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In this episode:
I present some highlights and excerpts from a recording of a recent talk that I gave on my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. “Now, we have no symbolic life, and we are all badly in need of the symbolic life. Only the symbolic life can express the need of the soul — the daily need of the soul..." ~ C.G. Jung from The Symbolic Life in 'Collected Works, vol. 18.'
2. "Do we ever understand what we think? We only understand that kind of thinking which is a mere equation, from which nothing comes out but what we have put in..." ~ C.G. Jung from The Stages of Life in 'Collected Works, vol. 8.'
3. "All teems with symbol; the wise man is the man who in any one thing can read another." ~  Plotinus
4. "The religious symbol is used against the perils of the soul. The symbol functions as a sort of machine, one could say, by which the libido is transformed...." ~ C.G. Jung in  'Seminar on Nietzsche's Zarathurstra.'
5. “The individual, who hitherto has been caught in his personal entanglements, is then confronted with a problem which no longer represents solely his personal conflict but gives expression to a conflict that it has been incumbent on man to suffer and solve from time immemorial." ~ Jolande Jacobi in 'Complex/Archetype/Symbol.'
6. "Among all my patients in the second half of life -- that is to say, over thirty-five -- there has not been one whose problem in the last resort was not that of finding a religious outlook on life...." ~ C.G. Jung from Psychotherapists or the Clergy in 'Collected Works, vol. 11.'
7. 'Memories, Dreams, Reflections.' by C.G. Jung

Music:
"Dreaming Days," and "Slow Vibing" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

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In this episode:
I discuss some of Jung's advice for working with dreams, and suggest some questions you can ask when working with your own.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. “One would do well to treat every dream as though it were a totally unknown object. Look at it from all sides, take it in your hand, carry it about with you, let your imagination play round it, and talk about it with other people...." ~ C.G. Jung in The Meaning of Psychology for Modern Man in 'Collected Works, vol. 10.'
2. Episode 25: Preparing to Work with Your Dreams
3. Discussion of "knowing through not-knowing" from 'Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.'
4. “So difficult is it to understand a dream that for a long time I have made it a rule, when someone tells me a dream and asks for my opinion, to say first of all to myself: ‘I have no idea what this dream means’. After that I can begin to examine the dream.” ~ C.G. Jung in On the Nature of Dreams in 'Collected Works, vol. 8.'
5. 'Tracks in the Wilderness of Dreaming.' by Robert Bosnak
6. Episode 21: Dreams and the Sacred
7. “Any approach to the symbolic dimension, hence, remains in the realm of felt intuition and calls for an artistic and spiritual sensitivity from dreamer and interpreter alike...." ~ Edward Whitmont & Sylvia Perera in 'Dreams: A Portal to the Source.'
8. 'Waiting For God' by Simone Weil
9. “Who wants to understand the poem, must go to the land of poetry.” ~ Goethe from 'West-Eastern Divan.'
10. Dreams ~ a poem by Mary Oliver in 'Dream Work,'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

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In this episode:
I discuss the importance of play and creativity in the practice of the symbolic life.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. "If play expires in itself without creating anything durable and vital, it is only play, but in the other case it is called creative work...." ~ C.G. Jung in Psychological Types in 'Collected Works, vol. 6.'
2. Episode 25: Preparing to Work with Your Dreams
3. “If the wrong person uses the right means, the right means work in the wrong way.” ~ C.G. Jung in Commentary on The Secret of the Golden Flower in 'Collected Works, vol. 13.'
4. "A vivid awareness of infinite Being at the roots of our own limited being" ~ Thomas Merton in 'New Seeds of Contemplation.'
5. “In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order.” ~ C.G. Jung in The Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious in 'Collected Works, vol. 9i.'
6. Proverbs 8:22 - 31 in The Revised English Bible.
7. “Whoever finds me finds life.” ~ Proverbs 8:35 in The Revised English Bible.
8. “Play is the free spirit of exploration, doing and being for its own joy.” ~ Stephen Nachmanovitch in 'Free Play: The Power of Improvisation in Life and the Arts.'
9. “The meeting of two personalities is like the contact of two chemical substances: if there is any reaction, both are transformed.” ~ C. G. Jung in 'Modern Man in Search of a Soul.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


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Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

