Carl Jung
A psychoanalyst based in Zurich, Switzerland, Jung (1875 -1961) was initially a friend and follower of Freud, and accompanied Freud to the United States where he gave a series of lectures on his own word-association research. He soon realized that his findings differed in many ways with Freud, and, due to their disagreements, completely terminated their relationship. This break disturbed Jung to the point of entering into a three-year depression in what he called his “dark years.” At this time he analyzed his innermost thoughts and dreams, and developed his own distinct theory of personality.
Carl Jung’s ideas are still thriving in today’s psychoanalytic circles. Many terms are unique to Jung such as the term “collective unconscious” which is common to all and contains inherited “memories” from all of human evolution. My favorite term that Jung coined is the word “synchronicity.” Much thought has gone into the meaning of this term through the years but the simplest definition is the dictionaries description “meaningful coincidence.”
Jung believed that dreams reveal more than they conceal, are a natural expression of our innermost thoughts and feelings, and are often expressed through mythic narratives. Jung rejected Freud’s theory that dreams are designed to be secretive, and that there content was primarily meant to discharge tabooed sexual impulses.
Jung believed that one of the primary purposes of dreams was the work of integrating our conscious and unconscious lives. This process he called individuation, which was basically the quest for wholeness. Working with one’s dreams can enhance this process.
Some of Jung’s most popular work includes the Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator, the polygraph (lie detector) test, and 12-step addiction recovery programs.
My role as a spiritual director and workshop facilitator is to provide an opportunity for people to learn how to go within and know themselves, and their connection to the Divine more fully. One way of doing this is to help them make sense of their night visions and how they relate to waking life. Learn more about spiritual direction and my workshops.