Sept. 14th, 2012 at 7 p.m.
The Myth of Hua MuLan: A Jungian Perspective a lecture by Chris Chao
The “Ballad of MuLan” is a Chinese myth (5th-6th century CE) about a woman who disguises herself as a soldier to take her elderly father’s place in the Emperor’s army. While many people only know MuLan through the popular but less than accurate Disney movie, the original myth has powerfully captured the Chinese imagination for centuries up to the present time. The story of MuLan is both quintessentially Chinese and timelessly universal. It is dated in antiquity but still speaks to us today.
The myth tells us what to take for the journey and how to find the courage and tenacity to fight for one’s inner vision. Each line of MuLan has the power of a dream where the unconscious wastes nothing. Dr. Chao will seek to amplify the symbols and explore the richness these lines hold for both men and women.
Christine M. Chao, Ph.D., currently in private practice, is a licensed clinical psychologist and a diplomate Jungian Analyst. She has had a longstanding interest in Asian and Asian American psychology and has published several articles in this area. Other interests include the significance and function of ancestral altars, and how Jungian work can help open up “seats at the welcome table” for people from widely diverse cultural and ethnic backgrounds.
Oct. 5th, 2012 at 7 p.m.
An Experience of Individuation through Body, Image and Poetry a lecture by Lois Vanderkooi
Jung conceived of the process of individuation as a spiritual journey to realize wholeness. He said that it entails becoming conscious of whatever prevents wholeness. Shadow material including complexes, unrealized potential, and undeveloped typological attitude and functions can easily make us less than whole and cause “dis-ease” within ourselves and with others and the world at large. Individuation also entails consciousness of and surrendering to the larger Self or ordering principal that involves both the personal and the archetypal or universal.
Jung often used image, alchemy, and myth to depict this process and its stages and difficulties. In this talk, I will utilize body awareness, image, and poetry to give us an experiential sense of what often can become intellectualized and difficult to express meaningfully. In doing so, I will also draw upon current body-mind psychological theory and the Ox-herding pictures of Zen.
Lois Vanderkooi is a psychologist in Broomfield. In 1980, she read Jung’s autobiography, which resonated so deeply that she forsook a lawyer-sociologist career to pursue Jungian analysis and studies. She went on to receive a doctorate in psychology and also trained in Somatic Experiencing trauma work, Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction, and Biodynamic Cranial-Sacral Therapy. She is particularly interested in the integration of body, mind, and spirit in oneself and relationships through cultivation of mindfulness and non-violence.
Nov. 9th, 2012 at 7 p.m.
Jung’s Red Book: Telling the Story of Jung’s Experience a lecture by John Atkinson
At the age of 38, already internationally famous and at the height of his profession, Carl Jung entered a true mid-life crisis. His response to this challenge was to engage in a dialogue with the internal dynamics of his psyche. This led him on an immensely creative journey that he recorded in the Red Book. Over a period of 16 years, he wrote down his internal dialogue, created a number of dynamic paintings depicting his emotional state, and finally he analyzed and commented on this process. All of this plus a large number of scholarly footnotes by a well-known historian make up the Red Book recently published. John will present a summary of the Red Book, and its dialogue and art and will summarize the current commentary of several prominent Jungian analysts and scholars as an introduction to Active Imagination.
John Atkinson, M.B.A., is a long-time member of the Colorado Springs Jung Society. He has undergone extensive personal analysis and study of Jungian concepts over the past two decades, including seminars in California, Denver, New York, and Zurich. He has participated in previous presentations to the Society. He is currently the Vice President of the Colorado Springs Jung Society.
Dec. 7th, 2012 at 7 p.m.
Exploring the Archetypes: Divine Doorways into the Unconscious
a lecture by Sharon Coggan
Jung’s core concept of archetypes as energy forms in the psyche is explored through a focus on classical religion. We will meet the twelve Olympians, note their archetypal resonances, and zero in on two particularly compelling ones. Hermes, God of communication, is everywhere to be seen today, as people are transfixed by their fancy new methods of electronic communication. Hermes, God of thieves, was born at dusk and had stolen the cattle of Apollo before dawn. And Artemis, virgin moon Goddess, archer who shoots from afar, can offer serious insight into the common syndrome of holding vast potential for future development in a hundred directions, without ever being able to actually channel and realize it. This exploration of two archetypes of the European legacy will hopefully whet the appetite of our audience to want to explore further the vast wealth offered in classical mythology.
Sharon L. Coggan holds a B.A. from the University of Denver, a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School, an M.A. from Stanford, and a Ph.D. from Syracuse University. She teaches at the University of Colorado Denver, where she serves as Director of the Religious Studies Program, which she created. She offers a range of classes on religion and Jungian thought, including Myth and Symbol, Classical Mythology, Perspectives on Dream Analysis, and the Hero’s Journey.
Jung Society of Colorado 