Carl G. Jung’s Analytical Psychology
Brief Introduction
Carl G. Jung’s Analytical Psychology
Ashok Bedi
Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung (1875-1961) are the twin pillars of the modern depth psychology. These two greats crossed path for a few years and then parted way to establish their own schools of psychoanalysis. Freud established psychoanalysis and Jung founded analytical psychology. One postulate that was the common denominator in both men’s approach was that what was repressed into the unconscious returns to consciousness as some manifestation of the psyche. Freud postulated that the unconscious is the repository of repressed sexual wishes and these return to consciousness in disguised form as neurotic and other symptoms filtered through by the ego’s defenses to make them acceptable to consciousness and thus survive the censorship of the superego which is the guardian of our moral code. Jung agreed with this basic premise but expanded Freud’s hypothesis significantly when he proposed that the unconscious is not just the depository of repressed sexual desire but the source of our ancestral archetypal wisdom and a treasure cove of profound unlived creative and spiritual potentials which continues to unfold and manifest as symbols of our psyche. He proposed that our conscious is not just the cause of our problems and symptoms but the source of our yet to be realized promise. This process of becoming who we are meant to be is called the individuation process which is the guiding principle of our psyche. Just as a seed is destined to become a tree, individuation process defines the optimal milieu for our ego to achieve wholeness and selfhood. The goal of Jung’s analytical psychology is not just symptom resolution but achievement of health, vigor and wholeness by living out our deeper program. The following introductory article will present an introduction to Jung’s life and work and outline the basic tenets of his analytical psychology.