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Jung on Active Imagination

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Jung on Active Imagination is a compilation of C. G. Jung's writings on the particular discipline called "active imagination." This book is the definitive individual work on the subject. Jung developed the technique during the years immediately following his split with Freud. It is not, as some suggest, a meditative technique but a method of actively engaging the imagination in pursuit of contents generally hidden within the unconscious. The book's editor, Jungian analyst Joan Chodorow PhD, has done a marvelous job of assembling all the relevant material from Jung's collected works. Chodorow also provides a marvelous, twenty-page introduction for those not familiar with active imagination. This then is a book that will be of value to both the Jungian professional and the interested layman, such as myself.

Active Imagination in and of itself is a discipline wherein the practitioner, after securing a secluded place of relative isolation, clears away a space within the psyche and then actively watches for images and listens for voices that originate spontaneously. The practitioner then focuses on the images and/or voices and attempts to engage these psychic entities in dialogue. The intention is to encounter psychic entities that come from within the practitioner's subconscious. Jung recognized two different aspects of the unconscious. The first, he termed the shadow, which has its origin in the repressed, culturally unacceptable, portion of the ego. The second, Jung termed the collective unconscious, which contains the inherited archetypes of human existence that ultimately create civilization. When the practitioner encounters entities from either aspect of the unconscious, he/she allows the entity to retain its autonomy as much as possible.

Generally, the practitioner of active imagination does so under the supervision of a professional Jungian therapist, particularly if trying to resolve some emotional difficulty. The technique is not without its risks, particularly if the practitioner's emotional stability is questionable. Jung recommended having a supportive environment before undertaking such a project. The goal of active imagination is to build a functional bridge from consciousness into the unconscious, which Jung terms the "transcendent function." This allows the individual to function more as a whole person and not be blind-sided by contents from the unconscious during daily life. The outcome of such an endeavor is to become more of a whole person, or in Jungian terminology, the process should lead to "individuation."

A common complaint among practitioners is that they feel as if they are "making stuff up," that the psychic entity's portion of the dialogue is not autonomous but under the practitioner's intellectual guidance. Some professionals (e.g. Murray Stein) say that if they feel as though they are making it up, they probably are and should concentrate more on allowing psychic entities more autonomy. But others (see Robert A. Johnson's Inner Work, page 151) (Inner Work: Using Dreams and Active Imagination for Personal Growth) take a more relaxed approach to active imagination, saying that "making it up" is fine, that the content still comes from the unconscious anyway. In any case, active imagination is an extraordinarily interesting subject that might be well worth looking into.

Anyone interested in active imagination will undoubtedly come to wonder about Jung's own experience with it, and whether he documented his ordeal. And indeed, such a book does exist and has been published only recently. It's titled The Red Book, (The Red Book) and it contains Jung's original handwritten script in German as well as the text translated into English. But Jung on Active Imagination is the place to start.

For the past year, I have myself practiced a version of active imagination (using this book and others) in the hopes of developing techniques for authors to more intensely and reliably contact their source of creativity. I have called the project the Iris of Time. I've survived it so far and found that exploring active imagination has changed somewhat the nature of my dreams and has enabled me to contact strange psychic forces within myself that have changed not only my view of myself but also my view of what constitutes the "real world." Active imagination is an important subject, and if you have any inclination at all to learn more about yourself and the world in which you live, you might want to pick up a copy of this book.

As it is the basis for many of the philosophies we have today. Here is the man who investigated the ancient eastern and shamanic philosophies, melded them with his own psychological observations, and changed the course of western thought. The concept of active imagination, a way of tapping creative intuition and allowing inspiration to become conscious, has been tremendously influential and has been endlessly copied and written about. This is the source, or rather, the man who did the most to make these insights respectable within the western tradition. Important and relevant for any creative persons, those involved in meditation, and anyone interested in such subjects.

pun intended. if you're inclined to believe all of the patient anecdotes that Jung relates (i dont blindly believe what's not independently verified) then Jung wasn't quite as therapeutically helpless as his colleagues in the field of psychotherapy.

i found one glaring discrepancy in the patient story behind chapter 6. picture #14 (page 129) is represented as a painting of Fifth Avenue in NYC painted by an American and then current resident of NYC. the problem is that the autos are driving on the wrong side of the street. no American resident of NYC is going to paint Fifth Ave with the cars driving on the left side. someone from Switzerland might. and i feel that the other pictures credited to this patient are too stylistic and design esthetic to be products of what Jung calls the 'unconscious' mind.

i think Jung had a very active imagination that may possibly have even factored into his professional papers. (ducking). my opinion is that the reason medication is the mainstay of modern psychiatry is that it's the only treatment available (Jung's included) that's more than rarely effective. and even after rarely illuminating some of a willing patient's darkest psychic areas, psychiatry can't (Jung doesn't even try to) help patients develop a comprehensive, functional set of coping tools.

whatever. i'm giving this book 5 stars because the exposition is excellent and his 'active imagination' technique helped me improve my creative output. i write and draw as an outlet, not for the public. Jung had a jaundiced view of artists and "art for art's sake" and advised against using 'active imagination' for that purpose, but i love it for that. that's where it actually works. i keep a journal and log my life, my dreams/daydreams and all ideas. it's great material for creative writing exercises and drawing. 'active imagination' is a great raw creativity tool. as for psychotherapy, even after all of Jung's contributions it's still as helpless as ever.

If you fit the following profile, then you owe it to yourself to read about active imagination: introvert, deep thinker, and aged in the mid 20s while not yet settling into married life. This book can be looked at as a self-help book if you possess those qualities because it will gently remind you of sources of unhappiness that you would not readily accept consciously as being a valid reason for getting depressed. The danger of ignoring these sources of conflict is that your mind will take over and cope with the use of the imagination leading to fantasies. Order springs out of chaos when you are armed with the knowledge of this book and are at a loss to explain the behavior of yourself and others.