Carl Jung is a fascinating character in psychology’s history.
Mentored by Freud himself, Jung broke off from Freud to found his own theory of human behavior, nowadays generally referred to as Jungian psychology. The Jungian theories place more emphasis on the spiritual side of our inner psyche, and the belief that all of humanity shares what he referred to as a collective unconscious. He also believed in the power of archetypes — that our myths and symbols are universal and innate and serve a greater purpose in helping us learn from each of our stages in life.
Carl Jung died 48 years ago, but he still has a devout following of professionals, clinicians and researchers who believe in the power of his theories. While not a popular form of psychotherapy in the United States, it remains a niche in psychology that nonetheless carries on Jung’s theories and practices.
In his late 30s, Jung started writing a book called The Red Book. The Red Book is part journal, part mythological novel that takes the reader through Jung’s fantasies — hallucinations he self-induced to try and get to the core of his unconscious. And as a theorist, he wanted to document his 16-year journey, so he wrote down everything he experience, saw and felt:
Jung recorded it all. First taking notes in a series of small, black journals, he then expounded upon and analyzed his fantasies, writing in a regal, prophetic tone in the big red-leather book. The book detailed an unabashedly psychedelic voyage through his own mind, a vaguely Homeric progression of encounters with strange people taking place in a curious, shifting dreamscape. Writing in German, he filled 205 oversize pages with elaborate calligraphy and with richly hued, staggeringly detailed paintings.
For decades, The Red Book has been wrapped in mystery, because it has never been published. It was thought that only one copy of the book existed — locked in a Swiss safe deposit box by the heirs to C.G. Jung’s estate.
As it turns out, however, copies of the book have been around if one searched hard enough to find them. A historian by the name of Sonu Shamdasani found said copies and after three years of discussions with the descendants of Jung, convinced the family to allow him access to the original to translate and finally publish it. The book will finally be published next month.
But what will readers find in the Red Book? And is it of any value to anyone who isn’t a hard-core Jungian? Answers to the first question can be glimpsed by reading the full New York Times article on the book:
The central premise of the book, Shamdasani told me, was that Jung had become disillusioned with scientific rationalism — what he called “the spirit of the times” — and over the course of many quixotic encounters with his own soul and with other inner figures, he comes to know and appreciate “the spirit of the depths,” a field that makes room for magic, coincidence and the mythological metaphors delivered by dreams. [...]
The Red Book is not an easy journey — it wasn’t for Jung, it wasn’t for his family, nor for Shamdasani, and neither will it be for readers. The book is bombastic, baroque and like so much else about Carl Jung, a willful oddity, synched with an antediluvian and mystical reality. The text is dense, often poetic, always strange. The art is arresting and also strange. Even today, its publication feels risky, like an exposure. But then again, it is possible Jung intended it as such. In 1959, after having left the book more or less untouched for 30 or so years, he penned a brief epilogue, acknowledging the central dilemma in considering the book’s fate. “To the superficial observer,” he wrote, “it will appear like madness.” Yet the very fact he wrote an epilogue seems to indicate that he trusted his words would someday find the right audience.
But answers to the second question will be harder to come by. While some of Jung’s theories have become a part of the popular culture of psychology, most of Jung is difficult to digest and accept at face value. His theories are very creative and interesting, but it’s hard to generalize from one’s man’s own inner life and turmoil. For understanding Jung, his life, and where all of his psychological theories came from, it will be a treasure trove indeed. For the rest of us, however, its value may be more ethereal and harder to grasp.
The historian who did the translation over the past few years has said the book’s basic message is “Value your inner life.” Whether you read it or not, that’s a message worthy of any great theorist in psychology.
Read the full article: Carl Jung and the Holy Grail of the Unconscious
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Links to This Article
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22 Comments to
“Carl Jung’s Red Book”
Dr. John Grohol
I look forward to be able to read the book, hope…
I think we all certainly have a lot to learn, from a thinker as Carl Jung.
Thank you .
….Mind Knows, ego observes….
