#The Red Book - Carl Gustav Jung

[shisasan]

[arsanimarum]

“I want to exist from my own force, like the sun which gives light and does not suck light.”

C. G. Jung, The Red Book: Liber Novus

[noor-kazem]

"المشكلة تبدأ في داخل الإنسان وتنتهي فيه"

“Sorun kişide başlar ve onunla biter.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“The problem begins with the person and ends with him.”

[nietszche]

Footnote from The Red Book by C. J. Jung.

[philiosuffr]

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

“My soul, where are you?” Can you hear me? I talk to you, I call you, are you there? I'm back, I'm here again,..... One thing, however, you need to know: one thing I've learned, and that's to live this life. This life is the path, the long searched path to the unreachable, that we call divine. [33] There's no other way. All other paths are lost paths. I found the right path, it led me to you, to my soul.

Carl Gustav Jung, Red Book

[Leila L'Abate]

[katsona-the-katsequel]

Persona Timeline Pt. 1: Pre-Canon

Gonna add references like we're in the Tardis Wiki. If you know, you know.

Events that only took place in the Other Side will be marked with a "🟠". Events that only took place in This Side will be marked with a "⚪️".

For extra fun, you can read only the general and 🟠 events, then when you hit the Timeline Reset in the P2 Timeline, start over but this time reading only the general and ⚪️ events in order to progress to P3. The full Tatsuya experience, some might say.

BEGINNING OF TIMES

- The Great Will created the Megami Tensei Multiverse (Game: Megami Tensei II). The Great Will is implied to also rule, or at least oversee, the Persona Universe.

4.5 BILLION YEARS AGO

- Nyx, a Star Eater, took damage when she collided with Earth (Book: Persona 3 Club). The debris created the Moon and, while Nyx' psyche was trapped on Earth, her body was enclosed in the Moon.

- Fragments from Nyx' body, called Plumes of Dusk, fell on Earth (Book: Persona 3 Club).

- Nyx began the long process of healing her physical body.

- In order to fight Nyx' psyche, the primitive life on Earth indirectly created the Collective Unconscious (Book: Persona 3 Club), connecting all the souls on Earth through the Sea of Souls. Nyx' psyche was sealed here.

2 MILLION YEARS AGO

- Humans came to be.

- The Expanse was formed to house all the gods, spirits, mythological beings, shadows, and demons created by humanity (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

- Chronos / Charon, god of death and time, came to be, born from man's collective unconscious to guide and accompany them to the afterlife (Game: Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth).

350,000 YEARS AGO

- Philemon and Nyarlathotep came to be; Philemon representing the good of humanity, and Nyarlathotep the evil (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- Erebus was created as a manifestation of humanity's grief and negative emotion (Game: Persona 3 FES). He began to look for Nyx' psyche, which was still scattered across the Collective Unconscious.

BETWEEN 2,000 BC AND 1598

- Igor began his life as a doll (Game: Persona 3 FES).

- Igor was given life by Philemon and placed in charge of the newly-created Velvet Room (Game: Persona 3 FES).

BETWEEN 1467 AND 1590

- As a consequence of rumors created in 1999 Sumaru, a historical warlord named Kiyotada Sumaru conquered the land what would become Sumaru City (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- A vassal of Kiyotada named Tatsunoshin Suou organized an assassination attempt against him with his lover, Princess Maihime Amano, and his retainer, Junnosuke Kuroda (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- Kiyotada gored Maihime with a spear, and Tatsunoshin cut off his head. Devastated, Tatsunoshin ordered Junnosuke to flee Sumaru Castle and burn it down as he fled (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- Junnosuke recovered Tatsunoshin and Maihime's remains from the burned down castle and mummified them (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- Junnosuke changed his name to Fuyou and founded the Mokujinken school of martial arts (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- Fuyou died of natural causes, and his spirit remained in limbo, awaiting for the day Tatsunoshin would call upon him once more. Until then, he protected Maihime's descendants (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

BETWEEN 1598 AND 1995

- Belladonna became a denizen of the Velvet Room.

1752

- Nameless covered his eyes. It is possible he became a denizen of the Velvet Room around this time (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

1809

January 19

- Edgar Poe was born.

1842

May ??

- Poe published "The Mask of the Red Death: A Fantasy", which made the earliest references to a velvet room.

1849

October 7

- Edgar Allan Poe passed away due to unclear circumstances.

1875

July 26

- Carl Gustav Jung was born.

BEFORE 1895

? ??

- The Shirogane line of detectives began (Game: Persona 4).

BETWEEN 1909 AND 1969

? ??

- The Demon Painter was born and raised in Sumaru City (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

1913

? ??

- Possible date for Jung to have met Philemon, or at least began to have visions of the Velvet Room and/or Expanse.

1914

July 28

- World War 1 began.

BETWEEN 1914 AND 1918

? ??

- With Philemon's help, Jung wrote the Red and Black Books. The Red Book was a record of the origin of Personas and Philemon's power, while the Black Book recorded everything about the Sea of Souls. The Red Book granted limitless power and free manipulation of people's consciousness and unconsciousness, while the Black Book could harvest power and take others' Personas to summon and create beings for various purposes (Manga: Persona Tsumi to Batsu).

- In order to seal the Books' ridiculous power, Philemon created special keys (Manga: Persona Tsumi to Batsu). A fraction if their power can still be used with the Books closed, though.

- Jung finished the Red and Black Books and gave them to Philemon, who introcued them to Igor (Manga: Persona Tsumi to Batsu).

- Philemon set free the Red and Black Books along with their keys from Kadath Mandala, awaiting for a human who showed the abilities the Books provided (Manga: Persona Tsumi to Batsu).

- Igor began to make an effort to get to know his guests (Manga: Persona Tsumi to Batsu).

1916

? ??

- Kosei High School was founded (Game: Persona 5).

1918

November 11

- World War 1 ended.

