The Psychology of The Wounded Healer

One must be wounded to become a healer. Many people, however, experience suffering and do not become healers; practically everyone could become a healer if it depended only on the experience of suffering. It is only by overcoming suffering and having been wounded that one may become a healer. We have to follow the wayContinue reading “The Psychology of The Wounded Healer”

Journey to Hell – The Path to Self-Knowledge

Mankind has speculated about the afterlife since the dawn of civilisation. In Duat, the Egyptian underworld, the hearts of the dead were weighed against a feather. The heart was considered as the most important of the internal organs, and the source of human wisdom, which could reveal the person’s true character. If the heart weighedContinue reading “Journey to Hell – The Path to Self-Knowledge”

Loneliness, Emptiness, Anxiety in Modern Society

Loneliness, emptiness, and anxiety – these are the main complaints American existential psychologist Rollo May encountered over and over from his patients. In 1953, May published Man’s Search for Himself, in which he explores these problems – that are perhaps more relevant than ever in our modern age. When society can no longer give usContinue reading “Loneliness, Emptiness, Anxiety in Modern Society”

The Psychology of The Man-Child (Puer Aeternus)

The term puer aeternus is Latin for eternal boy. It is mentioned for the first time in the Metamorphoses, written by the Roman poet Ovid. The child god Iacchus is praised in his role in the Eleusinian mysteries, initiations related to Greek goddesses, and the most famous of the secret religious rites of ancient Greece.Continue reading “The Psychology of The Man-Child (Puer Aeternus)”

The Psychology of The Trickster

There is perhaps no figure in literature more fascinating than the trickster, appearing in various forms in the folklore of many cultures. He is different from the figure of the fool, who is harmless but also naïve, and many times ends up harming himself. The fool walks joyfully dreaming about all his adventures, unaware thatContinue reading “The Psychology of The Trickster”

The Dark World of Franz Kafka

Franz Kafka is one of the major figures of 20th century literature who received little public attention during his lifetime. He dealt with existentialist themes such as alienation, anxiety, disorientation and the absurd. It is hard to put Kafka into a box. Many people have tried to read his work in the lens of psychoanalysis,Continue reading “The Dark World of Franz Kafka”

Inner Gold – Alchemy and Psychology

Alchemy occupies a unique place in the collective psyche of humankind. We have spent millennia transitioning from instinct to reason, the culmination of which lead to the Age of Enlightenment, a radical cultural shift. Our ancestors, however, lived by instinctual impulse, rather than logical reasoning. We did not think about our actions, we simply actedContinue reading “Inner Gold – Alchemy and Psychology”

The Psychology of Projection

Projection is a psychological fact that can be observed everywhere in the everyday life of human beings, whether you are having a conversation and someone tells you that you are projecting, or the first impressions you have of a particular person that turned out to be wrong. In our ideas of other people and situations,Continue reading “The Psychology of Projection”

Synchronicity: Meaningful Patterns in Life

“Never do human beings speculate more, or have more opinions, than about things which they do not understand.” Carl Jung, C.W. Vol. 14: Mysterium Coniunctionis From his childhood, Carl Jung experienced strange and seemingly unexplainable phenomena. He feared that he was going mad, and went on the quest to discover what they meant. “I sawContinue reading “Synchronicity: Meaningful Patterns in Life”

Active Imagination: Confrontation with the Unconscious

“My soul, my soul, where are you? Do you hear me? I speak, I call you – are you there? I have returned, I am here again. I have shaken the dust of all the lands from my feet, and I have come to you, I am with you. After long years of long wandering,Continue reading “Active Imagination: Confrontation with the Unconscious”