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Mandala Symbolism (Bollingen Series)

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Mandala means "circle" in Sanskrit; Mandalas are frequently used in Hindu and Buddhist religious traditions and sacred art. This book contains two of Jung's essays on their symbolism.

Here are some representative quotations from the book:

Mandala is "the construction of a central point to which everything is related, or by a concentric arrangement of the disordered multiplicity and of contradictory and irreconcilable elements. This is evidently an attempt at self-healing on the part of Nature, which does not spring from conscious reflection but from an instinctive impulse." (Pg. 4)
"These situations are intense inner experiences which can lead to lasting psychic growth and a ripening and deepening of the personality ... They are the age-old psychic experiences that underlie 'faith' and ought to be in unshakable foundation---and not of faith alone, but also of knowledge." (Pg. 66)
"Most mandalas have an intuitive, irrational character and, through their symbolical content, exert a retroactive influence on the unconscious. They therefore possess a 'magical' significance, like icons, whose possible efficacy was never consciously felt by the patient." (Pg. 77)
"In view of the fact that all mandalas shown here were new and uninfluenced products, we are driven to the conclusion that there must be a transconscious disposition in every individual which is able to produce the same or very similar symbols at all times and in all places. Since this disposition is usually not a conscious possession of the individual I have called it the collective unconscious." (Pg. 100)