1929

Between May and June

- Bunkichi Kitamura was born (Game: Persona 3 Reload).

BETWEEN 1929 AND 1949

? ??

- Tatzusou Sudou was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

1937

Between February and March

- Mitsuko was born (Game: Persona 3 Reload).

BETWEEN 1937 AND 1946

? ??

- Stephen was born (Game: Shin Megami Tensei).

1939

September 1

- World War 2 began.

BEFORE 1944

? ??

- Kouetsu Kirijo was born.

1945

April 30

- Adolf Hitler escaped to Antarctica with the Last Battalion, growing his forces and waiting for the time to strike again (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

September 2

- World War 2 ended.

1948

? ??

- Jyun Owada was born (Game: Persona 5 Strikers).

BETWEEN 1951 AND 1976

? ??

- Munehisa Iwai was born.

BEFORE 1952

? ??

- Tatsuzou Suou was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

BETWEEN 1956 AND 1976

? ??

- Sojiro Sakura and Wakaba Isshiki were born.

BETWEEN 1958 AND 1967

? ??

- Stephen began the Terminal System project and became the first human to initiate contact with the Expanse. However, a shadow crossed over and, since Stephen didn't speak their language, was crippled by it (Game: Shin Megami Tensei).

- The event with the shadow inspired Stephen to begin the creation of the Demon Summoning Program (Game: Shin Megami Tensei).

BEFORE 1960

? ??

- Setsuko Sonomura was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

1961

June 6

- Jung passed away.

BEFORE 1962

? ??

- Akinari Kashihara and Maya Okamura were born.

1962

Between January 20 and February 18

- Junko Kurosu was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

BEFORE 1963

? ??

- Steven Silverman and Kankichi Mishina were born.

1963

? ??

- Masayoshi Shido and Takeharu Kirijo were born (Game: Persona 3 / Game: Persona 5).

BETWEEN 1963 AND 1968

? ??

- Toranosuke Yoshida was born.

1964

? ??

- St. Hermelin High School was founded (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

1966

Between April 20 and May 20

- Ginji Sasaki was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

? ??

- The winning streak of the Special Investigations Unit began, mostly aided by forged evidence (Game: Persona 5).

1967

June 13

- Kaoru Saga / Baofu was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

? ??

- Miki Asai was born.

1968

July 28

- Kyouji Kuzunoha was born (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner).

November 8

- Takahisa Kandori was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

? ??

- Chizuru Ishigami was born.

BETWEEN 1968 AND 1976

October 1

- Zenkichi Hasegawa was born (Game: Persona 5 Strikers).

1970

May 16

- Ryotaro Dojima was born (Game: Persona 4).

BEFORE 1971

? ??

- Philemon and Nyarlathotep made a bet on whether humanity would destroy itself or become enlightened beings (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- Nyarlathotep cursed Sumaru City so strong rumors would become reality (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

1971

? ??

- Tatsuya Sudou was born with Nyarlathotep whispering in his head (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- First art contest in St. Hermelin High School (Manga: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

BETWEEN 1971 AND 1974

? ??

- Saeko Takemi and Tomomi Fujimori were born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

BEFORE 1973

? ??

- Eiichiro Takeba was born.

1973

December 30

- Katsuya Suou was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

1974

June 1

- Taro Namatame was born (Game: Persona 4).

November 30

- Ulala Serizawa was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

? ??

- Misuzu Hiiragi was born.

BEFORE 1975

? ??

- Shiori's older sister was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

1975

January 14

- Shiori Miyashiro was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

1976

July 4

- Maya Amano was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

1977

April ??

- Junko began attending Seven Sisters High School (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

BETWEEN 1977 AND 1908

? ??

- Junko became the first Miss Sevens (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- Kashihara and Okamura began to teach at Seven Sisters High School.

BEFORE 1978

? ??

- Shuji Ikutsuki was born.

BETWEEN 1978 AND 1986

? ??

- Sadayo Kawakami was born (Game: Persona 5).

BEFORE 1979

? ??

- Kunikazu Okumura was born.

1979

April 9

- Yukino "Yukki" Mayuzumi was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

June 4

- Maki Sonomura was born with an unspecified illness. She would be hospitalized various times through her childhood and early teenage years (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

July 11

- Masao "Mark" Inaba was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

August 18

- Reiji Kido was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

September 21

- Eriko "Elly" Kirishima was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

October 2

- Kei "Nate" Nanjo was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

December 24

- Kazuya and Naoya Toudou (P1MC) were born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

? ??

- Shunsuke Fujii was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- The New World Order was founded after a small company led by Tatsuzou unearthed Kiyotada's head in the soon-to-be Honmaru Park, which spoke in their heads advice to control the country (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

BETWEEN 1979 AND 1998

? ??

- Tatsuzou became the Minister of Foreign Affairs (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

1980

January 1

- Hidehiko "Brown" Uesugi was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

March 3

- Yuka Ayase was born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

March ??

- Junko graduated from Seven Sisters High School and became a famous actress.

August 13

- Tamaki Uchida (SMT:If...MC) was born (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

? ??

- Yumi Shirakawa, Shinji "Charlie" Kuroi, Akira Miyamoto, Ideo Hazama, Akiko Yano, and Ryuichi Sakamoto were born (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

- Chisato Kasai and Yosuke Naito were born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

1981

? ??

- Junko and Kashihara got married (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

May ??

- Upon realizing she was pregnant, Junko retired from stardom (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

July 27

- Tatsuya Suou (P2MC) was born (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

October 25

- Miyabi Hanakouji / Kozy was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

? ??

- Reiko Akanezawa and Takuya Miyashiro were born (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if... / Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

- Tadashi Satomi was born.

BETWEEN 1981 AND 1983

? ??

- Mitsuo Shimazaki was born.

BEFORE 1982

? ??

- Shinichi Yoshizawa was born.

