• Sim-seong Yeon-gu
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• v.27 no.1_2
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• pp.28-70
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• 2012

In Jungian psychology, creation myths regard as the story of unconscious and preconscious processes(projection of archaic identity) which describe not necessary the origin of our cosmos, but the origin of man's conscious awareness of the world. Therefore projections have nothing to do with matter itself but experience of one's own unconscious. Jung emphasizes importance to understand projection in individual's conscious experience rather than in philosophical doctrine. The purpose of this thesis is to explore unconscious process of creation myths with egg symbolism in clinical cases to present universal feature of Cosmic/alchemical egg. Psychologically, creation myths retold when human mind needs new order. Depending on the attitude of ego, it can be sudden expansion of consciousness or contamination of ego by unconscious. In this study, 'chaos(messa confusa)' in creation myths as archaic identity, experience of uroboros or infant, and nigredo state in alchemy. 'Separation of primordial parents' as beginning of consciousness refers to separatio operation in alchemical process. 'Light' as attainment of consciousness. Discussion of psychological meaning of egg starts with amplification which include the concept of cosmic/alchemical/philosophical egg. Egg symbolism in this study refers to emergence of egg, tapas/brooding of egg, and separation of egg. Emergence of egg as a state of preconscious totality, psychic wholeness conceived as the thing which came before the rise of ego consciousness. Discussion of conceptssuch as Shiva bindu, hiranyagharba, germ of gold, Tathāgatagarbha follows. 'Tapas/brooding of egg' as concentration of all psychic energy into one point for self reflection. Discussion includes The I Ching Hexagram 61, image of brooding egg identified with inner truth, Wonhyo's concept of jikwansasang, and Gnostic idea of Ennoia, introverted act of thinking, as well as the concept of 'Night Sea Journey'. 'Separation or hatching of egg' regarded as the idea of sudden illumination, Phanes, the shining God, and "sun-point," in alchemy. Birth of fledgling as birth of new personality. As a conclusion, psychological meaning of cosmic egg/creation myths is the story of separating from 'Not-I'(unconscious, object, undifferentiated) to 'I'(ego, subject, differentiated) which shares the same meaning as individuation process.

• Sim-seong Yeon-gu
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.99-148
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• 2022

This study aims at the psychological elucidation of some conscious aspects of the personality of Yi Sun-sin (1545-1598), the Korean national hero, and the unconscious teleologic meanings of his dreams mentioned in Nanjung Ilgi (Diary in War Time) from the viewpoint of analytical psychology of C.G. Jung. Yi Sun-sin was a man of discipline, incorporated with the spirit of Confucian filial piety, hyo (hsiao) and royalty, chung. He was a stern man but with a warm heart. In his diary, Yi Sun-sin poured forth his feelings of suffering, despair, and extreme solicitude caused by slanders of his political opponents, his grief for the loss of mother and son, and his worries about the fate of his country, which the Japanese invaders now plundered. The moon night offered him the opportunity to touch with his inner soul, by reciting poems, playing Korean string, 'Keomungo', and flute. Further, he widened his scope by asking for the answers from the 'Heaven' through divination and dream. Yi Sun-sin's attitude toward his mother who raised the future hero and maternal principles were considered in concern with the Jungian term 'mother complex'. Won Gyun, Yi Sun-sin's rival admiral, who persistently accused Yi Sun-sin of 'slanders,' certainly represents the unconscious shadow image of Yi Sun-sin. The reciprocal 'shadow' projection has intervened in the conflicting relationship between Yi and Won. In concern to the argument for the suicidal death of Yi Sun-sin, the author found no evidence supporting such an argument, No trace of latent suicidal wish was found in his dreams. For Yi Sun-sin, the determination of the life and death depends on Heaven. 32 dreams from the diary and 3 from other historical references were reviewed and analyzed in the Jungian way. Symbols of anima, Self, and individuation process were found. His dream repeatedly suggests that Yi Sun-sin is an extraordinary man chosen by the divine man (神人). In the dream, Yi Sun-sin was a disciple of the divine man receiving instructions on various strategies, and he alone could see the great thing or events. The dream of a beautiful blue and red dragon, whom he was friendly touching, indicates Yi Sun-sin's eligibility for the kingship. Yi Sun-sin seemingly did not aware of this message of the unconscious. Perhaps he sensed something special but did not identify with 'the disciple of gods' and 'royal dragon' in his dream. His modest attitude toward the dream has prevented him from falling into ego inflation. There were warning signals in two dreams that suggested disorders in the dreamer's instinctive feminine drive. Spirits of the dead father and brothers appear in the dream, giving advice or mourning for the death of Sun-sin's mother. Though Yi Sun-sin was a genuine Confucian gentleman, a dream revealed his unconscious drive to destroy the Confucian authoritative 'Persona' by trampling down the cylindrical traditional Korean hat. To the dreams of synchronicity phenomena Yi Sun-sin immediately solves the problem in concrete reality. He understood dreams as valuable messages from the superior entity, for example, the Confucian Heaven (天) or Heaven's Decree (天命). Furthermore, the 'Heaven' presumably arranged for him the way to the national hero and imposed necessary trials upon him. Both his persecutors and advocates of him guided him in the way of a hero. Yi Sun-sin followed his destiny and completed the living myth of the hero. His mother, King Seon-jo, and prime minister Liu Seong Yong, all have contributed to embodying the myth of the hero. Yi Sun-sin died and became god, the divine healer of the nation.

