Swamplands of the Soul

Course Description

There is a recurrent thought, a fantasy perhaps, that the goal of life is to achieve happiness. Who among us does not long to stand down from the ramparts, to arrive some distant day at a blissful bower and rest easy, abide awhile, and be permanently happy?  Yet our own psyche apparently has another thought, a contrary agenda, which frequently derails our fantasy and pulls us under into an emotional swampland. Our peaceful respites are ephemeral and can neither be willed into being nor perpetuated by hope, right conduct, or right religion. Rather, it seems, our own nature intends that we spend a good part of our journey in such dismal dwellings; yet these dread places paradoxically provide many of the most meaningful moments of our journey. Indeed, it is in such swamplands as loss, betrayal, and depression where the soul is fashioned and forged, character is tested, and values enlarged beyond the ego’s limited purview by the soul’s agenda.   

This course-discussion will select many swamplands, such as depression, addiction, anxiety, identify the developmental tasks each invites and consider the therapeutic strategies most effective. At the end of his introductory lectures on psychoanalysis, Freud suggested that the therapeutic task is to move from neurotic miseries to the normal miseries of life. Jung added that soul-making is the only resolution of suffering which honors spiritual integrity of the individual, and moves from victimage to a collaborative participation in the rigor of life. We will see how when we engage in this process, we may be brought to the paradox that the goal of life is not happiness but meaning, such meaning that deepens and dignifies our common condition.

This course comes with an extensive companion guide with an overview of the course content and questions for reflection.

This course is ideal if

• You are interested in learning more about Jungian views and ideas regarding emotional swampland places’, like loss, grief, anger, doubt and addictions.
• You want to face and explore your own ‘swamplands’ and learn how to deal with them more holistically.
• You want to gain insight into your own swampland places and how they are offering information about your individuation process.

Course Overview

Class 1. Guilt, Grief, Loss, and Betrayal

These dismal denizens bind us to our troubled past, and their adhesive power is difficult to break. When they dominate our lives, they cause us to walk backwards towards our futures.

Class 2. Doubt and Depression

Doubt and Depression feed off each other, and provide us with disempowering messages. Under each, however, is a summons to an action, especially when we don’t feel like it.

Class 3. Obsessions and Addictions

Obsessions and Addictions move us to compelling behaviors, behaviors which beget new problems, new swamplands with which to contend. In each case, the treatment plan is part of the problem.

Class 4. Anger, Fear, and Anxiety

Anger, fear, and Anxiety bind us to an imagined future, and constrict life in the meantime.  We need to discern what each makes us do, or keeps us from doing, and then act accordingly.

By the end of this course, you will

• Recognize how the emotional swamplands help you on your path through life.
• Know how to discern between a complex and a task that is part of your personal journey.
• Become more aware in your daily life and recognize where you are stuck, where you need to grow up, where to take responsibility and act on what you believe to be true.
• Better understand and explore what wants to enter the world through you.
• Recover your personal authority by visiting the swampland places in your life.