Alchemical Studies (Collected Works of C.G. Jung Vol.13) (Paperback)

by C. G. Jung (Author), Gerhard Adler (Translator), R. F.C. Hull (Translator)

Editorial Reviews

Review
This volume is a great book, and it offers something of a prelude to Jung's monumental Psychology and Alchemy, Mysterium Coniunctionis and Aion. It is a book that should be read slowly . . . to absorb its many meanings. -- Review

Review
This volume is a great book, and it offers something of a prelude to Jung's monumental Psychology and Alchemy, Mysterium Coniunctionis and Aion. It is a book that should be read slowly . . . to absorb its many meanings.
(M.D. Medical Newsmagazine )

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Product Details

• Paperback: 524 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press; Reprint edition (August 1, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0691018499
• ISBN-13: 978-0691018492
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 5.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #106,762 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not quintessential, but good., February 11, 2001

By	"bpjammin" (NJ USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alchemical Studies (Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 13) (Hardcover)

"The really important psychic facts can neither be measured, weighed, nor seen in a test tube or under a microscope. They are therefore supposedly indeterminable, in other words, they must be left to people who have an inner sense of them, just as colours must be shown to the seeing and not to the blind." (Jung p. 238) This sentence reflects much of what this book is about. It highlights the drive behind Jung's attempt to make the invisible visible through an analysis of alchemical thought; it shows his complicated sentence structure and presents some of the hurdles one will have to jump in order to comprehend Jung's work on Alchemy. The preceding volume 12, "Psychology and Alchemy," would serve as a good introduction to this volume, and volume 14, "Mysterium Coniunctionis," might make Jung's thesis easier to comprehend.

This volume of collected works contains his commentary to "The Secret of The Golden Flower" which is almost useless without the actual Golden Flower text. It also contains Jung's analysis and commentary on some of the major metaphors of Alchemy.

According to Jung, Alchemy was the precursor of Western psychology, and that alchemists projected their mental/spiritual states unto the inanimate objects and processes of Alchemy. This work examines these projections in the light of modern consciousness and with the process of individuation in mind. `

Stripped to its essence, Jung's psychological theory states that humans have an unknown meta-consciousness that some will discover through a process he called individuation. This is a recapitulation of the ideas found in all religions, but is here represented by Jung in the terms of modern Western Culture as a scientific analysis of the Soul through an analysis of Alchemy.

Several years ago I read through this text without a clue as to what Jung was talking about, but found some of his observations noteworthy. About two years ago I had some experiences that made the insights contained in this book valuable, and I found that my previous reading allowed me to understand what I had read retrospectively. It also helped me in understanding aspects of Chinese Alchemy as metaphor. It is not recommended to casual readers.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Continuation of CW12, June 5, 2006

By	Neal J. Pollock (VA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Alchemical Studies (Collected Works of C.G. Jung, Volume 13) (Hardcover)

Jung explored alchemy as if it were a mystery novel--relishing every clue, interpreting (nominally) each symbol as it arose. His conclusion that it paralleled his psychological observations & model satisfied his incredible yearning to know that he wasn't crazy or a voice crying in the wilderness--yeah, verily, the alchemists pursued the same goal though in a slightly different way--vindicating Jung's quest for individuation=personal salvation. Thus, Jung's love for alchemy. It's unfortunate that even so-called scientists have ego's so wounded that they disavow their roots: chemists tend to downplay alchemy as astronomers downplay astrology--denigrating their roots. This shows an appalling lack of courage--something Jung had no lack of. Just think of what courage it must have taken for Jung to write about alchemy as having psychological truth embedded in its very heart. Yet he wrote 3 books worth on it CW12 (Psychology & Alchemy), CW13 (Alchemical Studies), & CW14 (Mysterium Coniunctionis). I'm in awe of his courage, let alone of his genius. Try reading some alchemy works yourself--if you think Jung is hard to read, think twice. Alchemical works are far more difficult. It took Jung's supreme effort to decipher them. So, if this work seems obtuse to you (& it is), consider how obtuse it was to Jung. Having studied some alchemy independently (e.g. Mutis Liber, Secret Symbols of the Rosicrucians, etc.) it seems only natural that the universal symbology should be reflected in transcendental alchemy, kabbalah, Jungian psychology, Campbell's mythology, & (amazingly enough) Tibetan Buddhism--mandalas. Thus, an incredible multiplicity of sources support Jung's model of the collective unconscious. A true scientist is a "walking question mark." Despite Thomas Kuhn's difference in definition, the essence remains the same--true scientists follow the KID (knowledge, information, & data) not the dying paradigm. Jung's new paradigm of universality has yet to be seriously challenged.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jung's pioneering researches...., June 1, 2000

By	Craig Chalquist, PhD, author of TERRAPSYCHOLO... (Bay Area, CA USA) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

...into the world of alchemy made the world aware of how rich a symbol-system had been lost from time out of mind. It was Jung who discovered that alchemy, a "chymical" art compensatory to the Christian emphasis on spirit over matter, also represented a projected psychology of the unconscious; it was, in fact, a forerunner of depth psychology itself.