigms tend to be seen (as
indeed Jung viewed them) as philosophically biased, or obsolete, while Jung's views are
seen as heralding a new incoming, holistic dominant of consciousness, Eros, the principle
of relatedness and respect for wisdom and Nature, which Jung prophesied would dominate the
emerging Aquarian Age (which, interestingly enough, begins - according to one system of
dating - in 1997!) Here we celebrate Jung's futuristic vision, its implications for
relationships, life, culture, medicine, science, education and psychotherapy, and the new
respect it imparts to holism, Nature and the return to a sense of the transcendent and
sacred.
All themes and topics are food for discussion and debate, since there's literally nothing known to us that can't be fruitfully explored from a Jungian angle. Critical discussion, scholarly input and debate (kept on a friendly and mutually respectful level) is encouraged, but 'critical' does not automatically mean 'logical', 'analytical' or otherwise based on the assumption that Jung's psychology can be reduced to verbal explanations, abstract theories, objective analysis, or physical causes. 'Critical' in the holistic sense, means honouring the intuitive (as well as the other functions) as a means of expressing the paradoxes, the imaginal, the mythic, the natural, and the symbolic that most closely approximate truth.
No-one's input is censored; all views are welcome and may be seasoned with a healthy dose of humour, shared personal experience, and imagination.
Lastly, a bit about myself . . .
I have a private practice as a Depth Psychotherapist and
teach part-time at The University of South Australia. My PhD was the first Jungian
analysis of the 'Soul-making' poet, John Keats, and I have devised and taught courses in
Jungian psychology for The University of Adelaide. As an artist and writer, I
have published
artwork and many papers online and in international journals, such as Shamanic
Applications Review (US). I've also contributed numerous papers to the Quarterly of the
Australian TransPersonal Association and I am a founding member of the C. G. Jung Society
of South Australia. I was initiated as a shaman through a 2-year borderline psychosis
(1983-4) and include shamanic healing, diagnosis, and soul retrieval in my therapeutic
work. Currently I am completing a book which explores the interface between shamanism and
depth psychology, Soul Retrieval & Soul-making: Creative Bridges Between Shamanism
& Depth Psychology
I welcome your comments and look forward to sharing round the fire with those of you who wish to join a friendly circle of fellow questers and critical thinkers who are 'Jung at heart.'
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