And know that there is in thee somewhat of his nature, which will never be corrupted…
C. G. Jung
The central image of this workshop revolves around the Self’s unfolding through the archetypal experience of forgiveness. We will begin with a summary of different psychological, spiritual, and philosophical theories on forgiveness, focusing on the soul’s development as it emerges within the attachment process. Among the theorists we will look at are Jung, Michael Fordham, Wilfred Bion, Donald Winnicott, and Melanie Klein.
Then, we will focus on the development of the soul and the emergence of the symbolic life in the face of betrayal and trauma. As Esther Harding aptly states, “[F]orgiveness is regathering and reintegrating the unresolved, the unanswered, and the unredeemed.” The psyche’s synthetic movement and one’s capacity to regather and reintegrate trauma will be discussed and amplified through the study of several alchemical plates in the Rosarium Philosophorum.
Concomitantly, we will delve into the shadow side of forgiveness and the soul’s identification with what Donald Kalsched defines as Dis and the philosophical question of whether forgiveness is possible in the face of recalcitrance and evil.