Geof Nanto Posted August 17, 2020 I read the following review of this book on Goodreads and thought it well worth sharing here. It was a bit rambling so I’ve edited a little: Most practical book on Jung I've read! Read it if you are restless sometimes or most times. We are suffering, in our cities, from a need of simple things. Nature is an incomparable guide if you know how to follow her. She is like the needle of the compass pointing to the North, which is most useful when you have a good man-made ship and when you know how to navigate. That's about the position. If you are the river, you surely come to the sea finally. But if you take it literally you soon get stuck in an impassable gorge and you complain of being misguided. The unconscious is useless without the human mind. It always seeks its collective purposes and never your individual destiny. Your destiny is the result of the collaboration between the conscious and the unconscious. But reduction to the natural condition is neither an ideal state nor a panacea. If the natural state were really the ideal, then the primitive would be leading an enviable existence. But that is by no means so for aside from all other sorrows and hardships of human life, the primitive is tormented by superstitions, fears, and compulsions to such a degree that, if he lived in our civilization, he could not be described as other than profoundly neurotic if not mad. Some of Jung's advice for remedying the loss of contact with Nature, within or without: - live in small communities - work a shorter day and week - have a plot of land to cultivate so the instincts come back to life - to make the sparest use of radio, TV, newspapers and technological gadgetry The purpose of doing these things, however, is not to repair Nature, but rather to let Nature affect us. “I chop the wood and cook the food. These simple acts make man simple; and how difficult it is to be simple!” ~ Jung All time saving devices, amongst which we must count easier means of communications and other conveniences, do not, paradoxically enough, save us time but merely cram our time so full that we have not time for anything. Hence, the breathless haste, superficial-craving for stimulation, impatience, irritability, vacillation, etc. Such a state may lead to all sorts of other things, but never to any increased culture of the mind and heart. “I detest noise and flee it whenever and wherever possible, because it not only disturbs the concentration needed for my work but forces me to make the additional psychic effort of shutting it out. You may get habituated to it as to over-indulgence in alcohol, but just as you pay for this with a cirrhosis of the liver, so in the end you pay for nervous stress with a premature depletion of your vital substance. [...] Noise protects us from painful reflection, it scatters our anxious dreams, it assures us that we are all in the same boat and creating such a racket that nobody will dare to attack us. [...] The real fear is what might come up from one's own depths - all the things that have been held at bay by noise. [...] Modern noise is an integral component of modern "civilization," which is predominantly extroverted and abhors all inwardness.” ~ C G Jung Jung's list of how civilization makes Modern Man sick (causes and symptoms): - effort to set records - urge towards conformity - desire for material possessions - we keep forgetting we are primates - atrophy of instinct, age-old forgotten wisdom stored up in us - hypermasculine, linear, causal, goal-oriented orientation toward the visible outer world - condescension toward whatever seems "irrational" - overstrained from boundless activity - the disease of knowing everything - extraverted as hell - lack of introspection - greed, restlessness, uneasiness, superficiality, nervous exhaustion - craving stimulation, impatience, irritability - usual remedies such as diets, exercise, studying inspirational literature - can't seem to find a way to live meaningful life - ridiculous clothes, meanness, vanity, mendacity, egotism - always seeking something - too much head, too much will, too much moving from place to place, and nothing rooted - objective existence and meaning - exaggerated self-esteem - inferiority complex - intellect, rationalism - loss of moral and spiritual values - despiritualization of nature through objective knowledge of matter - learned to control ourselves, disciplined, organized - for all his outward success, modern man stays the same inwardly - time-saving devices cram our time so full that we have no time for anything - loss of soul - social welfare - constant noise that protects us from painful reflection, scatters our anxious dreams and the fear of what might come up from one's own depths - thinking we are not nature - people will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own souls - modern education is too one-sided and only