Public Semester Program
Autumn 2024

The concept of biunity is introduced to explain the roles of knower (observer) and known (object of observation) in Ibn ‘Arabî’s Sufism , C.G. Jung’s Analytical Psychology and John von Neumann’s Quantum Theory. The concepts and the logic involved in this comparison have implications for the phenomena of psychogenic death, psychogenic healing and psychotherapy.

Through looking at the Greek myth of silent Philomela and her transformation this lecture explores connecting with the dark feminine and using one’s own voice in the healing of trauma.

Depression as regression of libido into the unconscious, understood as a process fundamental to individuation, is a core concept in Jung’s theories. We will review and deepen our understanding of this process and how to support and work with it as an analyst. Then we will look at the current understanding of ‘clinical depression’ as a physiological and psychiatric illness. We will proceed to examine recent discoveries in neuroscience which support Jung’s theories, and discuss Jaak Panksepp’s Affective Neuroscience theory which helps to diagnose and discuss depression.

“All reality is iconoclastic. The earthly beloved, even in this life, incessantly triumphs over your mere idea of her.”
– C.S. Lewis in Grief Observed
We will explore the theme of Otherness in relation to the beloved. What or who is the beloved? Is he/she inner or outer? What happens in the space between myself and the other? How do I differentiate between the ideal and the reality of the other person, between the Other in my psyche that still keeps me enclosed within my own universe and the outer Other who forces me to open myself to the new and unexpected?

This module will analyse the psychological resonance of Richard Wagner’s musical drama Parsifal, showing how it depicts the perils and rewards of the individuation process and the metamorphosis of consciousness through confrontation with the shadow and anima/animus. A key focus will be representations of personal and collective trauma in Parsifal, and the ways in which the text and musical symbolism evoke similar phenomena encountered in clinical practice.

The feeling of being ‘broken’ during psychic fragmentation is often accompanied by numinous experiences and unconscious experiences of identification with one’s surroundings.
I will discuss the concept of fragmentation, which is based on the psyche’s property of dissociability. We will also look at the way in which fragmentation and numinosity appear in conscious and unconscious material.
Lastly, through a discourse on the fairy tale “Jorinde and Joringel” we will contemplate fragmentation as an individuation path.

This is a theoretical overview of active imagination and a prerequisite for the experiential seminar. You will learn about this creative process C.G. Jung used himself and hear about the objectives and stages of active imagination as described by Marie-Louise von Franz. Vital information about when and when not to use active imagination will also be presented. Participants will be familiarized with central Jungian concepts such as compensation, tension of the opposites, and transcendent function.

We will explore ways in which the individuation journey is a pilgrimage which asks for authenticity, differentiation, integrity, and resilience. It is a journey of becoming who we are meant to be, reflecting creatively on insights from the unconscious, discovering our unique path, and responding to that which lies deepest within.

In spring of 2024 Sarah Blum donated a sequence of 43 oil-based crayon paintings—her late husband David Blum’s psychological legacy—to ISAPZURICH. This illuminating series is this autodidactic painter’s self- explorative journey, his individuation process, as he grapples with cancer. Through his dreams he meets his inner guide, a Wise Old Dog, his own inner wisdom, that supports and comforts him on his ultimate transformative journey.
This course is comprised of six short lectures:

Deborah Egger, MSW
What the Blum Collection means to ISAP

Murray Stein, PhD
“My Appointment with David Blum”

Sarah Blum (video)
The Soul of David Blum

Peter Ammann, Dr. phil.
A Bond of Music - My Friendship with David and Sarah Blum

Lucienne Marguerat, lic. phil. &
Penelope Yungblut, MA
The Healing Power of Images: “A Miracle has Taken Place”

Kathrin Schaeppi, MS, MFA
Why Do We Collect Pictures?

A Jungian interpretation of the legend will be presented.

Pictures from art history show us the way. A prelude to Christmas.

Helping others or the role of the helper is widely respected and highly regarded. Helping is often considered the “right” thing to do; it is an honorable act. Is there no negative potential in helping others? Does helping never inflict harm? What is the cost of being the helper? This course explores the persona and the shadow of the social worker, the physician, and the psychotherapist/analyst.

Jung views spirituality (“Geistigkeit”) not only as an intellectual but also as an experiential quest that can be understood as being seized by the numinous qualities of the spirit archetype. Healing involves achieving or regaining a “religious attitude” that cannot be achieved by mere conformity to religious institutions or by the ritual consumption of psychedelic drugs (“entheogens” that bring forth the inner god). How can we understand this religious/spiritual attitude in today’s world which is characterized by a “spiritual turn”, i.e. an individual search for meaning, connectedness and transcendence?

The lectures offer an overview of Germanic mythology within the context of Indo-European cultures. I will be focusing on the old Germanic world view, the creation of the world, the dawn of the gods and the psychological role of some of the most significant gods and goddesses. Much of what is called modernity is based on old Germanic culture and mythology. Connecting with hidden roots is an essential aspect of individuation. Particular attention will be paid to female characters in Germanic mythology.