The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect of the Feminine (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) [Paperback]

Nancy Qualls-Corbett (Author), Marion Woodman (Foreword)

Editorial Reviews

Review

When the Goddess of Love was still honored, the sacred prostitute was virgin in the original sense of the word (one-in-herself), a person of deep integrity whose welcome for the stranger was radiant, self-confident and sensuous. Her purpose was to bring the goddess' love into direct contact with mankind. In antiquity, human sexuality and the religious attitude were inseparable. The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect Of The Feminine is solidly based on Jungian psychological principles and powerfully illustrates how our vitality and capacity for joy depend on restoring the soul of the sacred prostitute to its rightful place in our conscious understanding. The Sacred Prostitute is engaging reading that provides a great deal of thoughtful observations on the nature of human sexuality and its relationship to the well-balanced personality and the health and stability of human society. -- Midwest Book Review

Product Details

• Paperback: 171 pages
• Publisher: Inner City Books (February 1988)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0919123317
• ISBN-13: 978-0919123311
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 5.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #60,846 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars from ancient history to modern psychotherapy, March 14, 2002

By 

Magdalene Meretrix (Idaho) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect of the Feminine (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) (Paperback)

Dr. Qualls-Corbett claims that modern people are wounded by our separation of sexuality from spirituality and suggests that the study of the ancient sacred prostitutes and sexually oriented temple priestesses will assist in a conscious "union of opposites," restoring sexuality to its rightful place in spiritual and religious thought. While her alchemical view of sexuality is firmly grounded in Jungian thought, Dr. Qualls-Corbett often uses sources that are somewhat less than reputable for her historical information. In many places where Dr. Qualls-Corbett is more accurate in her history, she often provides rather unorthodox interpretations of historical items, places or writings. When viewed from a Jungian perspective rather than a historical sense, however, Qualls-Corbett's interpretations are mythically sound. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to explore notions of sexuality from a stance that empowers both women and men as well as anyone who is considering developing ritual work in a sexual vein, especially rites of initiatory sexuality.

The book is divided into five major sections:

* "The Goddess and her Virgin: Historical Background" examines evidence of the sacred prostitute in the ancient world. Though the history here is often shaky, this section still contains much of value if one chooses to read critically.

* "The Psychological Significance of Sacred Prostitution" examines the archetypes of the Goddess, the Sacred Prostitute, the Stranger who visits her, and the "Heiros Gamos" or Sacred Marriage.

* "The Sacred Prostitute in Masculine Psychology" examines the male view of woman, anima and sexuality. Dr. Qualls-Corbett discusses the dreams of some of her male clients as well as the relationship between the Jesus character and the Magdalene/priestess character in D.H. Lawrence's "The Man Who Died" in an attempt to demonstrate that the healing power of consciously regarding the sacred prostitute is not limited to women.

* "The Sacred Prostitute in Feminine Psychology" first explores four of Dr. Qualls-Corbett's female clients -- three single women and one married woman -- as they explore their evolving sense of Self and sexuality. Dr. Qualls-Corbett then links these four stories together by relating them to the D.H. Lawrence short story, "The Virgin and the Gypsy," a story of lost innocence and overwhelming sexuality in which the male stranger, the Gypsy, plays the initiatory role to a young virgin in much the same way that the passing stranger would initiate a virgin waiting at the temple in ancient times.

* "Restoration of the Soul" examines the ...madonna paradigm of the feminine and attempts to integrate these two aspects by using Mary Magdalene and the Virgin Mary as personifications thereof. Dr. Qualls-Corbett also discusses the Black Madonnas found throughout Europe, suggesting that the image of the Black Madonna holds a key to the integration of the feminine.

The book concludes with a thorough bibliography and index.

Peppered with beautiful historical images of the Sacred Feminine, from Aphrodite to Sophia, this book is not difficult to read. It is written in a scholarly style but it typically defines any specialized vocabulary, making it accessible to those who have never read anything in Jungian psychology before. "The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect of the Feminine" is book number 32 in Inner City Books' series of "Studies in Jungian Psychology by Jungian Analysts."

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29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Transcending ideologies, August 17, 2000

By 

Minsma (Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect of the Feminine (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) (Paperback)

In every heart, both male and female, there is an eternal and immutable touchstone of joy. All too often that joy is lost in contemporary society, through harsh experience, or in the rush towards simplistic ideologies like "men bad, women good" (or the opposite). Nancy Qualls-Corbett attempts to show both men and women how to transcend the narrowly-defined sex roles and oppressions that have been imposed on them from childhood and to rediscover that touchstone of joy. She succeeds admirably, I think. The Sacred Prostitue is not about selling our bodies or the prostitution of pleasing and serving others to our own detriment. Rather, it is the antidote to these kinds of self-destructive behaviors. As we learn to express the source of joy in ourselves, to glorify it despite what we have been taught or bad experiences or what society may say, we liberate our lives. We transcend the old boundaries and grow. I am not talking about joy in a strictly sexual or sensual way here, and neither is Nancy Qualls-Corbett. The prostitute is a metaphor for the kind of healing that happens when we give ourselves over totally to love and the possibility of allowing joy to happen in our lives. First, we must learn to love and please ourselves, then we can learn to love and please others. And that is the true sacredness.

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Taking the profane edge off of sexuality, November 22, 1999

By 

K. J. Reynolds (Colorado) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Sacred Prostitute: Eternal Aspect of the Feminine (Studies in Jungian Psychology By Jungian Analysts) (Paperback)

Our Western culture has evolved to a point of sad and profane sexual disconnection. How can a woman who is devoted to serving Goddess or God be a sexual being in a culture without being a whore? How can a whore be anything other than profane? This book answers these questions and gives hope and validates my already held belief: We are given the joy of sexual union for something other than procreation. A must read for the 21st century feminist and also for the new evolving integrated man.