July 31, 2021.
…a stair, thus indicating an ascent or a descent. (Jung, 1968, p. 54 para 65)
The entrance to this castle has not been used in a long time. The stairs are cluttered with stones and the stones on the path remains undisturbed. I get an eerie feeling as I look to the windows in curiosity of figures looking back at me.
Jung’s quote reminds me that the passage on the stairs is both up and down. At first the quote led me into the image, up the stairs, and up to the door that is barely visible on the higher terrace. (The door is below the window with a chandelier in the center.) I want to knock on it and get permission to come inside. The passage I am first inclined to take is going up the stairs.
Then, of course, is the passage down. I have left the castle and not been a visitor for a long time. The dynamic of decent takes me to a historical perspective, that is, what have I left behind. I wonder what has changed and how I might be different. So, there are two movements upon reflection. One is moving towards the castle; the other is descent away from it. The image contains fragment of an unknown future and an almost forgotten past.
When we engage an image or an idea, our focus is to engage it from the perspective of Ego or consciousness. This neglects the unconscious cognition of this image from the lens of the Soul. What is the Soul trying to communicate via the image? While our Ego is fascinated by the majesty of the castle and what would it be like to ascend and explore the history of the castle, what is the mystery of the castle? What stories are left untold, what chapters of history are left unwritten, what lives have lingered unlived? What is the unfinished business of the castle, its time and its occupants? Where is the secret script to unpack this unfinished script? Why is it calling the witness at this point in time? Why is the image of the castle blue toothed to the photographer? Why has he been recruited to archive this image now?
Paradoxically, the answer lies in the witness. His psyche has an inner castle that has unfinished business that needs to descent into his present consciousness for further exploration. His psyche has a relevant archetypal map to navigate this emergence of his Soul’s hidden potential that is clamoring to descend into his consciousness to hasten the work of his individuation. The prescription from the psyche is to dialogue with the images that are seeking revelation and engagement with his current life.
The task of our psyche is to engage in an active dialogue with what steps down the path from the castle. This image is a gift to the readers to engage the mystery of their inner, unexplored castle. Each reader may consider this their dream or image from their unconscious since this blog has called your Soul to read it up to this point! What is your fantasy about who or what steps out and walks down the majestic steps of this ancient castle? Invite this guest into your consciousness with respect and after a tea ceremony, have a dialogue with them in your garden alone. Invite your guest to tell you, their story. Ask them as to why they chose you to communicate their story now? Where do you fit in this story? What must you do to help your guest? Does your guest intent to stay or move on? When will you see them again?
This is the process of Active Imagination(Jung, 1969). Jung used it to navigate his inner journey and his encounter with his unconscious in his Red Book(Jung & Shamdasani, 2009). Several Jungians has discussed this process from different perspectives(Bedi, 2013; Johnson, 1989). In this dialogue with the unconscious, we invite the emissaries of our Soul to descend into our consciousness for a dialogue. If done right, it rewards us handsomely to further our personal growth and respond to our calling.
Points to Ponder:
- At this juncture in history take a snapshot of your life. Where are your stairs and what are they moving towards or away from?
- When you think of the pandemic, what is your position on the staircase and what direction are you moving?
- What aspect of you has become unfamiliar due to inattention?
- How do you know when it is time to revisit old stomping grounds?
- In your castle, who stepped out and walked down the steps of this castle?
- How did you treat this guest?
- What is your guest’s story?
- Why did they choose to step out of the castle now?
- Why did they choose to reach out to you in particular?
- How does this guest want you to help them?
- Did you negotiate with them as to how you would collaborate with them?
- What is your arrangement for an ongoing dialogue with your guest?
- What is your game plan to implement what you agreed upon?
- What impact will this agreement have on your life?
- How will this guest’s assignment change your short-term and long term goals?
Bedi, A. (2013). Crossing the healing zone : from illness to wellness. Lake Worth, FL
Newburyport, MA: Ibis Press, a division of Nicolas-Hays, Inc.,Lake Worth
Distributed to the trade by Red Wheel/Weiser.
Johnson, R. (1989). Inner Work: Using Dreams and Active Imagination for Personal Growth New York: Harper & Row.
Jung, C. G. (1968). Psychology and alchemy (2d ed. Vol. 12). [Princeton, N.J.]: Princeton University Press.
Jung, C. G. (1969). The structure and dynamics of the psyche, Volume 8 (2d — ed. Vol. 20). Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
Jung, C. G., & Shamdasani, S. (2009). The red book = Liber novus (1st ed.). New York: W.W. Norton & Co.
Ashok Bedi, M.D., Jungian Psychoanalyst,
www.pathtothesoul.com , www.tulawellnessllc.com
Robert BJ Jakala PH.D., Jungian Psychotherapist
In a storm, the safest place is in the eye of the storm. My colleague BJ and I will share our daily reflections on this centering process from an Analytical perspective, sharing from the repertoire of our personal and professional experience. BJ is a psychologist and a photographer and will pick an image of the day that catches him in this collective crisis. I will amplify it from a Jungian Analytical perspective. We hope that this may offer you a baby step on the path to your own unique response to this chaos.
© Ashok Bedi, M.D. and Robert BJ Jakala, PH. D
