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JUNGIAN ENCOUNTER WITH THE SOUL OF INDIAʼS HEARTLAND
Sponsored by the C.G. Jung Foundation of New York; Guest Faculty – Ashok Bedi M.D., Jungian Psychoanalyst
January 31 to February 11, 2016
Ashok Bedi, M.D. & B.J. Jakala, PH.D.

 This is the 11th study tour of India to explore the archetypal soul of India from a Jungian, Analytical lens. For the next several days, the faculty member of the group, Jungian Analyst Ashok Bedi and a Depth Psychotherapist Dr. Robert J. Jakala will compose a daily blog of their reflections about the experience. B.J. is the blog photographer and will display a photograph of the day and share personal reflections. Ashok Bedi will amplify the image with an archetypal lens.

  Ashok Bedi, M.D. is a Jungian psychoanalyst and a board certified psychiatrist. He is a member of the Royal College of psychiatrists of Great Britain, a diplomat in Psychological Medicine at the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of England, a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association. He is a Clinical Professor in Psychiatry at the Medical College of Wisconsin in Milwaukee and a training analyst at the Carl G. Jung Institute of Chicago. He is in private practice in Milwaukee and is the author of several books which may be previewed at his website www.pathtothesoul.com. He is the liaison for the IAAP for developing Jungian training programs in India and travels annually to India to teach, train the consult with the Jungian Developing groups at several centers in India including Ahmedabad and Mumbai.

 
  Robert “BJ” Jakala, PhD is a depth psychotherapist in private practice for twenty-eight years. He is a graduate of Pacifica Graduate Institute in Carpentaria, CA. He is […]

Journey to the Land of Shiva through the Jungian Lens: January 9-22, 2015
Ashok Bedi, M.D.
B.J. Jakala, PH.D.
From January 9-22 2015, a group of soul seekers will travel in India to experience the land of Shiva through Jungian lens of Analytical Psychology. This experience is sponsored by the New York Jung Foundation. For the next several days, the faculty member of the group, Jungian Analyst Ashok Bedi and a Depth Psychotherapist Dr. Robert J. Jakala will compose a daily blog of their reflections about the experience. Other group participants have been invited to contribute to the blog and may join us from time to time. We are glad to share our experiences and reflections. Today is our last day on this journey as a group – so this will be last blog in this series.
Enjoy!

 Shiva (portrait) by ChristasVengel on DeviantArt
christasvengel.deviantart.com
By B.J.Jakala

 Each morning the fisherman stands in reflection and casts his net into the lake.  The harvest brings him food to sustain his life.Sometimes, when I wake I the morning, I cast my net back into the world of my dreams. There are times when it is empty:  The dreams elude my net.  Like the fisherman, it is important to know those that got away are still in the source.  Perhaps someday they will come into the net of my conscious life.  Then there are times when I retrieve nurturing images to give me a more informed life.  I must always remember the source is vast and I only catch what I can digest and what truly feeds my soul.It is time to leave the flower of India. I am the butterfly who I does not carry the flower, but only the nectar of life.Thank you India for […]

Journey to the Land of Shiva through the Jungian Lens: January 9-22, 2015
Ashok Bedi, M.D.
B.J. Jakala, PH.D.
From January 9-22 2015, a group of soul seekers will travel in India to experience the land of Shiva through Jungian lens of Analytical Psychology. This experience is sponsored by the New York Jung Foundation. For the next several days, the faculty member of the group, Jungian Analyst Ashok Bedi and a Depth Psychotherapist Dr. Robert J. Jakala will compose a daily blog of their reflections about the experience. Other group participants have been invited to contribute to the blog and may join us from time to time. We are glad to share our experiences and reflections. Enjoy!

 Shiva (portrait) by ChristasVengel on DeviantArt
christasvengel.deviantart.com
By B.J.Jakala

 
 This amazing temple is dedicated to Sundareshvara (Shiva) and his consort Meenakshi (Parvati).
There are four main towers, each constructed on a base of granite as the foundation for the stucco figures of deities, and semi-divine entities painted in vivid colors. There are 3,646 figures on these outer tower landmarks. Inside the temples are carved granite pillars that provide the base structure as well as artistic representations of Hinduism. The complex gives new dimensions to the word “spectacular.” It is hard to imagine the amount of labor it took to construct such a site. The towers are maintained by repainting every twelve years.

 When I walked inside the temples, I found a deeper place inside me: My own inner sancto sanctorum; a place of peace and a feeling of velvet stillness. It is that place where there is nothing to be done. There is no desire to be more or less than I am. I can just be in the […]

Journey to the Land of Shiva through the Jungian Lens: January 9-22, 2015
Ashok Bedi, M.D.
B.J. Jakala, PH.D.
From January 9-22 2015, a group of soul seekers will travel in India to experience the land of Shiva through Jungian lens of Analytical Psychology. This experience is sponsored by the New York Jung Foundation. For the next several days, the faculty member of the group, Jungian Analyst Ashok Bedi and a Depth Psychotherapist Dr. Robert J. Jakala will compose a daily blog of their reflections about the experience. Other group participants have been invited to contribute to the blog and may join us from time to time. We are glad to share our experiences and reflections. Enjoy!

 Shiva (portrait) by ChristasVengel on DeviantArt
christasvengel.deviantart.com
By B.J.Jakala
We had an extraordinary experience being granted permission to watch one of the local priests perform a morning ritual honoring this goddess.  It is a daily labor of love.I often start my day with coffee, shower, daily planner and to do lists.  How much different it would be to establish a morning ritual that bathed and honored the qualities I value within myself. I would to face the day with more consciously cherished and acknowledged resources.  I would  then give gratitude for what they offer in my life. I need to remember to anchor who I already am and not just be on the path of becoming more. Ancient traditions have helped me see ways of being more present 
BJ Jakala, PhD is a participant in this year’s Journey to the Land of Shiva through the Jungians Lens led by Dr. Bedi.

 Reflections by Ashok Bedi, M.D.
Much of our life must be lived in managing our outer life and concerns about survival and responsibilities. This is the task […]

Journey to the Land of Shiva through the Jungian Lens: January 9-22, 2015
Ashok Bedi, M.D.
B.J. Jakala, PH.D.
From January 9-22 2015, a group of soul seekers will travel in India to experience the land of Shiva through Jungian lens of Analytical Psychology. This experience is sponsored by the New York Jung Foundation. For the next several days, the faculty member of the group, Jungian Analyst Ashok Bedi and a Depth Psychotherapist Dr. Robert J. Jakala will compose a daily blog of their reflections about the experience. Other group participants have been invited to contribute to the blog and may join us from time to time. We are glad to share our experiences and reflections. Enjoy!

 Shiva (portrait) by ChristasVengel on DeviantArt
christasvengel.deviantart.com
By B.J.Jakala

We drove to Auroville (City of Dawn) to visit the Matrimandir (Sanskrit for Temple of The Mother) a giant metallic sphere for practioners of Integral Yoga.  The experimental township is set in the countryside of Tamil Nadu, India. The enormous Banyan Tree, pictured above, grows in Auroville.This tree provides a valuable life lesson.  It’s trunk it well planted and its branches extend outward from the core.  As they reach out into the world they send down roots to support and nurture their life.  The entire tree looks like a forest rather than a single tree.My life reaches out in many directions much like that tree. It requires support and nutrition from the central source as well as being planted in the present. I benefit when I am grounded by what has been as well as being grounded in the moment. I can extend who I am when I have proper support. I can reach into the future me as I am being held by who […]