FORTNIGHT OVERVIEW
The Self, Jung, Red Book
Summer - Fortnight 10 (Wind+Fire)
Jung's Self
Group 5: Fire – True Self (Realizing the
Divine Spark)
Elemental Focus: Fire symbolizes transformation
and the True Self, the fully realized divine spark.
Thematic Tone: These exercises culminate in the
soul’s immortal rise, inspired by the Apocryphon of John’s Five Lights,
Book of Abatur’s transcendence, and Sophia’s ascent (Pistis Sophia). The
final five days are a fast, focusing on the Five Trees and Five Seals.
Jungian Correspondence: The True Self aligns
with the alchemical Rubedo.
Feast/Aug
8: Carl Jung and school. German back to nature
movement. Hildegard of Bingen insights. Philoman mandala. Active imagination
and dream work. Individuality. Luminous dreams.
First 5 Day Ko
Day 1-5 of 10th Fortnight
Mind:
Fixation
Medieval Alchemy: Stabilize
the volatile material into a permanent form.
Symbolism: Achieving lasting stability.
Process: Heating or chemically stabilizing the substance.
Goal: Create a durable material.
Jungian Interpretation:
Solidify psychological growth into lasting change.
Symbolism: Permanent integration of insights.
Process: Embedding growth into personality.
Goal: Establish a stable, transformed psyche.
Body: Fire
related practices. (daily 20" exercise)
Truths: Yule
Festival.
History: Hildegard
of Bingen (1098–1179 CE), a German mystic, linked health and nature in
Physica, influencing backtonature movements. Gnostic bonfire leaping (e.g.,
St. John’s fires) symbolized soul purification, aligning outer vitality
with inner vision. Her unique idea of viriditas (greening power) tied spirituality
to creation.
Mythos: Melchizedec
guides souls out of purgatory
Fire related practices. (daily 20" exercise)
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Feast/Fast | Yule Festival | - | - | - | - |
Practice | Pagan-Christian Midsummer Bonfire
Historical Practice: Syncretic communities lit bonfires on Midsummer’s Eve, offering herbs like St. John’s wort. Dancing and praying, they sought spiritual purification, blending pagan and Christian devotion. Self-Practice: Light a small outdoor fire or candle, offering a pinch of St. John’s wort (or another herb). Pray for purification, meditating for 10 minutes on divine light. |
Hildegard’s Fiery Chant Performance
Historical Practice: Hildegard sang fiery chants like O Ignee Spiritus in vibrant liturgies in her convent. The passionate delivery ignited divine connection, transforming participants’ hearts. Self-Practice: Sing or hum a passionate melody inspired by fire for 10 minutes. Visualize it igniting your spirit, then reflect on the transformative energy. |
Hildegard’s Visionary Ecstasy
Historical Practice: Hildegard experienced ecstatic visions of “burning light” in her cell, prepared through fasting and prayer. Described in Liber Divinorum Operum, this trance-like state transformed her understanding. Self-Practice: Fast lightly (if safe) and sit in a quiet space with a candle. Meditate on a “burning light” in your heart for 15 minutes, seeking divine connection. Journal your experience. |
Alchemical Furnace Meditation
Historical Practice: Alchemists like John Dee meditated before furnaces, burning herbs like frankincense, visualizing inner purification. Rooted in Paracelsus’ teachings, this symbolized the soul’s transformation. Self-Practice: Light a frankincense candle and visualize a furnace purifying your soul. Meditate for 15 minutes, focusing on inner transformation, and note any shifts in awareness. |
Florentine Mystic’s Divine Love Meditation
Historical Practice: Mystics like Ficino meditated on divine love as a burning fire, visualizing their hearts ablaze in quiet rooms, inspired by Neoplatonism. Self-Practice: Sit quietly, imagining your heart burning with divine love. Meditate for 15 minutes, focusing on passionate connection to the divine, and journal insights. |
Second 5 Day Ko
Day 6-10 of 10th Fortnight
Mind:
Multiplication
Medieval Alchemy: Amplify
the power of the Philosopher’s Stone to transmute larger quantities of
metal.
Symbolism: Expansion of transformative power.
Process: Enhancing the Stone’s potency.
Goal: Increase the material’s effectiveness.
Jungian Interpretation:
Extend individuation to influence others or the world.
Symbolism: Sharing wisdom broadly.
Process: Applying growth to relationships or society.
Goal: Magnify the psyche’s impact.
Body: Fire
related practices. (daily 20" exercise)
Truths: -
History: Carl Jung’s
Seven Sermons to the Dead (1916), written under the persona Basilides,
explored Gnostic cosmology during his Red Book period. Gnostic candles
and Maypole ceremonies ignited inner fire, fostering individuality. His
distinctive concept of Pleroma—fullness beyond duality—shaped his psychological
framework.
