The Jung Kirsch Letters

This book charts Carl Gustav Jung’s 33-year (1928-61) correspondence with James Kirsch, adding depth and complexity to the previously published record of the early Jungian movement. Kirsch was a German-Jewish psychiatrist, a first-generation follower of Jung, who founded Jungian communities in Berlin, Tel Aviv, London, and Los Angeles. Their letters tell of heroic survival, brilliant creativity, and the building of generative institutions, but these themes are darkened by personal and collective shadows. The Nazi era looms over the first half of the book, shaping the story in ways that were fateful not only for Kirsch and his career but also for Jung and his. Kirsch trained with Jung and acted as a tutor in Jewish psychology and culture to him. In 1934, fearing that anti-Semitism had seized his teacher, Kirsch challenged Jung to explain some of his publications for the Nazi-dominated Medical Society for Psychotherapy. Jung’s answer convinced Kirsch of his sincerity, and from then on Kirsch defended him fiercely against any allegation of anti-Semitism. We also witness Kirsch’s lifelong struggle with states of archetypal possession: his identification with the interior God-image on the one hand, and with unconscious feminine aspects of his psyche on the other. These complexes were expressed, for Kirsch, in physical symptoms and emotional dilemmas, and they led him into clinical boundary violations which were costly to his analysands, his family and himself. The text of these historical documents is translated with great attention to style and accuracy, and generous editorial scaffolding gives glimpses into the writers’ world. Four appendices are included: two essays by Kirsch, a series of letters between Hilde Kirsch and Jung, and a brief, incisive essay on the Medical Society for Psychotherapy. This revised edition includes primary material that was unavailable when the book was first published, as well as updated footnotes and minor corrections to the translated letters.

This book charts Carl Gustav Jung's 32-year correspondence with James Kirsch, a German-Jewish psychiatrist who founded Jungian communities in Berlin, Tel Aviv, London, and Los Angeles, and adds depth and complexity to the previously published record of the early Jungian movement. Their letters tell of heroic survival, brilliant creativity, and the building of generative institutions; but these themes are also darkened by personal and collective shadows. The Nazi era looms over the first half of the book and shapes the story in ways that are fateful not only for Kirsch and his career but also for Jung and his. In 1934, fearing that the undertow of anti-Semitism had taken hold of his beloved teacher, Kirsch challenged Jung to explain some of his publications for the German-dominated (now Nazi-dominated) International Society for Psychotherapy. Jung's answer convinced Kirsch of his sincerity, and from then on Kirsch defended him fiercely against any allegation of anti-Semitism. The letters are translated here for the first time and the illuminating editorial commentary provides unique and incisive insights into the writers' world. Supported by appendices, including a series of revealing letters between Hilde Kirsch and Jung, The Jung-Kirsch Letters is an invaluable resource for those in the fields of analytical psychology and Jungian studies, as well as all those with an interest in learning more about the historical and cultural origins of the Jungian movement.

Thomas Kirsch is one of the foremost architects of the contemporary Jungian scene and has influenced the evolution and organization of analytical psychology worldwide. His works on the history of Jungian analysis and his memoir of a "Jungian life" have been widely appreciated and this book contains important examples of these interests. Gathered together in The Selected Works are Kirsch’s original and humane contributions to diverse areas, such as: training and the dynamics of analytical institutions; clinical themes in Jungian analysis and how these differ from what typically happens in psychoanalytic treatment; as well as a continuation of his remarkable work into the personalities and prejudices that characterize the profession of Jungian analysis. As Andrew Samuels observes in his foreword, "In these chapters, we see Tom’s humanity, generosity and flexibility". Given the multifarious dynamics of the training community, Kirsch accepts that things can sometimes go wrong, and he is open about his experiences in this regard. For Kirsch, rather than a simple question of psychologically damaged people becoming analysts, the figure of the "Wounded Healer" is always present in depth psychology. Kirsch is an exceptionally gifted communicator and several of these chapters stem from lectures and conference presentations. However, behind the appearance of informality emerges, not only a formidable intellect at work, but a warm and compassionate perspective on the human condition. The Selected Works will be of vital interest to analysts, therapists, trainees, academics, and students working in the areas of Jungian analysis and Jungian studies around the world.

The Jungians: A Comparative and Historical Perspective is the first book to trace the history of the profession of analytical psychology from its origins in 1913 until the present. As someone who has been personally involved in many aspects of Jungian history, Thomas Kirsch is well equipped to take the reader through the history of the 'movement', and to document its growth throughout the world, with chapters covering individual geographical areas - the UK, USA, and Australia, to name but a few - in some depth. He also provides new information on the ever-controversial subject of Jung's relationship to Nazism, Jews and Judaism. A lively and well-researched key work of reference, The Jungians will appeal to not only to those working in the field of analysis, but would also make essential reading for all those interested in Jungian studies.

