Demystifying Meaningful Coincidences (Synchronicities): The Evolving Self, the Personal Unconscious, and the Creative ProcessDemystifying Meaningful Coincidences (Synchronicities): The Evolving Self, the Personal Unconscious, and the Creative Process offers an original theory of the nature of meaningful coincidences (synchronicities) and their practical use from a naturalistic (nonsupernatural and non-Jungian) perspective. The findings are the outgrowth of Gibbs A. Williams's forty-year investigation, both as a professional observer of some of his synchronicity prone patients receiving psychoanalytic psychotherapy as well as of his own intimate experience of these intellectually challenging and emotionally powerful occurrences. His naturalistic perspective is in marked contrast to the findings of Jung and his followers, who view these odd events as 'channeled' messages from a transcendent realm of spiritual reality. Instead, Williams concludes that meaningful coincidences are the surface manifestations of an individual's unique creative process, accommodating the 'best' available resolution of a problem for a person initially feeling 'stuck' in a seemingly intractable dilemma. While his analysis robs the magic associated with only reacting to the 'numinous uncanny aura' associated with synchronicities, it nevertheless affirms a wondrous appreciation for the creative capacities of each person to order his or her own chaos. Readers are treated to a rich mine of historical data, novel concepts, and theoretical insights drawn from speculative philosophy, depth psychology, and esoteric occult and spiritual traditions, and they are shown how to decode their own synchronicities in order to be able to use their embedded 'messages' for increased self-awareness, cohesiveness, and expanding consciousness. |
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Contents
1 | |
THEORETICAL PERSPECTIVES | 25 |
Jungs PsychologicalSupernatural Theory of Synchronicities | 27 |
Refuting Jungs Three AntiCausal Arguments | 59 |
Naturalistic Interpretations of Synchronicities | 93 |
THEORY CONSTRUCTION | 109 |
Synchronicity Challenged | 111 |
Immersion in the Occult | 131 |
A NEW THEORY | 217 |
A Theory and Use of Meaningful Coincidences Synchronicities | 219 |
PRACTICAL APPLICATION | 255 |
Synchronicity and Psychotherapy | 257 |
Notes | 293 |
Bibliography | 305 |
309 | |
About the Author | 319 |
Other editions - View all
Demystifying Meaningful Coincidences (synchronicities): The Evolving Self ... Gibbs A. Williams No preview available - 2010 |
Demystifying Meaningful Coincidences (Synchronicities): The Evolving Self ... Gibbs A. Williams No preview available - 2015 |
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able absolute meaning alternative ambivalence anti-causal arguments appears archetypal associated with synchronicities attempts attitude aware believe C. G. Jung C. I. Lewis cathecting cathexis causality cohesive collective unconscious complex conflict consciousness core creative process depth psychology Dreams esoteric occult experienced explain external Faber fact father feelings felt Freud frustration ideas implications initially internal interpretation intuitions issue Iung Jung Jung’s Jungian knowledge linear logic linking principle logic lung lung’s meaningful coincidences meaningful connections messages mysterious naturalistic perspective naturalistic theory nature of synchronicities numinosity object occur Odyssey one’s organizing concepts pathway patient personal unconscious point of view problem psyche psychic Psychoanalysis psychodynamic Psychological Contexts psychotherapy question Rashomon raw data reality realm of absolute reflecting scarab scientific seemingly sense shift significant Spetses spiritual structure struggling with struggle stuck superego supernatural Tarot teleology theory of synchronicities therapist therapy thought tion tive transcendent understanding the nature utilizing wrote York