1982

February 14

- Jun Kurosu / Jun Kashihara was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin / Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

May 4

- Lisa Silverman was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

Between October and November

- Anna Yoshizaka was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

November 15

- Eikichi "Michel" Mishina was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

? ??

- Gekkoukan High School was founded.

BETWEEN 1982 AND 1984

? ??

- Masataka Amano entrusted Mr. Bunbun to Maya while he went away as a war correspondent (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- Masataka died away in a war (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

BETWEEN 1982 AND 1985

? ??

- Sayoko Uehara and Noriko Kashiwagi were born (Game: Persona 4).

BETWEEN 1982 AND 1999

? ??

- Junko returned to stardom (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

1983

? ??

- Naoya got a cold and Kazuya, in an effort to make him feel better, went with their mother to buy him manga. On the way home, Kazuya was hit by a truck and died (Manga: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Naoya began to act like Kazuya to comfort his mother. Her mental breakdown made her stay at her parents' house while Naoya was taken care of by a housekeeper and the Sonomuras (Manga: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Hiroki Sugimoto, Mami "Sheba" Shibata, and Miho "Mee-ho" Ogishima were born.

- Mayumi Yamano was born (Game: Persona 4).

BETWEEN 1983 AND 1984

? ??

- Noriko Katayama was born.

1984

February 1

- Tohru Adachi was born (Game: Persona 4).

April ??

- Kandori began attending St. Hermelin High School (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona). He would become president of the student council.

? ??

- Chika "Chikarin" Ueda was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

BETWEEN 1984 AND 1997

? ??

- Sasaki became part of a one-hit wonder band (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). After fading to obscurity, became a record producer.

1986

April ??

- Sudou began attending Seven Sisters High School (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- The rumors spread about Sudou made his mental state worsen (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

July 6

- Owada won his first term as a legislator.

? ??

- Akari Hoshi / Ixquic was born (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

BETWEEN 1986 AND 1989

April ??

- Saeko and Tomomi began attending St. Hermelin High School (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

? ??

- Kumi Hirose became the first victim of the Snow Queen Curse (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

BETWEEN 1986 AND 1992

? ??

- Hidehiko had a bowel movement accident that earned him the nickname of "Brown" (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Ideo and Reiko's parents got divorced. Their father kept Ideo and their mother left with Reiko (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

1987

March ??

- Kandori graduated from St. Hermelin High School and began studying at Oxford.

BETWEEN 1987 AND 1990

? ??

- Michiko Matsudaira became another victim of the Snow Queen Curse (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

BETWEEN 1988 AND 1991

? ??

- Yuriko Yamamoto became another victim of the Snow Queen Curse (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

BETWEEN 1988 AND 1993

? ??

- Shido became a metropolitan assemblyman, beginning his career in politics (Game: Persona 5).

BETWEEN 1988 AND 1995

? ??

- Kuzunoha founded the Kuzunoha Detective Agency.

1989

? ??

- Kashihara became a substitute father for Sudou (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Kashihara, believing that the Maiyans aliens were speaking through Sudou, wrote all the messages in the book "In Lak'ech" (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Suspecting infidelity, Junko hired detective Daisuke Todoroki to follow Kashihara (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Junko began to spread vicious rumors about her husband, weakening his hold on reality (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

March ??

- Sudou graduated from Seven Sisters High School.

- Tatsuya, Jun, Michel, and Lisa met each other in the Alaya Shrine. They began to call themselves the Masked Circle (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Maya met and befriended the Masked Circle, becoming a surrogate older sister to them (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Maya taught the Masked Circle the Persona Game (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

Between March and August

- Jun gave Tatsuya an engraved Zippo lighter, while Tatsuya gave him a silver wristwatch. The two made a promise to be friends forever (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Kashihara fell in the Seven Sisters clock tower and was crushed by the gears (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Nyarlathotep took on Kashihara's appearance and replaced him (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

April ??

- Katsuya began attending Seven Sisters High School (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

August ??

- Maya, after revealing she would be moving away, was locked inside the Alaya Shrine by Michel and Lisa. Tatsuya was locked in as well (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- The Alaya Shrine was set on fire by Sudou, who cut Tatsuya with a knife and made Maya develop pyrophobia. Tatsuya took Sudou's right eye off with his Persona (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Sudou killed and dismembered Takuya (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- Jun, Lisa, and Michel mistakenly began to believe that Maya was killed in the fire, and hid away their masks (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- The trauma made Tatsuya, Lisa, Michel, and Maya forget about the incident and about each other (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Nyarlathotep made Jun believe that Maya was killed by his friends, and began grooming him to become Joker (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

- Tatsuzou stopped the investigations of Tatsuya's father into Sudou, using his influence to discredit him and end up with Tatsuya's father leaving the police (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin / Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

- Tatsuzou sent Sudou to the Morimoto Sanitarium (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment). ⚪️

- Maya moved away from Sumaru City with her mother (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

? ??

- Akira Konoe was born (Game: Persona 5 Strikers).

BETWEEN 1989 AND 1992

? ??

- Tomomi became the last victim of the Snow Queen Curse, carrying a grudge against Saeko for knowing about it and not saying anything (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Principal Ooishi ordered the Snow Queen Mask to be put away (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

March ??

- Saeko graduated from St. Hermelin High School (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

1990

February 18

- Owada won his second term as a legislator.

March 3

- Akinari Kamiki was born (Game: Persona 3).

1991

May 8

- Mitsuru Kirijo was born (Game: Persona 3).

August 11

- Shinjiro Aragaki was born (Game: Persona 3).

Between August and September

- Mamoru Hayase was born (Game: Persona 3).

- Nozomi Suemitsu and his fraternal twin were born (Game: Persona 3).

September 22

- Akihiko Sanada was born (Game: Persona 3).

? ??

- Ulala failed a grade and had to repeat a year (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

- Naoya pierced his ear as personal proof that he was not Kazuya (Manga: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Saori Hasegawa, Ichiko Ohya, and Kayo Murakami were born (Game: Persona 3 Portable / Game: Persona 5).