Research in Analytical Psychology: Applications from Scientific, Historical, and Cross-Cultural Research is a unique collection of chapters from an international selection of contributors, reflecting the contemporary field of research in Analytical Psychology with a focus on qualitative and mixed-methods research. Presented in seven parts, this volume offers unique qualitative research that highlights approaches to understanding the psyche and investigating its components, and offers a Jungian perspective on cultural forces affecting individual psychology. The book brings forward the connections between Analytical Psychology and other disciplines including neuroscience, psychotherapy research, developmental research, Freudian psychoanalysis, and cultural studies. Part I provides an introduction to the volume, establishes the nature of qualitative and interdisciplinary research and its applications for research in other fields, and outlines the presented work. Part II, Approaching Qualitative Research in Analytical Psychology, examines postmodernism and the value a Jungian perspective offers, and introduces Jung’s correspondence as an emerging resource. Part III, Research on Symbolic Aspects of the Psyche, looks at archetypal theory and cultural complex theory. Part IV, Research on Consciousness and Emotion, presents chapters on meditation and the spectrums of emotion in mythologies, philosophy, Analytical Psychology, and the neurosciences. Part V, A Complex Systems Approach to the Psyche, addresses research on synchronicity, the geometry of individuation, and complexity, ecology, and symbolism. Part VI, Cross-Cultural Research, contains chapters concerning transcendence, psychosocial transformation, psychological infrastructure, and cultural complexes and cultural identity. Part VII concludes the volume by setting directions for potential areas of future study and collaboration. Each chapter provides an overview of research in a specific area and closes with potential directions for future investigation. The book will enable practitioners and researchers to evaluate the empirical status of their concepts and methods and, where possible, set new directions. It also presents the significance of contemporary Analytical Psychology and offers opportunities for cross-discipline collaboration and fertilization. This book will be essential reading for analytical psychologists in practice and in training, academics and students of Analytical Psychology and post-Jungian ideas, and academics and students of other disciplines seeking to integrate methods from Analytical Psychology into their research. It is complemented by its companion volume, Research in Analytical Psychology: Empirical Research.

Swiss-born Carl Gustav Jung (1875–1961) was one of the pioneers of psychology, largely responsible for the introduction of now-familiar psychological terms such as “introvert,” “extrovert,” and “collective unconscious.” But in spite of this, Jung has often remained on the fringes of academic discourse. Seeking to understand Jung in view of not only his life, but also in light of his extensive reading and prolific writing, this new biography reclaims Jung as a major European thinker whose true significance has not been fully appreciated. Paul Bishop follows Jung from his early childhood to his years at the University of Basel and his close relationship—and eventual break—with Sigmund Freud. Exploring Jung’s ideas, Bishop takes up the psychiatrist’s suggestion that “the tragedies of Goethe’s Faust and Nietzsche’s Thus Spoke Zarathustra . . . mark the first glimmerings of a breakthrough of total experience in our Western hemisphere,” engaging with Jung’s scholarship to offer one of the fullest appreciations yet of his distinctive approach to culture. Bishop also considers the role that the Red Book, written between 1914 and 1930 but not published until 2009, played in the progression of Jung’s thought, allowing Bishop to provide a new assessment of this divisive personality. Jung’s attempt to synthesize the different parts of human life, Bishop argues, marks the man as one of the most important theorists of the twentieth century. Providing a compelling examination of the life of this highly influential figure, the concise and accessible Carl Jung will find a place on the shelves of students, scholars, and both clinical and amateur psychologists alike.

Shoma (Masatake) Morita, M.D. (1874-1938) was a Japanese psychiatrist-professor who developed a unique four stage therapy process. He challenged psychoanalysts who sanctioned an unconscious or unconsciousness (collective or otherwise) that resides inside the mind. Significantly, he advanced a phenomenal connection between existentialism, Zen, Nature and the therapeutic role of serendipity. Morita is a forerunner of eco-psychology and he equalised the strength between human-to-human attachment and human-to-Nature bonds. This book chronicles Morita’s theory of "peripheral consciousness", his paradoxical method, his design of a natural therapeutic setting, and his progressive-four stage therapy. It explores how this therapy can be beneficial for clients outside of Japan using, for the first time, non-Japanese case studies. The author’s personal material about training in Japan and subsequent practice of Morita’s ecological and phenomenological therapy in Australia and the United States enhance this book. LeVine’s coining of "cruelty-based trauma" generates a rich discussion on the need for therapy inclusive of ecological settings. As a medical anthropologist, clinical psychologist and genocide scholar, LeVine shows how the four progressive stages are essential to the classic method and the key importance of the first "rest" stage in outcomes for clients who have been embossed by trauma. Since cognitive science took hold in the 1970s, complex consciousness theories have lost footing in psychology and medical science. This book reinstates "consciousness" as the dynamic core of Morita therapy. The case material illustrates the use of Morita therapy for clients struggling with the aftermath of trauma and how to live creatively and responsively inside the uncertainty of existence. The never before published archival biographic notes and photos of psychoanalyst Karen Horney, Fritz Perls, Eric Fromm and other renowned scholars who took an interest in Morita in the 1950s and 60s provide a dense historical backdrop.

Jung's correspondence with one of the twentieth century's leading theologians and ecumenicists On Theology and Psychology brings together C. G. Jung's correspondence with Adolf Keller, a celebrated Protestant theologian who was one of the pioneers of the modern ecumenical movement and one of the first religious leaders to become interested in analytical psychology. Their relationship spanned half a century, and for many years Keller was the only major religious leader to align himself with Jung and his ideas. Both men shared a lifelong engagement with questions of faith, and each grappled with God in his own distinctive way. Presented here in English for the first time are letters that provide a rare look at Jung in dialogue with a theologian. Spanning some fifty years, these letters reveal an extended intellectual and spiritual discourse between two very different men as they exchange views on the nature of the divine, the compatibility of Jungian psychology and Christianity, the interpretation of the Bible and figures such as Jesus and Job, and the phenomenon of National Socialism. Although Keller was powerfully attracted to Jung's ideas, his correspondence with the famed psychiatrist demonstrates that he avoided discipleship. Both men struggled with essential questions about human existence, spirituality, and well-being, and both sought common ground where the concerns of psychologists and theologians converge. Featuring an illuminating introduction by Marianne Jehle-Wildberger, On Theology and Psychology offers incomparable insights into the development of Jung's views on theology and religion, and a unique window into a spiritual and intellectual friendship unlike any other.