enables a young person to adapt himself outwardly to the world but gives no thought to the necessity of adapting to the self - domination of nature Jung's list of solutions to prevent disease/diminish effect: - turn back too simple things - rest - realize that things being sought are irrelevant to a happy life - listen to and analyse your dreams - live in small communities - work a shorter day and week - have a plot of land to cultivate - make spare use of radio, TV, newspaper, technological gadgets - high mountains, rivers, lakes, trees, flowers, animals - mystery, symbols, belief, age-old customs and convictions - spirit - living here and now - spiritual welfare - compensate intellectual work with philosophical interest - self-expression and seeing the fruit of your own labour to nourish psyche - ask yourself whether by any chance your unconscious might know something to help you - look deeply into the eyes of an animal - healing contact with Nature from the outside and from the inside (through experiences of the unconscious and dreams) - cooperation with nature - make contact with the archetypal functions - "Go to bed. Think on your problem. See what you dream. Perhaps the great man, the 2,000,000 year old man, will speak." But dreams are pure nature to which must be added human reflection and discernment. We now know that the dreaming function in mammals is approximately 140,000,000 years old and does have a survival function. (Reviewed by Olivier Goetgeluck) 6 4 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Limahong Posted August 18, 2020 (edited) On 8/18/2020 at 6:46 AM, Yueya said: The Earth has a Soul (I) Hi Yueya, Yes ~ it has. Why? I believe in karma. Why? I have karmic experiences. Is the Earthly Soul ~ collective and accumulative? - Anand Edited August 23, 2020 by Limahong Enhancement 1 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Nungali Posted August 18, 2020 The world soul (Greek: ψυχὴ κόσμου psychè kósmou; Latin: anima mundi) is, according to several systems of thought, an intrinsic connection between all living things on the planet, which relates to the world in much the same way as the soul is connected to the human body. Plato adhered to this idea and it was an important component of most Neoplatonic systems: Therefore, we may consequently state that: this world is indeed a living being endowed with a soul and intelligence ... a single visible living entity containing all other living entities, which by their nature are all related. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anima_mundi No doubt Jung was familiar with hermetics and Platonism . The last part of last century the concept resurged as 'Gaia' . Invocation to Gaia We ask for the presence of the spirit of Gaia and pray that the breath of life continue to caress this planet home. May we grow into true understanding ― a deep understanding that inspires us to protect the tree on which we bloom, and the water, soil and atmosphere without which we have no existence. May we turn inwards and stumble upon our true roots in the intertwining biology of this exquisite planet. May nourishment and power pulse through these roots, and fierce determination to continue the billion-year dance. May love well up and burst forth from our hearts. May there be a new dispensation of pure and powerful consciousness and the charter to witness and facilitate the healing of the tattered biosphere. We ask for the presence of the spirit of Gaia to be with us here. To reveal to us all that we need to see, for our own highest good and for the highest good of all. We call upon the spirit of evolution, the miraculous force that inspires rocks and dust to weave themselves into biology. You have stood by us for millions and billions of years — do not forsake us now. Empower us and awaken in us pure and dazzling creativity. You that can turn scales into feathers, seawater to blood, caterpillars to butterflies, metamorphose our species, awaken in us the powers that we need to survive the present crisis and evolve into more aeons of our solar journey. Awaken in us a sense of who we truly are: tiny ephemeral blossoms on the Tree of Life. Make the purposes and destiny of that tree our own purpose and destiny. Fill each of us with love for our true Self, which includes all of the creatures and plants and landscapes of the world. Fill us with a powerful urge for the wellbeing and continual unfolding of this Self. May we speak in all human councils on behalf of the animals and plants and landscapes of the Earth. May we shine with a pure inner passion that will spread rapidly through these leaden times. May we all awaken to our true and only nature — none other than the nature of Gaia, this living planet Earth. We call upon the power which sustains the planets in their orbits, that wheels our Milky Way in its 200-million-year spiral, to imbue our personalities and our relationships