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In this episode:
I respond to a listener’s questions by discussing the importance of examining our intentions and motivations when preparing to work with our dreams.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. "The meaning of the dream, or our interpretation of it, is largely dependent on the intentions of the interpreter..." ~ C.G. Jung in The Meaning of Psychology for Modern Man in 'Collected Works, vol. 10.'
2. “I should be suspicious of what I want” ~ Rumi from the poem 'Who Makes These Changes.'
3. “I am convinced that there is in fact no absolutely reliable method of interpretation.” ~ C.G. Jung in The Meaning of Psychology for Modern Man in 'Collected Works, vol. 10.'
4. “Life shrinks or expands according to one’s courage.” ~ Anaïs Nin in 'The Diary of Anaïs Nin.'
5. Mark 4:21 - 25 in The Bible, New Revised Standard Version.
6. “No one can truly philosophize outside a tradition, even when rejecting that very tradition.” ~ Raimon Panikkar in 'The Rhythm of Being.'
7. "Dreams provide the most interesting information for those who take the trouble to understand their symbols. The results, it is true, have little to do with such worldly concerns as buying and selling. But the meaning of life is not exhaustively explained by one's business life, nor is the deep desire of the human heart answered by a bank account." ~ C. G. Jung in 'Man and His Symbols.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


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Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

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In this episode:
We take a deep dive into the experience of depression and explore how a grasp of symbolic material can enrich our understanding of this difficult and all-too-human experience.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. "Hidden in the neurosis is a bit of still undeveloped personality, a precious fragment of the psyche lacking which a person is condemned to resignation, bitterness, and everything else that is hostile to life." ~ C.G. Jung in The State of Psychotherapy Today in 'Collected Works, vol. 10.'
2.  Episode 23: Approaching the Unconscious
3. 'Complex/Archetype/Symbol.' by Jolande Jacobi
4. Dante's Divine Comedy, translated by Mark Musa.
5. Moby-Dick by Herman Melville.
6. The I Ching, Richard Wilhelm translation.
7. The Symbolic Life by C.G. Jung from 'Collected Works, vol. 18.' 
8. Religion mitigates feelings of depression by providing a sense of meaning, study suggests
9. 'Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.' by Jason E. Smith
10. The Quest for the Holy Grail, translated by Pauline Matarasso.
11. Lost by David Wagoner
12. Shoemaker and the Elves, from 'Grimm's Fairy Tales.'
13. Episode 21: Dreams and the Sacred
14. A Man Lost By a River by Michael Blumenthal.

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


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Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

Send Me a Note

In this episode:
We pick up on the previous episode’s exploration of the idea of the numinous and consider its effect on our psychological and spiritual health.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. "You are quite right, the main interest of my work is not concerned with the treatment of neuroses but rather with the approach to the numinous...." ~ C.G. Jung in 'Selected Letters.'
2.  Episode 22: The Idea of the Holy
3.  Episode 13: Living An Authentic Life
4. “Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word ‘happy’ would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness.” ~ C.G. Jung in 'C.G. Jung Speaking.'
5. “In the last resort it is highly improbable that there could ever be a therapy that got rid of all difficulties. Man needs difficulties; they are necessary for health." ~ C.G. Jung in The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche from 'Collected Works, vol. 8.'
6. “I want to know if you are prepared to live in the world with its harsh need to change you.” ~ David Whyte in Self-Portrait from 'Fire in the Earth.'
7. 'Memories, Dreams, Reflections.' by C.G. Jung
8. “In all chaos there is a cosmos, in all disorder a secret order.” ~ C.G. Jung in The Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious in 'Collected Works, vol. 9i.'
9.  Story of the Bronze Serpent from Numbers 21:4-9 (New Revised Standard Edition)
10. 'Man's Search for Meaning.' by Viktor Frankl
11. On the Relation of Analytical Psychology to Poetry by C.G. Jung from 'Collected Works, vol. 15.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


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Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

Send Me a Note

In this episode:
We discuss the concept of the numinous and how we can begin to attune our awareness to these depths of life experience.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. "In speaking of religion I must make clear from the start what I mean by that term...." ~ C.G. Jung in Psychology and Religion from 'Collected Works, vol. 11.'
2.  Episode 10: An Instinct for Meaning
3. “There is no religion in which it does not live as the real innermost core, and without it no religion would be worthy of the name.” ~ Rudolf Otto in 'The Idea of the Holy.'
4. "To all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.” ~ Bible, New Revised Standard Version -- Matt. 25:29.
5. "The poet is the priest of the invisible." ~ Wallace Stevens in 'Adagia.'
6.  Poem excerpt from 'Vacillation' by W.B. Yeats.
7. “Modern man has such hopelessly muddled ideas about anything ‘mystical'..." ~ C.G. Jung in A Psychological Approach to the Doctrine of the Trinity in 'Collected Works, vol. 11.'
8.  "Some certain significance lurks in all things." ~ Herman Melville in 'Moby-Dick.'
9. "Meaninglessness inhibits fullness of life and is therefore equivalent to illness.  Meaning makes a great many things endurable -- perhaps everything." ~ C.G. Jung in 'Memories, Dreams, Reflections.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


