"Secret unrest"

"Our heart glows, and secret unrest gnaws at the root of our being. Dealing with the unconscious has become a question of life for us." ~Carl Gustav Jung

I had an all too brief but interesting discussion with my professor Thursday night after class when I asked her to suggest some Jung books or additional places to look for a sort of semi-definitive list of archetypes (in conjunction with a personal project I want to pursue). It turned into a mini discussion about Jung and the unconscious because she was currently reading a very tiny volume of his, from which she read a passage out loud. I neglected to write down the title and should have, because the subject was more fascinating stuff. But with the handiness of email, I will have it soon.

The passage she read concerned what to me is the very heart of the problem in trying to bring the unconscious to consciousness. Every layer we peel back is a reflection of what others have said, suggested, taught us are parts of ourselves. Can we find and know a core being- a core self, soul, spirit? If everything, even those under-layers are all a reflection of all the influences on us from day one, is the core discoverable, knowable? Won't our subjective selves- and all those lifelong influences- also still be the interpreter?

As a tiny aside: I lean towards the cognitive behavioral theories and practical applications (with a heavy dose of Adler, Rogers, and Maslow, along with cultural sensitivity) as being the most useful for living day to day and for much of the work I might want to do with others, but my age and love of puzzles push me towards the philosophical, analytical and spiritual soul seeking side of things and towards Jung.

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