At the tableWhen I sit at the able and the cutlery and glasses gleamWhen the napkins are folded whiteWhen the chair scrapes the floor just rightAnd my skirt rustles on the seatNeither brocade nor velvet, neither cotton nor silkBut a soft and pliant fabricLike the wished for comfort of the soulIn love with GodThat is when I know I will have found youTo earn a seat at that tableRequires the silence of the selfQuiet as a proverbial mouseAll potentia, possible movement, thought, desireAll probable outcomesHeld as softly as a breath before beautySuspended in time until the hand reaches outAnd issues the invitationCome, sit at my tableOn the right side of the hand of GodAnd you, my friends, will have already gatheredEach sitting at the place of honorFor there are no contradictionsAt the table God setsFor those who seekThe narrow pathIn Projection and Re-collection in Jungian Psychology, Marie Louise von Franz writes about the Self’s social function. She states that it is in the very structure of the Self to provide a place where each person “gathers around him his own ‘soul family,’ a group of people not created by accident or by mere egoistic motivation but rather through a deeper, more essential spiritual interest or concern: reciprocal individuation.” (1978, p. 177).I was struck by the notion that in the very essence of the Self, there is provender for those who travel the narrow path of individuation, the very act of engaging in that process brings us into the deep community of one’s fellow travelers. The Self provides the structure around which we can find sustenance, companionship, respite and inspiration. This is the motif of the King Arthur’s Round Table, the table at which Christ sat at the Last Supper. Not only does this table image symbolize the re-membering of our psychic projections, it also reflects that we need to be in the company of others on the same quest.Jung states: “In this world created by the Self we meet all those many to whom we belong, whose hearts we touch; here “there is no distance, but immediate presence.” (Jung in von Franz, ibid). That is what emerges as we participate in the Assisi Community and in the von Franz study group, in the Depth Psychology Alliance and other worthy groups. Whether physically present around a ‘real’ table at conferences, or gathered around our telephone lines, the Self is the organizing principle that brings us together. Our meal is rich, our time precious. Thank God for that!Von Franz, Marie Louise (1978). Projection and Re-collection in Jungian Psychology. Chicago: Open Court.
