Journey Into the World of Soul

Course Description

Central to Carl Jung’s psychology is each person’s journey to wholeness, known as the individuation process. In 1913, Jung began to record his interactions with unconscious fantasies and imaginations in a series of notebooks called the Black Books. These experiences laid the foundation of Jung’s work and brought him into direct confrontation with the power of his Soul.

In this course, Craig Chalquist offers a guided tour through the Black Books. You will learn basic Jungian concepts as well as Jung’s private thoughts on psychology, mythology, and key figures in his life and time. You will gain a deeper understanding of Jung’s journey and how to apply these same methodologies and principles to your life today.

In this course you are also invited to converse with your Soul and to develop your own journal or ‘black book’. What does your ‘black book’ look like? What kind of images would you put in it? What might your active imaginations look like? What kind of dreams might you have?

Along the way, you will discover ideas and examples for creating your own journal that records your conversations with the Soul, and your Soul’s journey toward wholeness. You will learn to combine text, imagery, fiction, dreams, alchemy, and poetry into a personal collection that testifies to your sacred path of individuation.

This course is ideal if

• You are familiar with basic Jungian concepts and would like to deepen your understanding
• You want to learn about the contents of the Black Books
• You would like to gain insight into your own journey to wholeness
• You long to deepen your connection to your Soul through activities like journaling, active imagination, and dream work

Course Overview

Class 1, 2, 3  A guided tour through the Black Books 

Between 1913 and 1916, C. G. Jung underwent a visionary “confrontation with the unconscious” in which various figures rose in his imagination and taught him about himself. One of these figures was a Sophia-like figure who called herself Soul. Much of this inner journey is recorded in Jung’s famous Red Book (Liber Novus). The Red Book was an extract from Jung’s journals. Stretching all the way to 1932, these Black Books record in seven volumes Jung’s extended apprenticeship to Soul, the most prominent voice on his journey.

Class 4, 5, 6 Continuation of the guided tour and your own journey to wholeness

By the end of this course you will

• Be able to explain Jungian concepts and describe the shamanic experiences that Jung had that have impacted his psychological ideas.
• Have developed your own journal that includes conversations with your Soul, being inspired by Carl Jung.
• Be able to explain the relevance of Jung’s conversations with the Soul for our lives today.