archetypes - Depth Psychology Alliance2024-03-29T14:47:13Zhttps://depthpsychologyalliance.com/group/book-club/forum/topics/feed/tag/archetypes5-MAY: The Merry Month of May: Come join us in a lively discussion of Embodying Osiris, the Secrets of Alchemical Transformationhttps://depthpsychologyalliance.com/group/book-club/forum/topics/the-merry-month-of-may-come-join-us-in-a-lively-discusion-of2012-04-30T16:09:48.000Z2012-04-30T16:09:48.000ZThom F. Cavalli, Ph.D.https://depthpsychologyalliance.com/members/ThomFCavalliPhD<div><p>Dear Friends and Colleagues,</p>
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<p>In 1926 a man had a dream about exploring mysterious rooms in his house that he’d not seen before. He discovered a library with “large, fat folio volumes” bound in pigskin and filled with strange symbols and ciphers that he couldn’t read. This dream changed my life by arousing my interest and research into the Royal Art. The man, of course, was C. G. Jung and this seminal dream launched his thirty-year exploration into alchemy. The change in direction from his earlier research was so radical that his long time associate, Toni Wolf, essentially quit; Marie Louise von Franz would take up the mission that last the rest of Jung's life.</p>
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<p>I have been captivated by alchemy for about an equal length of time. Where Jung showed alchemy’s relevance to psychology, my efforts have been aimed at making alchemical psychology more accessible to the Jungian community. As a writer, lecturer and psychotherapist, I believe that alchemy is perhaps the <b>single best metaphor</b> <b>for describing both the individual and collective psyche.</b> To this end, I’ve written two books, <i>Alchemical Psychology, Old Recipes for Living in a New World</i> (Putnam 2002) and <i>Embodying Osiris, the Secrets of Alchemical Transformation</i> (Quest 2010).</p>
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<p>I am honored to be tending the May Book Club that will focus on <i>Embodying Osiris</i>. This book is a Jungian, alchemical interpretation of the five thousand year old myth of Osiris, the ancient Egyptian god of the dead. Osiris became the perfect vehicle for me to explore a variety of related themes, including <b>ancient Egypt (cosmology, psychology, history), individuation, Akhenaton, alchemical psychology, funerary ritual, emergence, gods and archetypes, dreams, dismemberment and magic</b>. The book is filled with clinical examples, alchemical dreams and a glimpse into the ancient Egyptian mind.</p>
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<p>To help organize our discussion, I will offer a brief description of Osiris and a synopsis of the myth in our first week. Since I will be referring to specific passages and one chapter in particular, I recommend purchasing the book that is very modestly priced from Amazon. Rather than give reading assignments, we might pursue the <i>circulatio</i> that Jung preferred in his own method of research. I am especially interested in discussing how Osiris and his story have <b>immediate relevance to contemporary culture.</b> To this end, I will pose four questions, one for each week that “resurrects” this ancient god and the need for his service in the following areas:</p>
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<li>What does the Osiris myth have to do with the revolution that is occurring throughout the Middle East? In particular, how does the Arab Spring in Egypt relate to the chief motif of the myth?</li>
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<li>What role does alchemy play in this myth and how does it relate to the individuation process? What is the central, alchemical recipe that explains psychic development and how does that emerge in the psychotherapeutic process?</li>
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<li>What happened to Osiris and other gods and goddesses after the fall of ancient Egypt? Did the gods die? Is Osiris an archetype?</li>
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<li>Where do we find alchemy in today’s society? Is alchemy dead? If not, then what are its applications? What is “Alchemical Activism”?’</li>
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<p>I encourage you to listen to the audio/visual presentation that I, along with Bonnie, prepared for our group. You can also take a look at my websites: <a href="http://www.AlchemicalPsychology.com" target="_blank">Alchemical Psychology</a> and <a href="http://www.Cavallibooks.com" target="_blank">Cavalli Books</a>. The first offers a rich sampling of alchemy, including beautiful images, passages, didactic illustrations and even a computer toy! This site is especially useful to those of you who are new to alchemy. I recommend reading the cover page of my more recent website, CavalliBooks.com to get more information about my approach to alchemical psychology. There are also some great links, like how to make a mummy and an excellent video on the recipe, <i>Solve et Coagula</i>.</p>