with harmony, endurance and joy. Fill us with a sense of immense time so that our brief, flickering lives may truly reflect the work of vast ages past and also the millions of years of evolution whose potential lies in our trembling hands. O stars, lend us your burning passion. O silence, give weight to our voice. We ask for the presence of the spirit of Gaia. ― John Seed in “Thinking Like a Mountain: Towards a Council of All Beings” 5 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Limahong Posted August 18, 2020 19 hours ago, Nungali said: We may consequently state that: this world is indeed a living being endowed with a soul and intelligence ... a single visible living entity containing all other living entities, which by their nature are all related. Hi Nun, The World (Earth) and I... - Anand 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Encephalon Posted August 20, 2020 On 8/17/2020 at 3:46 PM, Yueya said: I'd like to thank you for posting this. There are many consistencies with ideas I've been exploring in other fields like ecopsychology and evolutionary biology, as well as the sustainable architecture and eco-village movements. But to find these ideas from a much older source is deeply encouraging. Thanks again. My comments in bold/ital I read the following review of this book on Goodreads and thought it well worth sharing here. It was a bit rambling so I’ve edited a little: Most practical book on Jung I've read! Read it if you are restless sometimes or most times. We are suffering, in our cities, from a need of simple things. Nature is an incomparable guide if you know how to follow her. She is like the needle of the compass pointing to the North, which is most useful when you have a good man-made ship and when you know how to navigate. That's about the position. If you are the river, you surely come to the sea finally. But if you take it literally you soon get stuck in an impassable gorge and you complain of being misguided. The unconscious is useless without the human mind. It always seeks its collective purposes and never your individual destiny. Your destiny is the result of the collaboration between the conscious and the unconscious. But reduction to the natural condition is neither an ideal state nor a panacea. If the natural state were really the ideal, then the primitive would be leading an enviable existence. But that is by no means so for aside from all other sorrows and hardships of human life, the primitive is tormented by superstitions, fears, and compulsions to such a degree that, if he lived in our civilization, he could not be described as other than profoundly neurotic if not mad. Some of Jung's advice for remedying the loss of contact with Nature, within or without: - live in small communities - work a shorter day and week - have a plot of land to cultivate so the instincts come back to life - to make the sparest use of radio, TV, newspapers and technological gadgetry All these are top priorities for saner life, simpler life, healthier life, the antithesis of consumer capitalism On 8/17/2020 at 3:46 PM, Yueya said: The purpose of doing these things, however, is not to repair Nature, but rather to let Nature affect us. “I chop the wood and cook the food. These simple acts make man simple; and how difficult it is to be simple!” ~ Jung Yep. All time saving devices, amongst which we must count easier means of communications and other conveniences, do not, paradoxically enough, save us time but merely cram our time so full that we have not time for anything. Hence, the breathless haste, superficial-craving for stimulation, impatience, irritability, vacillation, etc. Such a state may lead to all sorts of other things, but never to any increased culture of the mind and heart. Well by now it's been proven that this kind of life leads to all sorts of disorders and shortened life-span. “I detest noise and flee it whenever and wherever possible, because it not only disturbs the concentration needed for my work but forces me to make the additional psychic effort of shutting it out. You may get habituated to it as to over-indulgence in alcohol, but just as you pay for this with a cirrhosis of the liver, so in the end you pay for nervous stress with a premature depletion of your vital substance. [...] Noise protects us from painful reflection, it scatters our anxious dreams, it assures us that we are all in the same boat and creating such a racket that nobody will dare to attack us. [...] The real fear is what might come up from one's own depths - all the things that have been held at bay by noise. [...] Modern noise is an integral component of modern "civilization," which is predominantly extroverted and abhors all inwardness.” ~ C G Jung Yes, I hear you, Carl. The one piece of technology that I find indespensible in a world of ubiquitous noise pollution is my cordless, noise-cancelling headphones with a gentle