The Plenaro Dream

‘The difference between the "natural" individuation process, which runs its course unconsciously, and the one that is consciously realized is tremendous. In the first case,  consciousness nowhere intervenes; the end remains as dark as the beginning. In the second case, so much darkness comes to light that the personality is permeated with light and consciousness necessarily gains in scope and insight. The encounter between…

The kings of the world are growing old,

and they shall have no inheritors.

Their sons died while they were boys,

and their exhausted daughters abandoned

the sick crown to the mob.

Ranier Maria Rilke wrote these words 110 years ago, at the beginning of a century in which the myths of modernity, so recently constellated, would gradually collapse into the utterly demythologized world that we have inherited.

In…

The Iran Negotiations have been a Circus and a Charade 

Part One 

Are you celebrating Barack Obama’s deal with Iran? It is certainly a good thing, but have you had the same experience that I’ve had over several years? Has it occurred to you that this business has seemed particularly loony – even for the madhouse of American politics?

The system is broken. We can see this in countless examples, from corrupted voting machines to mass…

The Dream: The Vision of the Night

by Max Zeller

A classic in the field of dream analysis, The Dream: The Vision of the Night is a collection of essays, lectures, and vignettes by Max Zeller whose career included a law degree, a brief imprisonment in a Nazi Concentration Camp, study at the Jung Institute in Zurich, Switzerland, and thirty years of…

Soul and aloneness are as a dolphin swimming in deep ocean waters. Discovering soul,  we experience an enhanced sense of connection with others and a remarkably cohesive sense of self. Yet, there remains an essential aloneness. It is not loneliness, which often betrays disconnection from self and intimate others; rather, it is a sense of inner wholeness, completion within oneself. 



C.G. Jung wrote, "I had…

This morning after I completed my yoga practice I opened an ancient mystical text and read the faith is at the center of the self. Yogic philosophy teaches that life is a meditation on the self. We contemplate truth to self the entirety of our life and look to live in accord with our nature. Then we have lived life well.

A colleague wrote, "...our unconscious hopes and dreams, our goals and ends, pull us toward our transformation from fatedness to destiny"…

....Starbucks management would not have made fools of themselves by printing invitations on their coffee cups to discuss big topics like racism in America. Consulting DP: "It's a nice idea, but you're the container people, right? You wouldn't serve super-hot coffee without an adequate container, would you? If you're serious about furthering these difficult discussions, how about spending some of your revenue on paying diversity consultants and community leaders to facilitate safe and…

When the waves crest

In Australia

Sometimes you can see dolphins

Or other fish

Backlit by the sun

Suspended in the clarity of water.

That moment of perfect balance

Before the wave crashes

And dissipates

Leaves scant traces of shells

Which will be brought back into the…

Shortly after I posted Part Two of this essay, the Charleston murders occurred. Then came the debate over the Confederate flag and the predictable Republican rants that the South had fought the Civil War primarily over the question of state’s rights (which, I argue, it won on that question), not over slavery (it won on that one as well). Yes, there has been some good news this week, but we should be aware of the larger picture. As America looked at itself, arsonists burned seven…