A Story of Dreams, Fate and Destiny [Zurich Lecture Series Edition]

In this rich and poetically written book, Erel Shalit "calls attention to the dream and its images along the nocturnal axis that leads us from fate to destiny." He takes us on a journey from ancient history, beginning with the first documented dream, that of Gilgamesh, to Adam and Eve and the serpent, to Joseph in Egypt as the Pharaoh’s dream interpreter, through ancient Greece to the Asklepion, to Swedenborg’s visions, to our world today through the eyes of Freud, Jung, and science, and finally to the process of active imagination to reveal the workings of Mercurius and the transcendent function.As Dr. Shalit moves between cultures, he adds historical accounts of the many customs of working with dreams—our long history of how humans have paid close attention to this constant phenomenon for thousands of years. Scattered throughout the pages are engaging stories, legends, myths, and the roots of words that take meaning deeper. The chapters include dreams—historical dreams and the dreams of his patients. He works them, showing us how to squeeze the precious liquid from each one that can lead to a resolution of opposites and a state of understanding so profound—and sometimes so simple—that we witness how wholeness emerges from the psyche through this process. This accessible book is a reminder of the foundational work that leads to our greater consciousness and a destiny well-lived.Table of Contents Preface by Nancy Swift FurlottiA Poem by Erel Shalit, My Fathers’ HousePart 1. A History of the Dream: Fate and Destiny from Gilgamesh to JungA. IntroductionB. The Initial Dream: The Dream of GilgameshC. The Writing on the Wall: NebuchadnezzarD. Ancient Greece: The Discourse of DreamE. Anima Between Fate and Destiny: SwedenborgF. The Dream of HysteriaG. Fate and DestinyPart 2. Soul and the Experience of MatterI. The Dream—Poetry of the SoulA. IntroductionB. From Brain to PlayC. Dreams and EnsoulmentD. From Nature to SoulE. Soul and ReflectionII. The Moisture of DreamsA. GnosticismB. Adam’s EveC. The Serpent’s Birth from Lilith’s WombD. The Serpent and SatanPart 3. What does Joseph Add to the Dream? Psychological Footnotes Along Joseph’s Path to EgyptA. Visions of the NightB. Joseph the Dream InterpreterC. Joseph in Potiphar’s HouseD. The Butler and the BakerE. Pharaoh’s Dreams: The Principle of Opposites, EnantiodromiaPart 4. Incubation, Being and Healing: A Therapy of DreamsA. Amethyst and HealingI. Incubation at HealingA. IncubationB. AsklepieionC. The Healing SymbolD. Chiron: The Wounded HealerII. The Self and the Great MotherA. The SerpentPart 5. The Ecology of Dream and PsychoanalysisI. Freud and JungA. Freud B. JungII. A Picture from the UnconsciousA. CompensationB. Dream and SymbolC. The Symbolic PerspectiveD. The Dream and its Semiconscious ConcomitantsE. The Prospective Function in DreamsPart 6. Active Imagination and the Transcendent FunctionI. Active ImaginationA. The DiaryB. The DescentC. The Golden ChainD. Active ImaginationII. The Transcendent FunctionA. MercuriusB. The Bridge to WholenessConclusion, Final PoemBibliographyIndex