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C.G. Jung Public Lectures,
Bristol

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Next Lecture - May

10 May 2025: Mark Vernon

Dante’s Divine Comedy and Spiritual Awakening.

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri is many things: a personal crisis, a diatribe against corruption, an unsurpassed poem, a celebration of love. But at heart, as Dante described it, it is the realisation that “I am more than I am”, discovered by journeying through three domains of reality. So, what is the nature of this perceptual expanse and how does it come about? 
This talk will examine the transformation Dante underwent, which human beings can still undergo. It will focus on what might be called the emergence of Dante’s spiritual intelligence and examine this alongside psychotherapeutic insights. Spiritual intelligence knows many things: that descent and ascent are intimately linked; that time can be experienced in dramatically different ways; that virtues are crucial not so much for moral reasons but because they connect with reality; that the whole of life is one life, unified not through uniformity but, as Dante describes it, like a book of many leaves bound by love, each with its part. The talk will assume no knowledge of the Divine Comedy and serve as an introduction, as well as exploration and application.

Mark Vernon is a psychotherapist and writer. He has a PhD in ancient Greek philosophy, and degrees in theology and physics. His books include A Secret History of Christianity: Jesus, the Last Inkling, and the Evolution of Consciousness (2019) and Dante’s Divine Comedy: A Guide for the Spiritual Journey (2021). He used to be an Anglican priest and lives in London.

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General information

Since the early eighties, the C.G. Jung Public Lectures have played an important part in establishing and maintaining Bristol's reputation as an acknowledged centre of interest in Depth Psychology.

The monthly lectures are on current issues and topics broadly related to the field of analytical psychology and are given by a variety of professional and established speakers. They are open to everybody with an interest in depth psychology, the therapies, philosophy, religion, mythology, life and the arts.

The aim is to provide a friendly, informal space for Jung's ideas and philosophy to reach a wider public. There is time for refreshment, socialising, and networking after the lecture followed by participative discussion with the speaker in the round.

 


A reduced-price bookstall is sometimes provided by Bookmark, Bristol. Their website includes a good selection
of Jungian and Analytical Psychology titles (also at reduced prices)!
Tel: (0117) 9672928  www.psychologicaltherapybooks.co.uk

 

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