This book explores C. G. Jung's psychology through the perspective of the existential philosopher Nikolai Berdyaev, drawing striking parallels between Jung's theory of individuation and Berdyaev's understanding of the person.

Placing Jung and Berdyaev firmly within the context of secular humanism, Nicolaus draws on their personal experiences of individuation to show how both writers seek to enable a renewal of our self-understanding as persons in a post-religious society.

Topics of discussion include:
the foundations of Berdyaev's personalism Jung's psychological interpretation of the Christian God-image individuation and the ethics of creativity.

C. G. Jung and Nikolai Berdyaev: Individuation and the Person offers a fresh perspective on the ethical implications of Jung’s theory and serves also as an introduction to Berdyaev’s thought. As such this book will appeal to analytical psychologists, scholars engaged with Jungian thought and all those interested in the interface between spirituality and depth psychology.

Reviews

"Georg Nicolaus' writing leaps beyond mere comparison of systems of Depth Psychology and spirituality, establishing a foundation for a true Spiritual Psychology. Depth psychology has long needed a balancing of the dark interior sufferings of the psyche with the soul’s openness to the truth of Divine radiance. Here it is!" - Robert Sardello, author of Silence: The Mystery of Wholeness and Director of The School of Spiritual Psychology, USA

"Jung and Berdyaev were self-consciously modern thinkers with very different backgrounds: Swiss Protestantism and Russian Orthodoxy. Central to them both was the notion of the person, not as a given, but as a creative opportunity. Dr Nicolaus’ thoughtful book is the first to bring their ideas into dialogue." - Andrew Louth, Professor of Patristic and Byzantine Studies, Durham University, UK

Contents

Papadopoulos, Foreword. General IntrodBerdyaev’s Life. An Introduction to Berdyaev’s Philosophy. The Foundations of Berdyaev’s Personalism. Anthropological and Psychological Reduction. Person in Jung and Berdyaev. Berdyaev’s Understanding of the Person. Jung’s Understanding of the Person. Individuation and Spiritual Experience. Esse in Anima and the Epistemology of the Heart. Epistemology of the Heart. Esse in Anima: Towards Psychological Religion. Psychological Idealism and Existential Intuition. Person and God-image. Trinity and Divine-humanity in Berdyaev. Jung’s Psychological Interpretation of the Christian God-image. Pneuma and Psychic Energy. Individuation and the Ethics of Creativity. Berdyaev’s Ethics of Creativity. Jung’s Ethics of Individuation. Conclusion: Moving Beyond the Pre/Trans Fallacy.

Author Bio

Georg Nicolaus is a UKCP registered psychotherapist in private practice. He has studied philosophy in Munich, Germany, and has a PhD in Psychoanalytic Studies from the Cen...