- Naoya had a cold for the last time in his life (Manga: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

1992

Between January and February

- Keisuke Hiraga was born (Game: Persona 3).

March ??

- Katsuya graduated from Seven Sisters High School and became a police officer, dropping his dream of becoming a patissier to clear his father's name (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

April ??

- Maya returned to Sumaru City to attend high school.

Between September and October

- Andre Laurent Jean Geraux / Bebe was born (Game: Persona 3).

October 19

- Yukari Takeba was born (Game: Persona 3).

Between November and December

- Kenji Tomochika was born (Game: Persona 3).

December 22

- Fuuka Yamagishi was born (Game: Persona 3).

? ??

- Ulala met Maya.

- Minato Arisato (P3MC), Rio Iwasaki, and Natsuki Moriyama were born (Game: Persona 3).

BETWEEN 1992 AND 1994

? ??

- Shinji stole someone's bike, which earned him the nickname "Charlie" (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

BETWEEN 1992 AND 2003

? ??

- Miki Sanada was born.

1993

January 16

- Junpei Iori was born (Game: Persona 3).

Between March and April

- Yuko Nishiwaki was born (Game: Persona 3).

May 24

- Mitsuo Kubo was born (Game: Persona 4).

July 18

- Yoshida was voted into office.

- Owada won his three term as a legislator.

Between October and November

- Chihiro Fushimi was born (Game: Persona 3).

? ??

- Saki Konishi was born.

- Sae Niijima was born.

- Yoshida missed a legislative meeting to take a personal vacation, was accused of embezzling party funds, and called a voter an idiot in an open forum. This earned him the title of "No-Good Tora" (Game: Persona 5).

BETWEEN 1993 AND 1994

Between July and August

- Hidetoshi Odagiri and Kazushi Miyamoto were born (Game: Persona 3).

BEFORE 1994

? ??

- Takuto Maruki was born.

1994

April ??

- Yukki began to attend St. Hermelin High School (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

June 22

- Yosuke Hanamura was born (Game: Persona 4).

July 30

- Chie Satonaka was born (Game: Persona 4).

December 8

- Yukiko Amagi was born (Game: Persona 4).

? ??

- Kenji's sister, Yu Narukami (P4MC), Kou Ichijo, Daisuke Nagase, Ai Ebihara, and Tomoe Sayama were born.

- Kaoru and Miki ran an investigation on Tatsuzou and the Tien Tao Lien mafia for money laundering (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

- Tatsuzou ordered the assassination of Kaoru and Miki, with Kaoru only surviving thanks to the awakening of his Persona (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

- Kaoru changed his name to Baofu and vowed to avenge Miki (Game: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment).

BETWEEN 1994 AND 1996

? ??

- Hanako Ohtani and Yumi Ozawa were born.

- Kou's birth parents may have died of an unspecified sickness. Kou was placed in an orphanage (Game: Persona 4).

BETWEEN 1994 AND 1997

? ??

- Dojima saw Yu for the last time before he came to Inaba (Game: Persona 4).

BEFORE 1995

? ??

- Kouetsu discovered the Plumes of Dusk, began to look into their origin, and amassed a collection for benevolent purposes (Book: Persona 3 Club).

- The Kirijo Group separated from the Nanjo Group, though they kept a close working relationship (Game: Persona 3).

- Some mean kids pulled Michel's pants down in front of Miyabi and told him she hated fat people. Out of guilt, Miyabi began to let herself go and become chubby (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin). 🟠

1995

March ??

- After graduation, Maya began to work as a reporter for the teen magazine "Coolest" (Game: Persona 2: Innocent Sin).

April ??

- Yumi, Charlie, Miyamoto, Hazama, Akiko, and Ryuichi began attending Karukozaka High School (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

- Maki, Mark, Nate, Naoya, Brown, Yuka, Chisato, and Naito began attending St. Hermelin High School (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Reiji began to attend an unnamed high school (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Elly began to attend an unnamed high school in America (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

April 27

- Naoto Shirogane was born (Game: Persona 4).

June 1

- Rise Kujikawa was born (Game: Persona 4).

? ??

- Kouetsu began to experiment with shadows to create a time manipulation device (Game: Persona 3).

- Kuzunoha passed away.

- Hazama began to face bullying at school (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

- Hazama confessed his crush to Akiko, only to be rudely rejected (Game: Shin Megami Tensei: if...).

- Naoki Konishi, Ayane Matsunaga, and Sumomo Ujima were born.

BETWEEN 1995 AND 1996

January 2

- Kanami Mashita was born (Game: Persona 4: Dancing All Night).

BETWEEN 1995 AND 1997

? ??

- Michel pulled Sugimoto's pants down in middle school, causing the latter to swear revenge.

BETWEEN 1995 AND 1999

? ??

- Kouetsu became a nihilist, which was only fueled by his discovery of The Fall (Game: Persona 3). The Kirijo Group began to dedicate their efforts to bring about The Fall.

BEFORE 1996

? ??

- Kandori became the head of the Mikage-cho branch of Saeki Electronics & Biological Energy Corporation / SEBEC (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Elly's twin sisters were born (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona).

- Nate met Kandori and didn't like him (Game: Megami Ibunroku Persona)

[gravity-rainbow]

Self-knowledge is knowledge of God; the self and the divine are identical (Gnostic Gospel of Thomas)

Illustration from Carl Gustav Jung's The Red Book

[poetfromthevoid]

Like plants, so men also grow, some in the light, others in the shadows. There are many who need the shadows and not the light.

Carl Gustav Jung, The Red Book: A Reader’s Edition (2009).

[primordialsoundmeditation]

Rabbit Holes

We have now entered the year of the Rabbit in the Chinese Zodiac.