white noise track playing a loop. A dramatic reduction in irritability. On 8/17/2020 at 3:46 PM, Yueya said: Jung's list of how civilization makes Modern Man sick (causes and symptoms): - effort to set records - urge towards conformity - desire for material possessions - we keep forgetting we are primates - atrophy of instinct, age-old forgotten wisdom stored up in us - hypermasculine, linear, causal, goal-oriented orientation toward the visible outer world - condescension toward whatever seems "irrational" - overstrained from boundless activity - the disease of knowing everything - extraverted as hell - lack of introspection - greed, restlessness, uneasiness, superficiality, nervous exhaustion - craving stimulation, impatience, irritability - usual remedies such as diets, exercise, studying inspirational literature - can't seem to find a way to live meaningful life - ridiculous clothes, meanness, vanity, mendacity, egotism - always seeking something - too much head, too much will, too much moving from place to place, and nothing rooted - objective existence and meaning - exaggerated self-esteem - inferiority complex - intellect, rationalism - loss of moral and spiritual values - despiritualization of nature through objective knowledge of matter - learned to control ourselves, disciplined, organized - for all his outward success, modern man stays the same inwardly - time-saving devices cram our time so full that we have no time for anything - loss of soul - social welfare - constant noise that protects us from painful reflection, scatters our anxious dreams and the fear of what might come up from one's own depths - thinking we are not nature - people will do anything, no matter how absurd, in order to avoid facing their own souls - modern education is too one-sided and only enables a young person to adapt himself outwardly to the world but gives no thought to the necessity of adapting to the self - domination of nature A fat list, probably not exhaustive. Jung's list of solutions to prevent disease/diminish effect: - turn back too simple things - rest - realize that things being sought are irrelevant to a happy life - listen to and analyse your dreams - live in small communities - work a shorter day and week - have a plot of land to cultivate - make spare use of radio, TV, newspaper, technological gadgets - high mountains, rivers, lakes, trees, flowers, animals - mystery, symbols, belief, age-old customs and convictions - spirit - living here and now - spiritual welfare - compensate intellectual work with philosophical interest - self-expression and seeing the fruit of your own labour to nourish psyche - ask yourself whether by any chance your unconscious might know something to help you - look deeply into the eyes of an animal - healing contact with Nature from the outside and from the inside (through experiences of the unconscious and dreams) - cooperation with nature - make contact with the archetypal functions - "Go to bed. Think on your problem. See what you dream. Perhaps the great man, the 2,000,000 year old man, will speak." These strategies seem to be THE prescription for those lucky enough to live communally, coopertively, once they have the chance to be healed of the trauma of predatory capitalism. But dreams are pure nature to which must be added human reflection and discernment. We now know that the dreaming function in mammals is approximately 140,000,000 years old and does have a survival function. I have to assume that this was an enormous inspiration for the pioneers of the Back-to-the-Land movement of the 60s and 70s. On 8/17/2020 at 3:46 PM, Yueya said: (Reviewed by Olivier Goetgeluck) 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted August 20, 2020 This all brings to mind for me the connection between Jungian thought and shamanism. There are several books on the subject but I've not read any. Here is a brief article on the topic - https://www.longdom.org/open-access/was-c-g-jung-a-shaman-2161-0487-1000339.pdf I've thought of giving this book a look - https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5011577-jung-and-shamanism-in-dialogue 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Limahong Posted August 20, 2020 On 8/18/2020 at 12:00 PM, Nungali said: May we turn inwards and stumble upon our true roots in the intertwining biology of this exquisite planet. May nourishment and power pulse through these roots, and fierce determination to continue the billion-year dance. May love well up and burst forth from our hearts. Hi Nun, Knowing the roots in life and living is significant... Will/can there be... the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th chakras... without the root chakra? - Anand Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Limahong Posted August 23, 2020 On 8/18/2020 at 6:46 AM, Yueya said: The Earth has a Soul (II) 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
