Jung and the Question of Science brings to the foreground a controversial issue at the heart of contemporary Jungian studies. The perennial debate echoes Jung’s own ambivalence. While Jung defined his analytical psychology as a science, he was aware that it did not conform to the conventional criteria for a scientific study in general psychology. This ambivalence is carried into twenty-first century analytical psychology, as well as affecting perceptions of Jung in the academia. Here, eight scholars and practitioners have pooled their expertise to examine both the history and present-day ramifications of the ‘science’ issue in the Jungian context. Behind the question of whether it is scientific or not there lie deeper issues: the credibility of Jung’s theory, personal identity as a ‘Jungian’, and conceptions of science, wisdom, and truth. The book comprises a collection of erudite essays (Part I) and linked dialogues in which the authors discuss each other’s ideas (Part II). The authors of Jung and the Question of Science share the conviction that the question of science is important, but differ in their understanding of its applicability. Drawing upon their different backgrounds, the authors integrate Jung's insights with bodies of knowledge as diverse as neuroscience, literary theory, theology, and political science. Clinical practitioners, psychoanalysts, psychologists, scholars and students interested in the Jungian perspective and the philosophy of science will find this book to be insightful and valuable.

Occultist, Scientist, Prophet, Charlatan - C. G. Jung has been called all these things and after decades of myth making, is one of the most misunderstood figures in Western intellectual history. This book is the first comprehensive study of the origins of his psychology, as well as providing a new account of the rise of modern psychology and psychotherapy. Based on a wealth of hitherto unknown archival materials it reconstructs the reception of Jung's work in the human sciences, and its impact on the social and intellectual history of the twentieth century. The book creates a basis for all future discussion of Jung, and opens new vistas on psychology today.

In 1915, C.G. Jung and his psychiatrist colleague, Hans Schmid-Guisan, began a correspondence through which they hoped to understand and codify fundamental individual differences of attention and consciousness. This correspondence, available in English for the first time, reveals Jung fielding keen theoretical challenges form one of his most sensitive and perceptive colleagues.

When Carl Jung and Carl Kerenyi got together to collaborate on this book, their aim was to elevate the study of mythology to a science. Kerenyi wrote on two of the most ubiquitous myths, the Divine Child and The Maiden, supporting the core 'stories' with both an introduction and a conclusion. Jung then provided a psychological analysis of both myths. He defined myth as a story about heroes interacting with the gods. Having long studied dreams and the subconscious, Jung identified certain dream patterns common to everyone. These 'archetypes' have developed through the centuries, and enable modern people to react to situations in much the same way as our ancestors. From nuclear annihilation to AIDS and Ebola, we continue to engage the gods in battle. Science of Mythology provides an account of the meaning and the purpose of mythic themes that is linked to modern life: the heroic battles between good and evil of yore are still played out, reflected in contemporary fears.

Jung and the Question of Science brings to the foreground a controversial issue at the heart of contemporary Jungian studies. The perennial debate echoes Jung’s own ambivalence. While Jung defined his analytical psychology as a science, he was aware that it did not conform to the conventional criteria for a scientific study in general psychology. This ambivalence is carried into twenty-first century analytical psychology, as well as affecting perceptions of Jung in the academia. Here, eight scholars and practitioners have pooled their expertise to examine both the history and present-day ramifications of the ‘science’ issue in the Jungian context. Behind the question of whether it is scientific or not there lie deeper issues: the credibility of Jung’s theory, personal identity as a ‘Jungian’, and conceptions of science, wisdom, and truth. The book comprises a collection of erudite essays (Part I) and linked dialogues in which the authors discuss each other’s ideas (Part II). The authors of Jung and the Question of Science share the conviction that the question of science is important, but differ in their understanding of its applicability. Drawing upon their different backgrounds, the authors integrate Jung's insights with bodies of knowledge as diverse as neuroscience, literary theory, theology, and political science. Clinical practitioners, psychoanalysts, psychologists, scholars and students interested in the Jungian perspective and the philosophy of science will find this book to be insightful and valuable.

Author, psychologist, and astrologer Monika Wikman has worked for decades with clients and their dream symbols and witnessed the presence of the divine hand at work in the psyche. In The Pregnant Darkness, Wikman shows readers that the best way to cope with their darkest hours is by fostering a connection to the deeper current of life, those mysteries that give life form and meaning. Wikman's analysis of dream material leads readers into a practical explanation of alchemical symbolism. Far from being a quaint, ancient practice, The Pregnant Darkness shows that alchemy is at work in contemporary, everyday life. Alchemical symbolism, properly understood, can be applied to unraveling the meaning of visions in meditation, active imagination, and dream work. Wikman shows how readers can participate in the divine energies to help miraculous changes occur in their lives. Wikman writes: "In Greek mythology, Pegasus, upon taking to the air, pushed hard with a back hoof and penetrated the earth. A spring rose up where his hoof dashed the earth, and in this hole . . . the muses reside. One of the roles of the "religious function" of which Jung speaks is to bring us toward that inner spring of the muses where something beyond ego resides, instructs, and inspires. Like a hole created from Pegasus' leaping foot, contact with this inner spring often entails a crack in our field of ordinary consciousness. In the inner world, the spring of living symbols and accompanying presences is the source of dreams and visions, as well as the fountain of inspiration at the heart of poetry, art, ritual, mythology, and even religion."

More than a mere overview, the book offers readers a strong grounding in the basic principles of Jung's analytical psychology in addition to illuminating insights.