Listening to the Call of the Self in the Ecological Crisis

Listening to the call of the self is nowadays summoned not only by an inner, personal soul need, but by the very outer ecological crisis. Remarkably indeed, the ecological ‘sufficiency’ response required by the outer crisis, mirrors many elements of traditional spiritual practices and even religious vows. The ecological crisis is a psychic crisis for it reveals a deficient worldview, a loss of rootedness in the larger dimension. Both crises call for the revivifying of our mystical relationship to earth and soul. The symbolic analysis of ecological (and societal) issues, taken as symptoms, reveals in word images the unlived soul life of our time. These images can help develop a more deeply grounded perspective for this doubly needed turnaround. Light pollution will serve us as example, with the twofold question: where would it be meaningful to bring light into darkness, and where to treasure the creative power of darkness.