In this title, around 350 incisive essays and almost 800 full-color images evoke the hidden dimensions of archetypal symbology - showing how symbols in art, religion, life or dreams can lead to transformational experience and psychological resonance. This is an exploration of symbols and their meanings. "The Book of Symbols" combines original and incisive essays about particular symbols with representative images from all parts of the world and all eras of history. The highly readable texts and almost 800 beautiful full-color images come together in a unique way to convey hidden dimensions of meaning. Each of the c. 350 essays examines a given symbol's psychic background, and how it evokes psychic processes and dynamics. Etymological roots, the play of opposites, paradox and shadow, the ways in which diverse cultures have engaged a symbolic image - all these factors are taken into consideration. Authored by writers from the fields of psychology, religion, art, literature, and comparative myth, the essays flow into each other in ways that mirror the psyche's unexpected convergences. There are no pat definitions of the kind that tend to collapse a symbol; a still vital symbol remains partially unknown, compels our attention and unfolds in new meanings and manifestations over time. Rather than merely categorize, "The Book of Symbols" illuminates how to move from the visual experience of a symbolic image in art, religion, life, or dreams, to directly experiencing its personal and psychological resonance. "The Book of Symbols" sets new standards for thoughtful exploration of symbols and their meanings, and will appeal to a wide range of readers: artists, designers, dreamers and dream interpreters, psychotherapists, self-helpers, gamers, comic book readers, religious and spiritual searchers, writers, students, and anyone curious about the power of archetypal images. This title is suitable for readers of works of high-quality popular history by Schama, Marr and Kynaston, as well as families and individuals looking for a one-stop history of Britain that takes a strikingly different approach from standard narrative histories.
Show moreIn this title, around 350 incisive essays and almost 800 full-color images evoke the hidden dimensions of archetypal symbology - showing how symbols in art, religion, life or dreams can lead to transformational experience and psychological resonance. This is an exploration of symbols and their meanings. "The Book of Symbols" combines original and incisive essays about particular symbols with representative images from all parts of the world and all eras of history. The highly readable texts and almost 800 beautiful full-color images come together in a unique way to convey hidden dimensions of meaning. Each of the c. 350 essays examines a given symbol's psychic background, and how it evokes psychic processes and dynamics. Etymological roots, the play of opposites, paradox and shadow, the ways in which diverse cultures have engaged a symbolic image - all these factors are taken into consideration. Authored by writers from the fields of psychology, religion, art, literature, and comparative myth, the essays flow into each other in ways that mirror the psyche's unexpected convergences. There are no pat definitions of the kind that tend to collapse a symbol; a still vital symbol remains partially unknown, compels our attention and unfolds in new meanings and manifestations over time. Rather than merely categorize, "The Book of Symbols" illuminates how to move from the visual experience of a symbolic image in art, religion, life, or dreams, to directly experiencing its personal and psychological resonance. "The Book of Symbols" sets new standards for thoughtful exploration of symbols and their meanings, and will appeal to a wide range of readers: artists, designers, dreamers and dream interpreters, psychotherapists, self-helpers, gamers, comic book readers, religious and spiritual searchers, writers, students, and anyone curious about the power of archetypal images. This title is suitable for readers of works of high-quality popular history by Schama, Marr and Kynaston, as well as families and individuals looking for a one-stop history of Britain that takes a strikingly different approach from standard narrative histories.
Show moreDrawing upon Carl Gustav Jung's work on the archetype and the collective unconscious, the Archive for Research in Archetypal Symbolism (ARAS) is a pictorial and written archive of mythological, ritualistic, and symbolic images from all over the world and from all epochs of human experience. The collection of 17,000 photographic images, accompanied by commentary on their cultural and historical context, probes the universality of archetypal themes and provides a testament to the deep and abiding connections of all life.
Bright, optimistic, bountiful and brainy, it makes you reel with a
sense of wonder at the complexity of the human mind and soul... You
can't ask for more than that.
*Creative Review*
...not just an interesting ecclesiastical read but a fascinating
look at history through the eyes of ancient man.
*125 Magazine*
... a potentially transformative reference work.
*World of Interiors*
Yes, the 807 page book is a doorstop. But it is also a stairway to
heaven. The amazing gift is not its weight or its cover, but what
lies between: a tangible (r)evolution in consciousness.
*HuffingtonPost.com*
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