• Sim-seong Yeon-gu
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.36-66
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• 2011

The goal of this article is to examine the connection between creativity of unconscious and religion. Jung criticized how Freud's approach in studying the unconscious as a scientific inquiry focuses on the unconscious as reflecting only those which is repressed by the ego. Jung conceived of the unconscious as encompassing not only the repressed but also the variety of other psychic materials that have not reached the threshold of the consciousness in its range. Moreover, since human psyche is as individualistic as is a collective phenomenon, the collective psyche is thought to be pervasive at the bottom of the psychic functioning and the conscious and the personal unconscious comprising the upper level of the psychic functioning. Through clinical and personal experience, Jung had come to a realization that the unconscious has the self-regulatory function. The unconscious can make "demands" and also can retract its demands. Jung saw this as the autonomous function of the unconscious. And this autonomous unconscious creates, through dreams and fantasies, images that include an abundance of ideas and feelings. These creative images the unconscious produces assist and lead the "individuation process" which leads to the discovery of the Self. Because this unconscious process compensates the conscious ego, it has the necessary ingredients for self-regulation and can function in a creative and autonomous fashion. Jung saw religion as a special attitude of human psyche, which can be explained by careful and diligent observation about a dynamic being or action, which Rudolph Otto called the Numinosum. This kind of being or action does not get elicited by artificial or willful action. On the contrary, it takes a hold and dominates the human subject. Jung distinguished between religion and religious sector or denomination. He explained religious sector as reflecting the contents of sanctified and indoctrinated religious experiences. It is fixated in the complex organization of ritualized thoughts. And this ritualization gives rise to a system that is fixated. There is a clear goal in the religious sector to replace intellectual experiences with firmly established dogma and rituals. Religion as Jung experienced is the attitude of contemplation about Numinosum, which is formed by the images of the collective unconscious that is propelled by the creativity and autonomy of the unconscious. Religious sector is a religious community that is formed by these images that are ritualized. Jung saw religion as the relationship with the best or the uttermost value. And this relationship has a duality of being involuntary and reflecting free will. Therefore people can be influenced by one value, overcome with the unconscious being charged with psychic energy, or could accept it on a conscious level. Jung saw God as the dominating psychic element among humans or that psychic reality itself. Although Jung grew up in the atmosphere of the traditional Swiss reformed church, it does not seem that he considered himself to be a devoted Christian. To Jung, Christianity is a habitual, ritualized institution, which lacked vitality because it did not have the intellectual honesty or spiritual energy. However, Jung's encounter with the dramatic religious experience at age 12 through hallucination led him to perceive the existence of living god in his unconscious. This is why the theological questions and religious problems in everyday life became Jung's life-long interest. To this author, the reason why Jung delved into problems with religion has to do with his personal interest and love for the revival of the Christian church which had lost its spiritual vitality and depth and had become heavily ritualized.