2020 was the year of the Rat, which in essence was about survival, quite symbolic of what the world went through that year. We have left behind the year of the Tiger (2022), which built resilience and strength. The Tiger represented a year of making changes, of masculine energy present, risk taking and progress.

The Rabbit represents death, rebirth, and renewal, and hopefully through this a sense of peace and calm. Can the rabbit teach that to reach the peaceful point which we all so desire, there is first some work to be done?

From The Book of Symbols (Taschen):

“All over the world the moon and the rabbit are also linked. Both the moons and the rabbit’s existence reflect in high relief the cyclical nature of life, the ever-recurring conjunction of darkness and light, death, and rebirth.”

“Treading softly on the earth to nibble fresh green shoots and grasses, rabbits emerge from cover in the soft light of dawn and dusk, thresholds of transition. The diffuse light in which the rabbit reveals itself, its ability to easily vanish from sight and its lively antics have made it an embodiment of alchemy’s Mercurius, the elusive, informing spirit of psyche that can bring together the mortal and immortal aspects of self. The rabbit is thus depicted as the initiates guide in processes that lead to the obtaining of the elixir of immortality, which is also in the rabbit’s possession.”

Let us not forget the infamous white rabbit in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland, the initiator in Alice’s plunge into the rabbit hole or the unconscious as we would phrase it in depth psychology. Alice faces a crisis in the underworld and begins a quest to find out who she is. The Red Queen in the garden of live flowers invites or rather reminds Alice to “remember who you are”

Alice goes through the alchemical fire and develops parts of her personality and ego identity, to bring unconscious aspects into consciousness, what Carl Gustav Jung would refer to as the journey to wholeness or individuation.

Alice is a child, so one would not typically think she could possibly have an experience of individuation. Perhaps though there is something that happens in our childhoods whether it be an experience, a dream, the innocence of play, an encounter, that speaks to the overall odyssey we then embark upon entering puberty and into adulthood. A kind of microcosm of the macrocosm, a premonition of what’s to come.

If we reflect and can look back on an earlier time, maybe it’s all already there. The lesson is present. The pilgrimage is what will teach us what we have come here to learn. We had a taste of the journey in childhood, and as adults must make sense of the cards we have been dealt, and, like Alice, remember who we are. Perhaps the journey is the biggest sacrifice we will ever have to make.

The book of symbols suggests the rabbit in role of trickster in Alice in Wonderland, leading Alice into the uncanny underground world. In the play Harvey, Elwood P. Dowd and his six-foot tall white rabbit companion are the foil for a proper, moneyed family lacking soulful imagination. This immediately recalls the rabbit “Frank” in Richard Kelly’s 2001 film Donnie Darko, who befriends a teenager bringing news of a doomed future. Frank leads Donnie down a painful sacrificial path arriving at the final act.

Perhaps we all have our own “white rabbit” story.

We could reflect which rabbit holes we are choosing to fall into or that invite us to go down. We can ask what the significance the year of the rabbit means in our own lives and the world at large. What is becoming of us, personally, and collectively? What proverbial burrows and warrens do we have to go through to come out on the other side integrated and whole? And to do this, tasting both the bitterness of our own mortality but rewardingly also licking the brief sweetness of immortality like the rabbit on the 18th century Chinese embroidery who stands upon the moon next to the tree of life, pounding the elixir of immortality with a golden pestle.

May we all enter the year of the Rabbit with a complimentary sense of calm and spirit of adventure.

Carl Jung

[ruknowhere]

The Cabinet of the Solar Plexus

Born today...Carl Gustav Jung, July 26, 1875, Kesswil, Switzerland

"Without this playing with fantasy, no creative work has ever yet come to birth. The debt we owe to the play of the imagination is incalculable." - C.G. Jung

image: The Light at the Core of the Darkness from C.G. Jung's Red Book

[daimonclub]

Letteratura, religione, morti e psicologia

Libro dei morti Tibetano Letteratura, religione, morti e psicologia. Questo articolo analizza l'importanza della letteratura alla luce dei vari libri dei morti nelle diverse religioni e soprattutto il legame tra letteratura, morti, immagini e psicologia all'interno del libro rosso di C.G. Jung, attraverso un estratto di una conversazione tra James Hillman e Sonu Shamdasani riportata nel libro Lament of the Dead: Psychology After Jung's Red Book, Il lamento dei morti in italiano. Il messaggio principale che ne sembra derivare è che, mentre i libri dei morti costituivano una guida per il defunto per arrivare nell'aldilà, il libro rosso, così come buona parte della migliore letteratura, costituisce al contrario una guida suggerita ai vivi da parte dei defunti per raggiungere la tanto agognata consapevolezza della nostra esistenza. Carl William Brown Volgiti ai morti, ascoltane il lamento e prenditi amorevolmente cura di loro. Carl Gustav Jung Ovunque vado trovo che un poeta è stato lì prima di me. Sigmund Freud Ciò per cui i morti non parlavano, da vivi, te lo possono dire, da morti: la comunicazione dei morti è una lingua di fuoco al di là del linguaggio dei vivi. T.S. Eliot Lo scopo della letteratura è trasformare il sangue in inchiostro. T.S. Eliot Le tre grandi divinità madri dei popoli orientali sembra fossero generatrici e annientatrici insieme; dee della vita e della fecondità nello stesso tempo che dee della morte. Sigmund Freud D’ora in poi voglio immaginarmi la morte come una tenera e affettuosa mamma che con estremo amore, stringendomi sorridente al suo seno per tutta l’eternità, invece di darmi la vita me la toglierà. Carl William Brown