Like this podcast?
Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

Send Me a Note

In this episode:
We explore the ways that our dreams can sensitize us to the sacred dimensions of the life both within us and around us.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. "Christians often ask why God does not speak to them, as he is believed to have done in former days...." ~ C.G. Jung in 'Man and His Symbols.'
2.  Episode 19: Dreaming and Reality
3.  “All dreams reveal spiritual experiences.” ~ C.G. Jung in 'C.G. Jung Speaking.'
4. "Psychologically, I am using the word to mean anything which overwhelms us so completely that our genuine reaction is to prostrate ourselves to the floor, to venerate it, to fear it...." ~ Marie-Louise von Franz in 'The Way of the Dream.'
5. The Water of Life from 'Grimm's Household Tales,' translated by Margaret Hunt.
6. "What is now prov’d was once only imagined." ~ William Blake from 'Auguries of Innocence.'
7.  Discussion of "the way of expediency" and "the way of wonder" in 'Man is Not Alone' by Abraham Joshua Heschel.
8.  "Let us forever remember that the sense for the sacred is as vital to us the light of the sun." ~ Abraham Joshua Heschel in 'I Asked for Wonder.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


Like this podcast?
Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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Connect with me:
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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

Send Me a Note

In this episode:
We confront the dismissive attitudes that many people have about dreams and explore recent research that confirms the meaning and value of dreams.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. “The dream is often occupied with apparently very silly details, thus producing an impression of absurdity..." ~ C.G. Jung in On the Psychology of the Unconscious from 'Collected Works, vol. 7.'
2.  Episode 19: Dreaming and Reality
3.  Francis Crick's "garbage dump theory of dreams" discussed in 'The Committee of Sleep' by Deirdre Barrett.
4. Romeo and Juliet by William Shakespeare
5. Dreams That Warn of Breast Cancer
6. Robert Bosnak's work on the post-surgical dreams of heart transplant patients discussed in 'The Committee of Sleep.'
7. “Wakefulness may be described as a dreamlike state modulated by sensory experience.” ~ Llinas and Pare, quoted in 'The Neurobiology of the Gods' by Erik Goodwyn.
8.  “What proof could you give if anyone should ask us now, at the present moment, whether we are asleep and our thoughts are a dream, or whether we are awake and talking to each other in a waking condition?” ~ Socrates in Plato's 'Theaetetus.'
9. “In waking life, too, we continue to dream beneath the threshold of consciousness.” ~ C.G. Jung in Problems of Modern Psychotherapy from 'Collected Works, vol. 16.'
10. "Who Says Words With My Mouth?" ~ poem by Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks.
11. “All dreams reveal spiritual experiences.” ~ C.G. Jung in 'C.G. Jung Speaking.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0


Like this podcast?
Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

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Connect with me:
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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.

Send Me a Note

In this episode:
We explore how paying attention to our dreams can help us to expand our experience of the depth and meaningfulness of life.

Sources for quotes and more:

1. Harriet Tubman and Paul McCartney dream stories found in 'The Secret History of Dreaming' by Robert Moss.
2. Abraham Lincoln dream story as told in 'Recollections of Abraham Lincoln 1847-1865' by Ward Hill Lamon.
3.  "There is a dream dreaming us," from Laurens van der Post from 'Where Will All the Stories Go?' in Parabola Magazine, vol. 7, no. 2.
4. "When dreaming I'm guided to another world" ~ Creed, from the song 'Higher.'
5. "All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream." ~ Edgar Allan Poe from the poem 'A Dream Within a Dream.'
6. "Aha, so he is the one who is meditating me. He has a dream, and I am it." ~ C.G. Jung in 'Memories, Dreams, Reflections.'
7. Butterfly Dream from Chuang-Tzu.
8. “What proof could you give if anyone should ask us now, at the present moment, whether we are asleep and our thoughts are a dream, or whether we are awake and talking to each other in a waking condition?” ~ Socrates in Plato's 'Theaetetus.'
9. 'The Tempest' by William Shakespeare
10. 'The Letters of D.H. Lawrence, vol. 1.'
11. The Meaning of Psychology for Modern Man  by C.G. Jung in 'Collected Works, vol. 10'
12.  'The Way of the Dream' by Marie-Louise von Franz 
13. “All consciousness separates, but in dreams we put on the likeness of that more universal, truer, more eternal self dwelling in the darkness of primordial night.” ~ C.G. Jung from The Meaning of Psychology for Modern Man in 'Collected Works, vol. 10.'

Music:
"Dreaming Days," "Slow Vibing," and "The Return" by Ketsa are licensed under CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Like this podcast?
Please consider leaving a review at one of the following sites:
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Or, if you are able, support the show with a donation at Buy Me a Coffee:

Support the show

Connect with me:
Instagram (@digital.jung)
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Bluesky (@digitaljung.bsky.social)

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For more on living a symbolic life:
Please check out my book, Religious but Not Religious: Living a Symbolic Life.