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<p>I look forward to your participation and invite your questions, comments and examples from your own work. Together I hope we will form an alchemical experience that will have lasting results in your opus!</p>
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<p>Blessings on our work,</p>
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<p>Thom F. Cavalli, Ph.D.</p><p class="attachment"><a href="https://storage.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/9142552071?profile=original" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Bio 2.doc</a></p></div>The Last Questionhttps://depthpsychologyalliance.com/group/book-club/forum/topics/the-last-question2012-05-25T15:22:32.000Z2012-05-25T15:22:32.000ZThom F. Cavalli, Ph.D.https://depthpsychologyalliance.com/members/ThomFCavalliPhD<div><p></p>
<p>Along with everyone else, I just learned from Bonnie that there was a server glitch, This explains the deluge of emails I received from Book Club members yesterday and this morning. Some of these were posted a week or two ago and thus, I didn't respond. Sorry! Please be patient and I will do my best to offer comments asap - some of these posts are lengthy and require considerable attention on my part. I am so impressed with the level of scholarship in this group...wow!</p>
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<p>As we enter the final week of our May Book club I offer the last question:</p>
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<blockquote><p>Where do we find alchemy in today’s society? Is alchemy dead? If not, then what are its applications? What is “Alchemical Activism”?’</p>
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<p>Please do not hesitate to comment on anything else that is on your mind that relates Osiris and ancient Egypt to a depth psychological perspective.</p>
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<p>Thanks,</p>
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<p>Thom</p>
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<p></p></div>3-MARCH: Field, Form, and Fate: Patterns in Mind, Nature, and Psyche with Dr Michael Confortihttps://depthpsychologyalliance.com/group/book-club/forum/topics/march-field-form-and-fate-patterns-in-mind-nature-and-psyche-with2012-03-03T01:49:02.000Z2012-03-03T01:49:02.000ZDr. Michael Confortihttps://depthpsychologyalliance.com/members/DrMichaelConforti<div><p>Hi everyone. I want to thank Bonnie Bright for the invitation to participate in this online book Club, and hope that I can follow in the footsteps of last months author, Dr. Eril Shallit, to provide what I hope is a meaningful discussion about the underpinnings of my book, <i>Field, Form and Fate</i> and to continue the explorations into the domain of psyche and spirit.</p>
<p> The idea for this book began back in 1996 when my interests into the confluence of matter and psyche began to take shape- In addition to C.G. Jung’s ongoing work into the workings of psyche and Self, it was the world of the New Sciences of Emergence, which provided the necessary next step in this work. Ervin Lazlo, considered by many as the worlds foremost systems theorist was presenting in our annual conference in Assisi, Italy when he made the following comment in response to questions about archetype and form, when he said, “Field precedes Form”. As discussed in the <a href="http://www.depthinsights.com/pages/radio.htm#conforti-field" target="_blank">radio interview with Bonnie Bright</a>, I suddenly had the theoretical, archetypal and mystical backdrop I had been missing. Be it the emergence of symbols in dreams, or the espression of behavior in life and relationship, each appears as an expression of the field from which it was generated. It was, as Lazlo said, the archetypal field that is omnipresent, and from this matter and experiences emerge. Then when looking further into the workings of fields, I found not only biological but archetypal validation for the reality of innate, pre-formed, and it was the constellation of these which generated the form and dynamics which filled individual and collective expression.</p>
<p>This book represents my research and discoveries into the nature of fields and a discussion of how it is that these non-material fields, express their dynamics within the material domain- Such are the ways of psyche and the ways of the psychoidal.</p>
<p>Now more than thirteen years after the publication of that book, I remain deeply interested in the workings of these fields, and how it is that an understanding of the patterns established from these can move the individual into a meaningful relationship with life and the archetype and so too into a relationship with those non generative archetypal dynamics.</p>
<p>I hope that you find this work of interest and that you will take time to read the first 70 or so pages in this book within the next two weeks, and I will respond to the general themes emerging from these. Please feel free to post any questions or comments you may have in the meantime.</p>
<p>Very much looking forward to meeting each and every one of you through this on line forum.</p>
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<p> Sincerely,</p>
<p> Michael Conforti </p></div>