Il libro dei morti egiziano Abbiamo ucciso i morti, e adesso ci aggiriamo in una vita che è poco più di un pregiudizio, lontani dalla pienezza dell'esistenza. Ecco il sintomo collettivo, la malattia di cui soffre la nostra cultura, e che le psicoterapie tentano invano di sanare. Lo intuì un secolo fa C.G. Jung, quando iniziò quella discesa nei propri abissi inferi che avrebbe speso anni a trascrivere, calligrafare e corredare di immagini sfolgoranti, consegnando poi il testo a un silenzio infranto solo nel 2009, con l'edizione che lasciò stupefatti: il Libro rosso, favoleggiato da tempo nelle cerchie junghiane, vedeva finalmente la luce e la sua unicità ancora da decifrare scuoteva non solo l'edificio della psicologia analitica ma ogni altra costruzione concettuale eretta sul territorio della psiche. James Hillman Pensiamo che ogni elaborazione mentale faccia parte del Tagesrest, come lo chiama Freud: i residui diurni, immagini composite, la spazzatura della vita. Ma Jung dice che persino i nostri pensieri derivano dalle figure. Dunque il compito sarebbe riportarle alla luce, e il Libro rosso sembra fare esattamente questo. Jung permette alle figure di parlare, di mostrarsi. Addirittura le incoraggia a farlo. James Hillman Leggevo della pratica diffusa tra gli antichi egizi di aprire la bocca dei morti. Era un rituale e non credo sia possibile riprodurlo oggi, con le nostre mani. Eppure aprire il Libro rosso è un po' come aprire la bocca dei morti. James Hillman La religione è solo letteratura, ma la letteratura non è solo religione. Carl William Brown Ci vuole il sangue. L'opera è il «libro dei morti» di Jung, la sua discesa nel mondo infero, il tentativo di stabilire un rapporto con i morti. Jung si rende conto che se non veniamo a patti con i morti semplicemente non possiamo vivere, e che la nostra vita dipende dalle risposte che diamo alle loro domande rimaste senza risposta. Sonu Shamdasani Gli antenati. I morti. Non è una mera metafora, un messaggio cifrato per indicare l'inconscio o qualcosa del genere. Quando parla dei morti, Jung intende proprio i morti. E loro sono presenti nelle immagini, continuano a vivere. Sonu Shamdasani Nel commento al "Segreto del fiore d'oro" c'è un punto in cui Jung parla dell'importanza del lasciar accadere, o Gelassenheit, una lezione appresa da Meister Eckhart e analoga al wu wei dei taoisti, ovvero non fare nulla ma lasciare che gli eventi psichici accadano da soli. Lì ha luogo la relativizzazione: si consente l'emergere spontaneo delle figure, si fa un passo indietro e poi si tenta di valutare, di seguire ciò che ne scaturisce. Sonu Shamdasani I libri dei morti sono importanti in molte religioni, poiché contengono istruzioni, preghiere e rituali per assistere i defunti nel loro passaggio dall'esistenza terrena a quella dopo la morte.

Carl Gustav Jung Nella religione egizia, il "Libro dei Morti" era una raccolta di testi funerari che venivano posizionati nelle tombe per aiutare il defunto a superare le prove del regno dei morti e a raggiungere la vita eterna. Il libro conteneva preghiere, incantesimi, formule magiche e istruzioni per la mummificazione. Anche nella religione tibetana, esiste un "Libro dei Morti", chiamato "Bardo Thodol", che fornisce una guida per il defunto attraverso i vari stati di transizione tra la morte e la rinascita. Nella religione cristiana, il "Libro della Vita" è menzionato nella Bibbia come un registro dei nomi dei giusti che godranno della vita eterna. Il Libro di Apocalisse, in particolare, contiene riferimenti al giudizio finale e alla risurrezione dei morti. In generale, i libri dei morti rappresentano un modo per la religione di fornire conforto e guida ai propri fedeli anche dopo la morte. Essi offrono una sorta di mappa per il viaggio verso la vita eterna, aiutando il defunto a superare le prove che si presentano nel loro passaggio nella dimensione successiva. Il "Libro Rosso" di Jung è un'opera privata e molto personale dello psicologo svizzero Carl Gustav Jung, che egli scrisse tra il 1914 e il 1930. Il libro, che originariamente venne tenuto segreto, fu pubblicato per la prima volta nel 2009, molti anni dopo la morte di Jung. Il "Libro Rosso" è una raccolta di appunti, disegni e riflessioni di Jung sui suoi sogni, le sue visioni e le sue esperienze interiori. È considerato un testo fondamentale della psicologia analitica, la teoria psicologica sviluppata da Jung, che sottolinea l'importanza dell'inconscio e del simbolismo nella vita umana. Nel libro, Jung descrive il suo viaggio interiore, esplorando le profondità della sua psiche e incontrando figure simboliche che rappresentano diverse parti di sé stesso. Egli considerava questo viaggio come un'esperienza spirituale e un processo di individuazione, ovvero il processo di diventare una persona completa e consapevole di sé stessa. Il "Libro Rosso" è una lettura impegnativa e complessa, ma è anche un'opera molto preziosa per chi è interessato alla psicologia analitica, alla spiritualità e all'esplorazione della psiche umana. Esso rappresenta una testimonianza unica della vita interiore di uno dei più importanti psicologi del XX secolo. Dal libro Lament of the Dead: Psychology After Jung's Red Book , Il lamento dei morti in italiano. SS: Abbiamo accennato all'importanza della letteratura. A suo avviso la letteratura cosa può offrire alla psicologia?

