The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga: Notes of the Seminar Given in 1932 [Hardcover]

C.G. Jung (Author), Sonu Shamdasani (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 18, 1996 | ISBN-10: 0415149266 | ISBN-13: 978-0415149266 | Edition: 1

Jung's Seminar of Kundalini Yoga, presented to the Psychology Club in Zurich in 1932, has been widely regarded as a milestone in the psychological understanding of Eastern thought and the symbolic transformations of inner experience. With sensitivity towards a new generation's interest in alternative religion and psychological exploration, Sonu Shamdasani has brought together the lectures and discussions from this seminar. In this volume, he re-creates for today's reader the fascination with which many intellectuals of pre-war Europe regarded Eastern spirituality as they discovered more and more of its resources, from yoga to tantric texts.

Editorial Reviews

Review

In these four lectures ... Jung placed some very complex Indian concepts within the Western psychological understanding of his time, thereby helping us to grasp better both systems of thought and realization. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

About the Author

Sonu Shamdasani is a historian of psychology at the Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, London. He is the editor of Theodore Flournoy's From India to the Planet Mars: A Case of Multiple Personality with Imaginary Languages (Princeton), of Michael Fordham's Analyst-Patient Interaction, and, with Michael Munchow, Speculations after Freud: Psychoanalysis, Philosophy, Culture. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (July 18, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415149266
• ISBN-13: 978-0415149266
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,409,252 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist, an influential thinker and the founder of analytical psychology (also known as Jungian psychology). Jung's radical approach to psychology has been influential in the field of depth psychology and in counter-cultural movements across the globe. Jung is considered as the first modern psychologist to state that the human psyche is "by nature religious" and to explore it in depth. His many major works include "Analytic Psychology: Its Theory and Practice," "Man and His Symbols," "Memories, Dreams, Reflections," "The Collected Works of Carl G. Jung," and "The Red Book."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worth reading both for Jung and for Shamdasani, February 26, 2006

By 

Robin Robertson "Psychologist and author" (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga : Notes of the Seminar Given in 1932 by C.G. Jung (Hardcover)

Jung's ideas on Kundalini are brilliant, but reveal more about Jungian psychology than Kundalini.

As with all of Shamdasani's writing, his introduction provides a historical context that both enriches Jung's interpretation and tells us much of the era in which his ideas emerged

23 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Incredibly Intense Read, May 24, 2007

By 

S. Cummings "dragonfly" (someplace, nice) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga (Paperback)

I found this book an incredibly intense book to read. There's nothing simple about it. I had hoped for both clarity and understanding and received neither. I kept reading...hoping upon hope that Shamdasani's words would hold me spellbound and captivated.

I seek truth in its simplest form, but did not find it here. While I am certain that Shamdasani's intent was to provide the reader with an intelligent read, his need for intellectual diatribes created, in stead, an emotional abyss; I found that I could not connect with his analysis without great intensity of focus. Frankly, I didn't have either the time or the inclination to work that hard to grasp the connections.

Had Shamdasani employed simplicity of thought and content as his guides, the average reader might actually benefit from his wisdom and intellect.

5.0 out of 5 stars Helpful for the not so spritual, June 7, 2010

By 

N (Boston) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Psychology of Kundalini Yoga (Paperback)

I love Jung & I Love Kundalini yoga, but before I ever stepped foot in a yoga class, I read as much as i could find at the time. This book was very helpful to me. its also been very helpful when I explain the very spiritual, intangible practice of this very specific type of yoga to my atheist / scientifically minded / concrete thinking friends. Even some of my new age-y friends have trouble understanding when I describe sitting in a room full of white people wearing turbans, chanting in Sanskrit and waving their arms around for 90 minutes. But this book really helps bridge the divide of understanding. Jung takes a very scientific approach and breaks it all down. its a great book, even if you're not planning to don a turban and chant Sanskrit for an hour with your finger oddly entwined.