What a summer in Australia this has been. Living amongst nature in a bushfire-risk zone, we have been ‘safe’ so far – though certainly not immune (who of us is?) as the horror and implications of these apocalyptic fires reverberate in the collective psyche.
In this newsletter I’d like to share a few reflections on the emotions of grief and anger arising from these recent events, and their archetypal significance.
Welcome to the first Spring issue of the Life Artistry newsletter 'Presences', a seasonal newsletter offering archetypal perspectives on life and work.
Last week James Davidson and I marched with hundreds of thousands of others in Australia as part of the global Climate Justice strike. We felt this indeed as a calling - not so much ‘following bliss’ (as Joseph Campbell famously said), but a calling borne from frustration, anger and grief. As we find ourselves living in an age of mass extinction in which the younger generation now face a very real existential threat, how can we not respond?
To my surprise, we came away feeling uplifted and buoyed from participating in the day. It felt good to be part of a movement of concerned, caring people from all walks of life, and to know that others are awake, have heard the call and are walking the path of resistance too.
In this newsletter I’d like to share a few thoughts about the source of a calling. In my work on the depth psychology of careers and vocation, I teach and write about the ways in which our authentic vocational callings arise from the psyche (which is also the Greek word for soul).
For traditional cultures such as the ancient Greeks and the Navajo, psyché was associated with the breath and with the air, that enveloping invisible medium in which we are always immersed and which gives us life. Similarly, the Jungian concept of the psyche is radically different from and is not a synonym for the 'personal mind’. Unlike the Cartesian notion of the personal mind, which is interior and separate from the outer world, the Jungian psyche is not ‘in’ each of us. Instead, Jung described the psyche as something that surrounds the human being, inside and out, and is antecedent to him or her. According to Jung, the psyche is no more ‘inside us’ than the sea is inside the fish.
Depth psychology suggests that an authentic calling arises from and is guided by the psyche, which is both inner and outer, and which includes various psycho-spiritual dimensions beyond the conscious mind. In the tradition of depth psychology, I call this source the psyche, but in other traditions it may go by various names, such as the unconscious, the Self, or (in mythological and religious traditions) the gods, or God.
The source of our calling might also be imagined as the anima mundi, or world soul.
Let me share a few paragraphs on this from my forthcoming book From Career to Calling : A depth psychology guide to soul-making work in darkening times (publishing with Routledge in 2020):
We might also imagine our vocational calling as arising from and as a response to the world soul, the anima mundi. The anima mundi is an idea first proposed by Plato, affirmed by the Christian mystics, Renaissance philosophers, German and British Romantics, and American transcendentalists amongst others, and revived in more recent times by the archetypal psychologists. Jung described the anima mundi as "a natural force which is responsible for all the phenomena of life and the psyche". In other words, it is as if the anima mundi gives birth to the human psyche and nurtures its growth and development.
From this perspective, a vocational calling extends beyond an individualistic, self-promoting activity to call forth actions which bring a person into a more harmonious relationship with the interdependent web of creation.
The idea of vocation as a response to the anima mundi has profound implications for the creation of new occupational directions which are responsive to the economic and ecological crises our planet faces today.
Are some occupations riper than others for vocation? Ecological or environmental work in particular seems to be a fertile area for the discovery of calling. Archetypal psychologist James Hillman extended a responsiveness to the anima mundi to reinvigorating work in areas such as energy policy, nourishment, hospital care, and even the design of interiors. In my research, teaching and practice I have seen women and men bring a depth psychological sensibility towards advances in understanding education, therapeutic approaches, community work, sexuality, economics, urban planning, mindfulness, organisational development, traditional cultures, healthcare, rehabilitation and more, via channels including teaching, writing, filmmaking, counselling, consulting, volunteer work and entrepreneurship.
Once we begin our dance with the psyche, previously unimagined new horizons open up for intelligent and soulful innovation in a myriad of fields.- excerpt from From Career to Calling: A depth psychology guide to soul-making work in darkening times © Suzanne Cremen (Routledge 2020)
These emerging vocational directions also relate to the Hebrew idea of tikkun olam – the notion of repairing the world. This is the idea that god (or the gods, and let's not forget the goddesses…) want us to participate in the ongoing repair and creation of the world. No one individual can do all that, or even a large part of it, but each of us is called in a particular way to repair what we can. So we are both crucially important, and we are part of something much, much larger than ourselves.
If these ideas speak to you, and you would like to explore their practical application in your own life in a thoughtful, supportive community with like-minded souls, you may be interested in our forthcoming course. I encourage you to consider joining us for the next Career as a Journey of Soul course I'm teaching.
"Rather than the need to heroically save the whole world, the real work of humanity at this time may be to awaken the unique spark and inner resiliency of genius within each person” ~ Michael Meade
If there is ever a time to wake up to your own soul’s calling and to bring your fullest being into expression in the world, it is now.
warmest wishes,
Suzanne
Dr Suzanne Cremen
Founder, Life Artistry Centre (Australia)
Adjunct Faculty, Pacifica Graduate Institute (USA)
© Suzanne Cremen 2020. Please ensure that any reproduction of our newsletter content is correctly attributed.
We acknowledge the Jinibara people as the Traditional Custodians of the lands upon which we live, work and learn.