Carl Jung, working with the physicist W. Pauli, concluded
that the balance to cause and effect is “acausality” - which
Jung termed a ’synchronicity principle’ - i.e., “meaningful
coincidences.” They also indicated that “number” is the
most primal archetype of order in the human mind:
This represents the first verification of this principle:
Bx. Times Reporter
http://www.webspawner.com/users/cosmic/
The star Kochab has a long history in mythology,
with references dating to 2467b.c.e. It, and a
companion star are known as the Guardians of
the Pole….
“man has need of the word, but in essence number
is sacred.” Jung….
“our primary mathematical intuitions can be arranged
before we become conscious of them.” Pauli….
I first learned about this book 30 years ago in college. As an artist
I was so inspired just by seeing a glimpse of what was in this book.
How fortunate are we to have the opportunity to now read this.
There is an excellent article about Jung available here:
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_hb3345/is_3_22/ai_n29044108/
I’ll quote part of the article:
==============================
“Jung was a preternaturally unclear writer and thinker: he would never say anything clearly when obfuscation would do. Whether this was from lack of talent or an unconscious appreciation that clarity led to the possibility of contradiction and even refutation, no one can say…
To read Jung is to enter a world more of connotation than of denotation, of meanings hinted at rather than expressed forthrightly. To extract a definite opinion from Jung is like trying to catch an eel with soapy hands, or trap steam with a butterfly net. His esoteric erudition is formidable: it is difficult to refute a man who will not say what he means, but backs whatever he means up with a plethora of references to fourteenth-century texts.
==============================
At the recommendation of a girlfriend (now an ex-girlfriend), I once read Jung’s book, “Memories, Dreams, Reflections”. It was the biggest, most-pretentious load of codswallop I’ve ever encountered.
First to address Alex and his post. It is easy to see Alex is anti-Jungian, there are such people in the world. He quotes another Jungian distractor but neither provides any evidence to back their assertions, only their beliefs. I would try to discover the reasons for their elementary thinking but I don’t want to waste my time investigating those who have little understanding of Jungian psyche. The fact Alex had to mention an EX-girlfriend as a resource says a lot about his motives. He was looking for someone who would share his ‘elementary’ ideas and could not find anyone. Now he is all alone.
As for the Red Book. This is the Jung that I most appreciate. Whereas most of his work is from empirical investigation, his later years were spend exploring the greater possibilities of the deeper psyche. What else lies hidden within the deep unconscious they has yet to be discovered? His archetypes are now widely accepted as fact but what role do they really play in the world of collective unconscious? If his discovers are so correct from imperial research, shouldn’t we give him the benefit of a doubt when it comes to the mysteries of the psyche?
I have read the Red Book is quite hard to understand given the depths of Jung’s thought process. But with so many illustrations and symbolic language there must be those who will discover what he must have known about the deeper psyche given his correct assumptions in the understanding of dreams. It is almost universal that websites that focus on dreams concur with Jung’s conclusions that the language of dreams is symbolic and metaphor. Archetypes, the collective unconscious, these are terms found in almost all credible sites that are dedicated to dreams. Many give Jung his credit. Those that do not use his wisdom just the same. There must be something to his philosophies, empirical or not, that lends itself to truths within the deeper psyche. I am looking forward to viewing the book personally to see where it will lead my own deepest self. I have already discovered many truths about myself, and the natural world, that were not available without the insights of Jung. I say natural world because I do believe that everything is explainable by natural laws. It is what we have yet to discover that is thought of as mystical. They are no longer considered mystical once their truths are applied and determined to be a part of natural law. A natural fit, whether it be interpreted dreams or mystical concepts, is always the best indication of a truth.
Well, as it is with Alex, he is a linear “thinker,” (if, at all, he thinks) someone who must know exactly what Jung means. That is, he must have Jung speak of matters of the psyche as Alex might, that is, even, if might be capable of imagining them.
Alex, must have an outline of a duck, with instructions numbered so that he he will know which colour to use- absolutely within the confines of the duck’s outline.
Alex, as much as he is “honest,” he, quite unconsciously, ventures to confess that “At the recommendation of a girlfriend (now an ex-girlfriend), I once read Jung’s book, “Memories, Dreams, Reflections”. It was the biggest, most-pretentious load of codswallop I’ve ever encountered. It was the biggest, most-pretentious load of codswallop I’ve ever encountered.”