Mythos: Sophia
glorified and perfected
Fire related practices. (daily 20" exercise)
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Feast/Fast | - | - | - | - | - |
Practice | Rosicrucian Alchemical Fire Ritual
Historical Practice: Proto-Rosicrucian mystics burned symbolic herbs (e.g., myrrh) in braziers, meditating on the flame’s purifying power, drawing from early alchemical symbolism. Self-Practice: Burn a small amount of myrrh or sage in a safe dish. Meditate on the flame’s purifying power for 10 minutes, visualizing spiritual renewal. |
Pagan-Christian Candle Vigil
Historical Practice: Syncretic groups held candlelit vigils, praying for divine illumination. Lighting beeswax candles, they chanted psalms, blending pagan and Christian themes. Self-Practice: Light a beeswax candle and pray or chant for illumination. Meditate for 10 minutes, focusing on divine light, and note any spiritual clarity. |
Sethite Gnostic Ecstatic Ascent
Historical Practice: Sethite Gnostics practiced ecstatic meditation, visualizing ascent through aeons, as in Allogenes (Nag Hammadi). Chanting with herbal offerings, they ignited divine passion. Self-Practice: Light a candle and chant a mantra, visualizing ascent through fiery realms. Meditate for 15 minutes, focusing on divine passion, and note insights. |
Jung’s Alchemical Coniunctio Meditation (Medieval Lens)
Historical Practice: A medieval mystic, following Jung’s alchemical insights, meditated on the coniunctio (union of opposites) as a fiery transformation, per Mysterium Coniunctionis. Self-Practice: Burn lavender and visualize opposites uniting in a fiery embrace. Meditate for 15 minutes, seeking illumination, and journal your thoughts. |
Sethite Gnostic Divine Fire Invocation
Historical Practice: Sethite Gnostics invoked the divine fire of Barbelo in rituals from Zostrianos (Nag Hammadi). Burning myrrh, they sought ecstatic illumination. Self-Practice: Burn myrrh and chant a personal prayer for divine fire. Meditate for 10 minutes, visualizing ecstatic illumination, and reflect on insights. |
Third 4/5 Day Ko
Day 11-15 of 10th Fortnight
Mind:
Projection
Medieval Alchemy: Apply
the Philosopher’s Stone to transmute base metals into gold, completing
the Great Work.
Symbolism: Manifestation of perfection.
Process: Sprinkling the Stone onto lead.
Goal: Achieve the ultimate transmutation.
Jungian Interpretation:
Live as a fully individuated Self, radiating authenticity.
Symbolism: Embodying wholeness.
Process: Living authentically in all aspects.
Goal: Manifest the integrated Self.
Body: Fire
related practices. (daily 20" exercise)
Truths: Utisete
Retreat 5 day
History: Jung’s
Red Book (1913–1930, published 2009) documented active imagination and
mandalas, culminating his selfexploration. Gnostic ashes on forehead and
fasting mirrored Sophia’s eternal union with the anointed, integrating
shadow and self. His unique focus on luminous dreams as paths to wholeness
redefined psychology.
Mythos: Sophia
and Annointed unite eternally
Fire related practices. (daily 20" exercise)
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Feast/Fast | -Utisete Retreat | -Utisete Retreat | -Utisete Retreat | Utisete Retreat | Utisete Retreat |
Practice | Rosicrucian Phoenix Meditation
Historical Practice: Proto-Rosicrucian mystics meditated on the phoenix, visualizing rebirth through fire, tied to alchemical symbolism of regeneration. Self-Practice: Visualize a phoenix rising from flames, symbolizing rebirth. Meditate for 15 minutes, focusing on transformation, and journal any insights. |
Thomas Merton’s Contemplative Fire (Medieval Lens)
Historical Practice: A medieval mystic in Merton’s style might meditate on a candle’s flame, seeking divine transformation, inspired by New Seeds of Contemplation. Self-Practice: Light a candle in a quiet space and meditate on its flame for 15 minutes, seeking transformation. Reflect on how the fire mirrors your spiritual passion. |
John Dee’s Scrying Fire Meditation
Historical Practice: Dee gazed into flames during scrying sessions, seeking angelic visions. Burning lavender in his study, he transformed his consciousness, blending alchemy and mysticism. Self-Practice: Gaze into a candle flame, burning lavender nearby. Seek insights for 10 minutes, imagining the fire as a bridge to divine wisdom, then journal your thoughts. |
Jung’s Shadow Confrontation (Medieval Lens)
Historical Practice: A medieval mystic, inspired by Jung, meditated on their “shadow” as a fiery purification, visualizing a flame burning impurities, per Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious. Self-Practice: Visualize a flame burning away inner flaws in a quiet space. Meditate for 15 minutes, dialoguing with your “shadow,” and journal the experience. |
Alchemical Sulfur Contemplation
Historical Practice: Alchemists meditated on sulfur, symbolizing the soul’s fiery essence. Visualizing its combustion, they sought inner purification, per Atalanta Fugiens. Self-Practice: Visualize sulfur burning within you, purifying your soul. Meditate for 15 minutes in a quiet space, focusing on fiery transformation, and journal insights. |