• Sim-seong Yeon-gu
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.1-45
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• 2014

Mystic experience such as seeing an vision could be explained as experiencing elusive and mysterious unique existence in religious way. In depth psychology, which is based on unconsciousness like analytical psychology, this could be explained as a something that gives a meaning of life and purpose through discovering health and healing. The importance of primodial experience in depth psychology is that it can possibly discover the base of present acts. In Christian theology, symbolic mystery and truth of religious experience that appear in Christian tradition have interest on human situation. These two fields' approach methods are different, but both show common interest on unique experience which can be said properly as raw experience. Various visions appear in many parts of the Bible. Among many visions, the book of Zechariah, one of the 12 Prophets, describes rich and diverse 8 visions through chapter 1 to chapter 8. However, due to the Genre of revelation, it lacks historicity, and because of vagueness and symbolic meanings, its visions are hard to understand and interpret. Theologically, visions of Zechariah show communality of Israelites by reconstructing kingdom of Judah and church in a way of historical circumstances. Though, these visions could deliver the meaning of an ethnical aspect as reporting continuous conversation between the God and humans. Furthermore, it could mean a personal aspect of the Prophet Zechariah as reaching for a opportunity of new change. Moreover, those who read these visions could try to interpret the meanings of various images which represent meeting mysterious existences. Therefore, the Author would concentrate on the fact that 8 visions in the book of Zechariah, which has not been received much attention to neither Christians nor non-believers, develop in chiastic structure (stylistic contrast), so that tries to interpret the first, second, seventh, and the eighth visions in analytic psychology way. In visions of Zechariah, excepting the 4th vision which probably was inserted later, rest of 7 visions each shows the stage of the hours of darkness. 1st to 3rd visions represent evening, 5th vision represents deep in the night, and 6th to 8th visions represent dawn to morning. Moreover, since structure of visions arranged in chiastic way, horse appears in 1st and 8th vision, measuring rope and measure tools are used as main motif in 2nd and 7th vision. However, same motifs could have different symbolic meanings and roles as visions are formed in different situations and conditions. In the first vision, angels who ride horses look around the world and report it is calm and peaceful. Concerning the political situation back in the day, the world being calm and peaceful in the beginning of evening means that it is not ready to change to a whole new world. Psychologically, if there is no readiness to adopt new world, it means being hopeless. It is sending you a message to get out of those kinds of situation. Moreover, appearance of four angels who rode red, brown, and white horses to a myrtus tree in the valley means that it is time for individuation and it is right and good timing for changing. In second vision, you will be able to see that Israelites had long years being caught in the shadows by foreign country, and long years succumbed by the strength of four horns, which shows the progress of renewing strength and being oneness with oneself from overwhelmed situation by paternity. In seventh vision, meaning of two women bringing the godness of the sky, who were locked up in a rice basket, back to the temple in Babylon is going towards in a level of Self-actualization by separating one's ego captured excessively by matherhood and putting back to a place where it was before. In eighth vision, chariots pulled by horses are scattered far and wide, and horses which went to north had rest in the land of North. After horses and chariots are seen between two mountains of bronze with the image of Self and anima/animus. These images can be explained as the changing progress are almost completed and the God and human, in other words Self and ego are being united and is now time for rest. All of 8 visions contains the conversation between angel and Zechariah who willing to know the meaning of visions. Zechariah asks the angel actively about the meaning of visions because of his wish for Israelites to return home and rebuild church. Conversation among the God, Zechariah, who asks questions until he knows everything, an Angel, who gives answer to given questions, is conversation between ego and anima/animus. Eventually, it is a conversation between Self and ego.