Well, then, someday, I hope that a dream will, at least, reveal why his former girlfriend is “now an ex-girlfriend”.
Wishing Alex a much more examined life- a “conscious” life
that sounded pretty mysterious, thanks for telling us about that book
Jung will forever only be “accepted” by a small group of people as there are very few who value or are willing to explore the depths of their psyches.
For me (after years of traditional psychodynamically based psychotherapy, Jungian dream work or “analysis” was transformative. Accepting “darkness” and “shadow” rather than being panicked by it was truly life changing. Being influenced quite deeply by Eastern thought, Jung sought to integrate the opposites rather than suppress one or the other. There is so much truth to the fact that the highest value of “light” lies in the deepest darkness of one’s soul. To view one’s angst as something of value rather than pathology is quite refreshing and can lead to transformation.
Dear John,
Good summary of this news, but I believe the influence of Jung and his psychology are understated. Jung’s ideas about psychological types helped create the Myers-Briggs personality test so many people use today. He invented the terms introvert and extravert. His research led to the invention of the lie detector. He inspired the founding of Alcoholics Anonymous. He expanded the theoretical basis of psychoanalysis beyond Freud’s theory that our basic life energy is sexuality and opened it up to a broader range of concerns, including the spiritual quest. It was on this basis that he broke from Freud. He was of the innovators of transpersonal psychology. And he was the master of helping people understand the emotional power of dreams and imagination. Anyone who does art therapy appreciates Jung’s pioneering work.
Far from mimicking his inner journey, Jung’s psychology flowed from many years of intense clinical work. For instance, he simultaneously discovered Melanie Klein’s idea of projective identification (he called it “psychic infection”).
Like any great explorer of consciousness, Jung practiced his methods on himself and gazed unflinchingly into his own conflicts via the images and intense passions of his unconscious. His journals and eventually the Red Book were where he did that very private work. For Sonu Shamdasani, a pre-eminent historian of psychology, I know his translation and commentary of the Red Book was a work of devotion.
Jung’s Analytical Psychology continues to evolve, just as Freud’s psychoanalysis has evolved into many schools of psychoanalysis and psychodynamic psychotherapy. Most Jungian analysts today integrate psychodynamic thinking and current developmental and neurological research into their work. It’s true that most people today don’t pursue a psychoanalysis or Jungian analysis, because this is so time-consuming and expensive. But research shows that long-term therapy is more effective (if one can afford it).
I do see some followers of Jungian theory getting too involved in being guided exclusively by their own dream life to the point it becomes an avoidance of facing down one’s anxieties to make hard choices. It’s a kind of spiritual bypass. But this was not Jung’s approach. Although he intensely worked on inner process, he was not one-sided. He counseled balance between thinking and feeling, sensation and intuition, and engagement with life.
Jung was of course a controversial figure, larger than life, and prone to his own prejudices and errors, as some biographers have attested. But often they are anti-Jungians who don’t appreciate his many contributions and may seek to gain notoriety by demonizing one of the great minds of the 20th century.
As someone who has had the benefit of Jungian analysis, I can say that it profoundly changed me for the better. I find Jung’s writings helpful today in understanding the middle ground of psychological life that lies between instinct and spirit. Sometimes his writing is clear and startlingly penetrating. But he can get carried away in his musings and go off track. At times, he writes so extensively about mythological symbolism that he is hard to follow.
Jung collaborated and corresponded with the parapsychologist, J. B. Rhine and the physicist, Wolfgang Pauli. In these collaborations he attempted and succeeded in many ways to penetrate into the mysteries of parapsychological phenomena.* His interests in this area did not deny the importance of our biological selves but attempted to integrate that knowledge too.
I’ll close with a helpful quote that pertains to the Red Book.
“It is high time we realize that it is pointless to praise the light and preach it if nobody can see it. It is much more needful to teach people the art of seeing. For it is obvious that far too many people are incapable of establishing a connection between the sacred figures and their own psyche: they cannot see to what extent the equivalent images are lying dormant in their own unconscious. In order to facilitate this inner vision we must first clear the way for the faculty of seeing.” From Psychology and Alchemy by C. G. Jung, 1980, Princeton University Press, paragraph 14.
