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FRIDAY  LECTURES

18th July

8.00-9.15pm

‘Remembering Jung’

a conversation about C.G. Jung and his work

with

Marie - Louise von Franz

Marie-Louise von Franz is one of the most widely read and profound writers in Jungian psychology.  She entered analysis with Jung at the age of 18 and collaborated with him on research until his death in 1961.  She had a long career as an analyst and a training analyst at the Jung Institute in Zurich.  Von Franz’s books on various archetypal themes in fairy tales are probably the most famous of her many publications.  Her Problems of the Feminine in Fairy Tales has been called one of the great books of the 20th century.  In this interview, von Franz  recalls her first impressions of Jung, their work together, and reflects on her own life in analytical psychology.   Her extraordinary personality and depth radiates throughout the interview.  She speaks with Suzanne Wagner and the conversation was recorded in 1977.  Dr. von Franz died in 1998.

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15th August

8.00-9.15pm

Mindfulness and Jung

Colin Thompson

Mindfulness therapy is based on Buddhist meditation principles.  Mindfulness works (partly) by acceptance of all thoughts and emotions as thoughts and emotions that one is having, rather than things to be fought. 

Meditation enables acceptance of shadow elements.  In Buddhist terms, meditation gradually dissolves the ego as just another component ‘thing’ that has no substance.  In Jungian terms, complexes can no longer overwhelm the ego.  This greatly enhances inner freedom. Counsel-ling sessions assist in this process.

The stillness that deep meditation brings allows a view of life without prejudices as parts of the Self come together in a coherent Whole.  

Colin Thompson trained as a nuclear scientist and was a research scientist in Iceland, studying underground steam and hot water reservoirs.  He has been a member of the Jung Society for many years, attending the Jung Institute in Zurich in 1995.  He has taught psychology at the Southern School of Natural Therapies and now runs the Melbourne Mindfulness Centre in Prahran.  He has two adult children, an acrobat and an engineer. 

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19th September

8.00-9.15pm

Online Interview

with

James Hollis is one of the living treasures of Jungian psychology.  He has written many acclaimed books, including the Middle Passage: from misery to meaning in mid-life, The Eden Project: in search of the magical Other, Swamplands of the Soul and Tracking the Gods.  His vivid and poetic writing reflects his deep knowledge of literature and myth.   After graduation, Dr. Hollis taught humanities in various American universities for twenty-six years.  At mid-life, he re-trained as an analyst at the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich.  He now lives and practises in Houston, Texas, where he has recently retired as Director of the C.G. Jung Educational Center.  Dr. Hollis is Vice-President of the Philemon Foundation, which is dedicated to the publication of the complete works of Jung. 

Dr. Hollis will speak on some of the themes raised in his books and on current issues.  His most recent book, Why Good People Do Bad Things, explores the workings of the Shadow, both individual and collective, in the contemporary world. 

The interview will be pre-recorded.  Dr. Hollis will be interviewed by Annette Lowe and Mary Duffy . 

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17th October

8.00-9.15pm

Self, Soul and Ego – The Symbolic Life

"Only the symbolic life can express the needs of the soul - the daily needs of the soul mind you." (Jung)  The Self as the archetype of wholeness encompasses the unknowable totality of which the ego is a part. When there is “so much more to be told” than the ego can encompass, how does “the part tell the whole.” (quotes: Paul Kelly)

The symbolic life lives in fables, myths and the great dramas of art, but in our rationalistic modern times,  it may live in popular culture too. In the symbolic life the soul finds relationship to what lies beyond the everyday values of a persona-driven ego life.

Rodney Ravenswood worked for nearly 20 years as a Jungian
psychotherapist.  He was involved with the CG Jung Society of Sydney for
12 years, including 2 as president. Rodney is well-known to the Jung Society of Melbourne for his popular talks and seminars. 

Rodney  is now retired and lives in north-eastern Tasmania with Nic, his wife, two cats, two cows, two horses and a cluster of feathered creatures.

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9.30am-12.30pm

The Archetypes in Art, Literature and Song

Rodney Ravenswood

Art of all kinds, high, folk or popular is the domain of the archetypes, wherein the symbolic life is most fully expressed. We may be provoked, amused or pricked in our conscience by art of all sorts.  Art that captures us and draws us through a veil, as it were, is “true art”, and we can be sure that  the archetypes are at work within it. Participants in the seminar are invited to bring just such artworks along to be explored, as one would explore dreams. Bring a piece of visual art, a passage or poem, and a song.

This seminar will be held in St. David’s church meeting room from 9.30 to 12.30.

Cost: members: $40, non-members $55, concession: $45

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Religious Symbolism in Aboriginal Central Australia

John Morton

In this illustrated talk John will discuss the importance of the symbolism of place and movement in the 'dreamings' of central Australia.  This is a companion piece to his ‘Archetypes and Aborigines’ talk to the Jung Society last October and will illustrate the themes John outlined to us in 2007. 

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Postcards from the Psyche

Kaya Prpic

Most of the rituals and images we have of Christmas originated in the Northern Hemisphere in midwinter. Over the millennia, pagan mythologies and symbols associated with both the cold darkness of the winter solstice and the creation of life from the void were integrated with the Christian story of the birth of the Son of God/Man.

But what images do we hold of Christmas in Australia in midsummer in 2008? In this workshop you will have the opportunity to create a collage using postcards through which you can share your own personal experience and understanding and explore the group's collectively held images, symbols, mythologies and stories.

Dr Kaya Prpic has been interested in Jungian psychology for over 20 years. Much of her international work in academia in grounded in the use of image to explore archetypes and collectively held perceptions within trans-cultural and trans-disciplinary higher education contexts.

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