Description
In this rich and poetically written book which is featured in the Zurich Lecture Series 2020, Erel Shalit “calls attention to the dream and its images along the nocturnal axis that leads us from fate to destiny.” He takes us on a journey from ancient history, beginning with the first documented dream, that of Gilgamesh, to Adam and Eve and the serpent, to Joseph in Egypt as the Pharaoh’s dream interpreter, through ancient Greece to the Asklepion, to Swedenborg’s visions, to our world today through the eyes of Freud, Jung, and science, and finally to the process of active imagination to reveal the workings of Mercurius and the transcendent function.
As Dr. Shalit moves between cultures, he adds historical accounts of the many customs of working with dreams—our long history of how humans have paid close attention to this constant phenomenon for thousands of years. Scattered throughout the pages are engaging stories, legends, myths, and the roots of words that take meaning deeper.
The chapters include dreams—historical dreams and the dreams of his patients. He works them, showing us how to squeeze the precious liquid from each one that can lead to a resolution of opposites and a state of understanding so profound—and sometimes so simple—that we witness how wholeness emerges from the psyche through this process. This accessible book is a reminder of the foundational work that leads to our greater consciousness and a destiny well-lived.