Il libro rosso di C.G. Jung JH: Santo cielo, al momento è proprio il mio interesse principale. Ho l'impressione che il modo in cui comprendiamo le persone nella pratica della terapia sia terribilmente inadeguato: abbiamo i casi clinici, abbiamo i manuali diagnostici, che a loro volta contengono centinaia di categorie diagnostiche, ma non percepiamo mai la persona in carne e ossa. Nel XIX secolo, invece, e anche per parte del XX, i casi clinici erano scritti in modo tale da mostrare la calligrafia del paziente, ogni dettaglio della sua vita lavorativa, i resoconti dei suoi figli ... Tutto era condensato in relazioni tutt'altro che piatte e anodine. Al centro delle descrizioni c'era una sorta di figura immaginaria o letteraria. Oggi le statistiche riportate nei manuali diagnostici affermano che tot persone con un certo tipo di schizofrenia hanno una crisi dopo tot anni eccetera, e capisco che sia così, perché esiste una quantità sterminata di resoconti basati sulle prove di efficacia per quanto riguarda la prognosi, il trattamento e così via. È un approccio molto psichiatrico, molto medico. Tuttavia, se le figure basilari che determinano la vita di una persona non sono caratteristiche della persona stessa, tanto per cominciare, ma sono le figure incontrate da Jung e da centinaia di pazienti, perché non partire da lì per ottenere modelli o immagini che ci aiutino a capire che cos'è la vita di una persona, di che cosa è fatta l'anima di una persona? Prima che nascesse la psicologia, intorno al 1900 - la psicologia nel senso dei casi clinici, intendo -, c'erano i romanzi. Per tutto il XIX secolo Jane Austen, Tolstoj, Turgenev, Balzac misero in pagina le più straordinarie descrizioni della vita umana. Le tragedie, le sofferenze, lo humour, le stranezze, gli appetiti, la brutalità, le perversioni: nella letteratura c'era tutto. E la gente comune leggeva parecchia letteratura, o seguiva uno come Dickens nei suoi giri di conferenze, solo per apprendere quelle storie e scoprire com'era la vita. Ecco, mi sembra che il legame tra le figure sia di per sé una parte del lavoro di apprendimento: la pratica dell'immagine, vedere come le figure lavorano insieme, che cosa costruiscono, quale influenza esercitano. È esattamente ciò che faceva la letteratura, ciò che ha continuato a fare. Per molti versi è diventata più sofisticata, ma non ha smesso di parlare della vita delle persone. Le storie raccontavano di una donna che si sentiva male se qualcosa non andava per il verso giusto in famiglia, e allora si stendeva sul divano o sul letto, o sveniva; oppure di un uomo che faceva innamorare tutte le ragazze del quartiere. I romanzi erano pieni di questo ricco materiale descrittivo sulla vita, su come sia piena di ipocrisia, inganni, azioni meschine e crudeli, rifiuti, indifferenza e chi più ne ha più ne metta. Credo che la via per tornare a comprendere la natura umana passi dagli studi letterari, non dalle descrizioni scientifiche dei casi clinici, o dalle analisi statistiche, o da qualunque altra cosa venga insegnata agli aspiranti terapeuti. Sarebbe uno studio della vita attraverso la buona scrittura. SS: Capisco dove vuole arrivare, ma penso che lo status conferito alla letteratura sarebbe potenzialmente problematico, così come il modo in cui potrebbe essere intesa, perciò preferirei un linguaggio più neutro. Tuttavia la funzione che lei attribuisce alla letteratura è significativa. La descriverei come un fornire ricche articolazioni dell'esperienza. JH: Ottimo. SS: Nelle quali gli individui possono riconoscere se stessi e gli altri. Oggi le persone hanno a disposizione molte fonti, non solo la letteratura ... JH : Il teatro e così via.

James Hillman SS: E paradossalmente, con il fallimento della sua volontà scientifica, la psicologia viene trasformata in un altro mezzo che fornisce articolazioni dell'esperienza. La si legge come letteratura. Non per niente, con la disfatta della psicoanalisi il suo ultimo rifugio sono state le facoltà letterarie. JH: È vero. L'ultimo baluardo. SS: Personalmente diffido dei giudizi di valore. A me interessa di più il modo in cui le persone usano le cose. In questo senso, le psicologie sono usate come veicoli per l'articolazione dell'esperienza, mediante i quali gli individui riconoscono se stessi e riconoscono gli altri, e trovano psicologie di loro gusto. Ho una certa remora a valorizzare una forma di articolazione dell'esperienza a discapito delle altre. JH: Immagino che dovrei usare la parola «storia» anziché «letteratura ». Ma non importa. Vorrei concentrarmi sulla «ricca articolazione dell'esperienza», come la chiama lei, ciò che permette di intuire la natura profonda delle cose. SS: La parola-chiave è «intuizione» . A mio avviso le psicologie più fortunate sono quelle che forniscono mezzi operativi semplici: sono abili nella microgestione dei rapporti umani e possono suggerire quale comportamento adottare nei confronti degli altri, ma non forniscono necessariamente intuizioni differenziate. Proprio la semplicità spiega il loro relativo successo. JH: Probabilmente dovremmo tornare alla questione della letteratura. Mi interessa molto, comunque, e uso il termine in senso ampio per indicare tutte le arti, compreso il grande teatro, in special modo quello greco, e Omero, Shakespeare e cosl via. La vera preparazione per il bravo terapeuta che deve comprendere la natura umana e decifrare la vita delle persone si trova ancora nella Natasha di Guerra e pace di Tolstoj, nel Falstaff di Shakespeare: sono le figure vive che rimangono con noi più di qualsiasi essere umano che abbiamo mai conosciuto. Quando dico che rimangono, intendo che sono realtà psichiche, e possiamo imparare di più dagli scrittori particolarmente accurati o brillanti o eloquenti che dallo studio dei casi clinici. Quello che si impara da un caso clinico si estende ben poco alle altre persone, alla vita, non è una lezione sempre valida. Perciò la letteratura va tenuta in gran conto. Il vero studio, per il terapeuta, consiste nel leggere di vite che non sono di persone reali ma che incarnano la parte profonda della vita umana, i poteri da cui siamo tenuti in vita e che i bravi scrittori articolano cosl bene. E non solo i bravi scrittori: questa è la cosa curiosa. C'è poi un secondo aspetto da considerare, e cioè il fatto che la psicologia stessa non dovrebbe basarsi sulle statistiche, sulla sociologia, in qualunque modo la si voglia chiamare, sulla realtà politica e così via, ma sulla storia vissuta da una vita umana e presentata dalla letteratura. Come facevamo a conoscere la psicologia prima ancora che esistesse? Nel XIX secolo le persone, in particolare le donne, leggevano - e scrivevano - romanzi e racconti straordinari, che permettevano di capire a fondo come siamo fatti, come funziona la psiche umana: i romanzi popolari, ma anche le grandi tragedie, che mostravano come gli Dèi intervengano nelle nostre vite. Per me questa è la base estetica del nostro studio, del nostro lavoro, che finora è sempre stato sulla strada sbagliata. La discussione sulla bellezza in Joyce e in Picasso non è ancora finita, Jung e gli junghiani non hanno affrontato a dovere la questione dell'importanza primaria della bellezza, e dunque dell'estetica, per la vita della psiche. SS: Se osserviamo le stesse questioni nel Libro rosso, vediamo che Jung evita il linguaggio concettuale, perché si rende conto che non è in grado di racchiudere il linguaggio dell'anima. E si tratta del linguaggio dell'anima, per quel che lo riguarda, perché il dialogo avviene tra lui e la sua anima. C'è bisogno di un linguaggio nuovo, letterario ma non finzionale, su questo Jung è molto chiaro. L'opera è tutta Wahrheit e non Dichtung , come dice a Cary Baynes, e fa il possibile per trovare un linguaggio che comunichi, che evochi il potere emozionale delle esperienze in questione.

