09-10-2014, 10:32 AM
But before returning to Shakespeare, one further train of thought on the Tarot trumps and the Collective Unconscious, that further amplifies prior meanings.
I have mentioned before elsewhere, that Jung developed a method of harnessing his imaginative function that he called Active Imagination. In fact, this encompasses a far older technique that has been taught in esoteric schools throughout time and in those that use the Qabalah, it is referred to as Path Working. Medieval European Alchemists, Taoist Alchemists and Indian Yogi's all use similar methods too. It is a true voyage of discovery. But there be dragons too.
I have always hesitated to discuss this in any detail (and still am reluctant to be honest) because the technique requires a considerable amount of prior work/preparation in order to avoid possible dangers - in the same way that you would have many lessons in a pool with a swimming teacher before jumping in the pool alone and at night - and out of earshot of others. Although it is true that some people are naturally adapted for this and take to it very easily. Others would be right to avoid it altogether. One friend of mine many years ago (decades, in fact) tried the method and a voice in his head warned him to turn back. He found it a quite terrifying prospect and did turn back, and was wise to do so. His is now dead but would, these days, be the first to admit that he was badly conflicted, psychologically speaking, back then - and I am certain had he continued he would have had very traumatic psychological experiences. Meeting face to face with a living, breathing, sentient, intelligent and talking Archetype is a very powerful experience never to be forgotten.
In a controlled meditative state, one can imaginatively project a chosen trump card in the mind's eye. The Fool would be a good starting place because we all need to know that we really are fools before we ever can approach wisdom (if we ever do). Building it carefully and clearly and without addition or omission is important - and it usually takes a lot of time and discipline to learn to build and hold accurate images. Choosing a suitable deck (I would avoid Crowley's for example) also seems a valid precautionary thing to do. Once you have the image alive and flaming in your mind's eye (as though projected on the wall of the inside of your forehead), you simply walk through the picture - imaginatively speaking. And hey presto. Wisdom dictates that one does not eat for several hours before engaging in this, but would eat something immediately the session is over.
Aggression will be met with aggression, negativity with negativity. To act with politeness and dignity and good, old fashioned manners will be met with politeness and dignity and old fashioned manners. What you transmit is what is reflected back to you.
It is also vital to be able to separate the here and now from the then and there, in your own mind - and developing a small thought ritual of entry and exit isn't a bad thing, as it focuses attention on the separation of these two worlds. The reason for this is that the then and there can be very captivating; we recall the old Celtic tales of someone entering faery land being unable to find their way back and being lost for evermore. It sounds ridiculous I know, but I can speak to the reality of it. Also we can bring back the then and there to the here and now is we are not careful. And that would have very dire personal consequences. The whole thing is to be treated with great care and good common sense. No one willingly sticks their finger in an electric socket to see if it is on or off. Multiply that by a far greater magnitude and you have a sense of the actual energy involved.
I also strongly recommend that this technique be taught by a competent analyst, for example, or through a respectable school, where a curriculum would be adhered to and supervision would be present. History is rife with cautionary stories of alchemists who were poisoned by the noxious fumes of Mercury and went mad. Those genuinely interested will find a suitable teacher/supervisor if they but persist in their desire to find one.
I have mentioned before elsewhere, that Jung developed a method of harnessing his imaginative function that he called Active Imagination. In fact, this encompasses a far older technique that has been taught in esoteric schools throughout time and in those that use the Qabalah, it is referred to as Path Working. Medieval European Alchemists, Taoist Alchemists and Indian Yogi's all use similar methods too. It is a true voyage of discovery. But there be dragons too.
I have always hesitated to discuss this in any detail (and still am reluctant to be honest) because the technique requires a considerable amount of prior work/preparation in order to avoid possible dangers - in the same way that you would have many lessons in a pool with a swimming teacher before jumping in the pool alone and at night - and out of earshot of others. Although it is true that some people are naturally adapted for this and take to it very easily. Others would be right to avoid it altogether. One friend of mine many years ago (decades, in fact) tried the method and a voice in his head warned him to turn back. He found it a quite terrifying prospect and did turn back, and was wise to do so. His is now dead but would, these days, be the first to admit that he was badly conflicted, psychologically speaking, back then - and I am certain had he continued he would have had very traumatic psychological experiences. Meeting face to face with a living, breathing, sentient, intelligent and talking Archetype is a very powerful experience never to be forgotten.
In a controlled meditative state, one can imaginatively project a chosen trump card in the mind's eye. The Fool would be a good starting place because we all need to know that we really are fools before we ever can approach wisdom (if we ever do). Building it carefully and clearly and without addition or omission is important - and it usually takes a lot of time and discipline to learn to build and hold accurate images. Choosing a suitable deck (I would avoid Crowley's for example) also seems a valid precautionary thing to do. Once you have the image alive and flaming in your mind's eye (as though projected on the wall of the inside of your forehead), you simply walk through the picture - imaginatively speaking. And hey presto. Wisdom dictates that one does not eat for several hours before engaging in this, but would eat something immediately the session is over.
Aggression will be met with aggression, negativity with negativity. To act with politeness and dignity and good, old fashioned manners will be met with politeness and dignity and old fashioned manners. What you transmit is what is reflected back to you.
It is also vital to be able to separate the here and now from the then and there, in your own mind - and developing a small thought ritual of entry and exit isn't a bad thing, as it focuses attention on the separation of these two worlds. The reason for this is that the then and there can be very captivating; we recall the old Celtic tales of someone entering faery land being unable to find their way back and being lost for evermore. It sounds ridiculous I know, but I can speak to the reality of it. Also we can bring back the then and there to the here and now is we are not careful. And that would have very dire personal consequences. The whole thing is to be treated with great care and good common sense. No one willingly sticks their finger in an electric socket to see if it is on or off. Multiply that by a far greater magnitude and you have a sense of the actual energy involved.
I also strongly recommend that this technique be taught by a competent analyst, for example, or through a respectable school, where a curriculum would be adhered to and supervision would be present. History is rife with cautionary stories of alchemists who were poisoned by the noxious fumes of Mercury and went mad. Those genuinely interested will find a suitable teacher/supervisor if they but persist in their desire to find one.
The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.
Carl Jung - Aion (1951). CW 9, Part II: P.14