* Such phenomena have been amply proven, I believe, but threaten people who are more comfortable with a determinism that ignores the paradoxes of modern physics and subjective experience. For the science behind this statement, see The Conscious Universe by Dean Radin and The End of Materialism: How Evidence of the Paranormal Is Bringing Science and Spirit Together by Charles T. Tart
Hello John,
Jung was an extraordinary teacher. Here is the complete story of The Red Book pub. Sept. 16, 09 in the NYT’s Magazine. http://bit.ly/3QhLS4 Dr. Steve Martin is a scholar himself and a Philadelphia Jungian that I have had many lovely conversations with over the years.
Much of my training is in depth psychology, thanks to extraordinary teachers of Jungian understanding, especially James Hollis, Ph.D. whose every book I would recommend. His most recent being What Matters Most.
Reading Jung is no cake walk. When I was a young clinician in my 30’s I carried around Psychological Types for 2 years waiting to understand it. Suddenly the light appeared and its where I stay now basking in it.
Kind regards,
Mary Jane Hurley Brant
To kindly point out, Buddhism, particularly Zen, identified projection or psychic infection as self-delusion a long time before CG Jung. Since Jung was widely read in Eastern philosophy, it’s possible he introduced the concept from his studies. One of the best things about Jung was bringing the I Ching and serious study of astrology to Western intellectual thought.
The posts trashing Alex C’s remarks are mean-spirited. Stay on topic.
Thanks,
EJ
I can’t wait to go see the Red Book in person at the Rubin Museum of Art(RMA) @17th St. and Seventh Ave in NYC) in second week of October.
This is HUGE!!!
Hello,
I am new to Jungian psychology, principles, etc. Needless to say, what I have read here and there on the internet fascinates me greatly. Could someone please recommend a first book for my study? Thanks so much!
A good introduction to Jung’s work - Man and His Symbols.
I can’t seem to find the upcoming publication date???
The book will be published on October 7, 2009 and is available from Amazon.com on December 4, 2009 here:
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0393065677/psychcentral?ref=nosim
This is a pretty skeptical and boring review considering this is the secret diary of one of the great thinkers of the 20th century. The Red Book coming out is a once in a life time event.
Well, This site prepared me for the behavior interview and i was able to ace it without any problem. ,
I had never heard of Carl Jung untill I read an article in the week-end section of our daily paper. I found the article about this man amazing. It made me want to read more about him. It was the story about the Red Book. The images presented in this book fasinated me and I can not wait to one day see and read more from this book.
> Could someone please recommend a first book for my study?
Two Essays on Analytical Psychology was lucky for me.
Jung’s “Man and His Symbols” saved my life, psychologically and spiritually. As an artist, writer, I was observing spiritual phenomena none of my peers could comprehend; and taking the trolley out to SF State, a stranger (student) approached me on the trolley, handed me this book (stated above) and told me to return it the next time I saw him on the trolley. I read the complete book that evening. Even the event of this book being shared, presented to me by a total stranger, was synchronistic, timely. I have the RED BOOK now. It is beautiful, resting atop a stone white table, awaiting me. I can’t open it until I have just the right four hours or so, uninterrupted, a candle lit. I opened it to one powerful image - a spirit energy and this spirit energy in human form. How stellar and poignant was that? We should be so very thankful Jung wrote as much as he did — and now, THE RED BOOK . . . When your cup is filled, fill another’s.
As is obvious by the omments so far - it is not an easy matter to be objective ither about Jung’s influence both as a man and as an explorer of his inner reality.
I am qaulifid to make this statement as I have been invesigating the perplexities and challenges of th nature and use of meaningful coincidences (synchronicities) for the past 42 years.
Initialy I was unknowingly a defacto Jungian who over the years became more Freudian in attitude to such matters as he nature of spirituality, the nature and acquisition of knowledge and the likes.
My findings are to be published in a book scheduled for release by either late Decemeber of 2009 or early Jan. 2010.
The title is: DEMYSTIFYING MEANINGFUL COICIDENCES (SYNCHRONICITIES): The Evolved Self, The Personal Unconscious, and The Creative Process.
P.S. My intuition is that Alex will like it.
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Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 20 Sep 2009