Sonu Shamdasani JH: Questo è l'importante. Oggi il linguaggio della psicologia non comunica nessuna emozione, non comunica la bellezza dell'esperienza che descrive. SS: È la differenza principale fra il linguaggio dell'evocazione come lo intendo io, che rimanda alle esperienze facendole echeggiare, e il linguaggio della spiegazione. La spiegazione - considerando il fatto problematico che Jung è coinvolto nel Libro rosso - uccide l'esperienza. Jung si dedica al linguaggio della spiegazione fino al 1912, ed è una cosa che lo lascia svuotato. JH: Svuotato come persona? SS: Sì. E lo sa il cielo quali effetti ha sui suoi pazienti e sui suoi colleghi. Perciò la questione è: che cos'è il Libro rosso? È ancora psicologia? Jung fatica a risolvere il problema. Alla fine si allontana dall'opera e torna a una forma di concettualismo, perché ha la sensazione che perderebbe la sua credibilità scientifica se si abbandonasse a quella forma espressiva. JH: Oppure trova inadatte le forme di cui si parlava poco fa, le forme estetiche e artistiche dell'epoca, e con la sua esperienza ha la sensazione di essere entrato in forme nuove che tuttavia non ha ancora formulato. È il pezzo mancante: la formulazione della nuova esperienza dell'anima senza regredire alla vecchia modalità concettuale. SS: E senza cadere nell'estetismo, come lo avrebbe chiamato Jung, l'idea di un'estetica che è mera superficie o apparenza. L'estetica ha anche un senso più profondo, usato per comunicare la profondità dell'esperienza. È l'estetica con cui ha a che fare Jung e che per molti versi è inelegante. Non siamo davanti a un libro ben scritto, e le raffigurazioni pittoriche non sono formalmente compiute, ma proprio per questo motivo l'opera è più efficace o più emozionante. Fa a pugni con le categorie estetiche dello stesso Jung. JH: Giusto. Tuttavia il guaio è che Jung si porta ancora dietro la separazione tra etica ed estetica avvenuta dopo la fine della Grecia antica. Se una cosa è solo estetica è dilettantesca, non è davvero impegnata, dunque è immorale o non etica. In ciò consiste l'estetismo. Ma non dimentichiamo che i romantici, i greci, gli uomini del Rinascimento ne avevano già discusso molto tempo prima. Jung viene da una tradizione - non so se chiamarla protestantesimo o altro - che ha già giudicato l'estetica a sé stante come priva di valore morale. SS: Ricollegandomi al discorso della cosmologia, credo che l'elemento cruciale sia l'espressione adeguata, appropriata, penetrante. A mio parere il linguaggio del Libro rosso è il più penetrante fra quelli usati da Jung proprio perché non è concettuale. Read the full article

[editionetoile]

Carl Gustav Jung Translated from German Book: The Red Book

“My soul leads me into the desert, into the desert of my own self. I did not think that my soul is a desert, a barren, hot desert, dusty and without drink. The journey leads through hot sand, slowly wading without a visible goal to hope for? How eerie is this wasteland. It seems to me that the way leads so far away from mankind. I take my way step by step, and do not know how long my journey will last. Why is my self a desert? Have I lived too much outside of myself in men and events? Why did I avoid my self? Was I not dear to myself? But I have avoided the place of my soul. I was my thoughts, after I was no longer events and other men. But I was not my self, confronted with my thoughts. I should also rise up above my thoughts to my own self. My journey goes there, and that is why it leads away from men and events into solitude. Is it solitude, to be with oneself? Solitude is true only when the self is a desert.”

Illustration by Laurent Guidali Www.Etoile.App

[cheragh-jadu]

The Incantations. (The Red Book) C. G. Jung

By an adorable friend of mine, Petra Glimmdall Honestly, if I had to choose a prophet and a holy book, I would go for Carl Gustav Jung and The Red Book, respectively. In The Red Book, Jung speaks about his encounter with the Self, his “Self”, and his journey through the desert, much like a prophet, accompanied by his ego but ultimately alone. As I have shared of them here, Carl Jung, in his…

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

I lock the past with one key, with the other I open the future. This takes place through my transformation. The miracle of transformation commands. It applies not to me, but to the symbol. The symbol becomes my lord and unfailing commander. It will fortify its reign and change itself into a fixed and riddling image, whose meaning turns completely inward, and whose pleasure radiates outward like blazing fire, a Buddha in the flames. Because I sink into my symbol to such an extent, the symbol changes me from my one into my other.

—Carl Gustav Jung, The Red Book (unpublished manuscript, c 1915–30)

[Scott Horton]