Over the past year or so I've started to engage with active imagination and some alchemical thinking (although my knowledge on that front is still very limited), and I've felt the benefits of even the small amount of inner work I've done hugely. I'm so glad I found this Substack - it's exactly the kind of resource I need as I delve deeper!
Alyssa, this is such a helpful and condensed explanation of alchemical work. I've read many books on alchemical active imagination and this was the clearest I've encountered it. I'm going to explore this in my practice going forward and will report back. Thank you!
Just what I needed on the cusp of the New Year. Loved delving deep into this and have a lot of inner work to do but it feels so much more tangible. I had the image of being a calcified seed, left deep in earth that is both a home and a tomb. Lots of emotions and images came through but that one stuck with me. It feels like taking a step in the right direction like I finally have a map to follow.
Again, the timeliness of your post hits me between the eyes. I had a dream recently of being in a doctor's office, being told that I had putrefaction of the tongue. It was going to turn green, chunks would fall off it and eventually I would have no tongue. My reaction in the dream was one of resigned acceptance. Earthside, I'm very aware that prior to starting a Jungian analysis, I have been in a long nigredo, and I found your idea of locating a symbol that could accommodate its mood, emotion, weight, texture etc hugely helpful. Having found my symbol I'll be working with it over Yuletide. Thanks so much for this post.
This is a superb post and very timely. Can you help me sort out the correct operation? I'm doing some intensive work with the 3 of Swords and know that I need to suffer the pain of an earlier life experience.
The image that came today and that I've painted is an open black box, with a translucent and small pale pink heart in the jet black bottom of the box, making me think of a butterfly pinned to a black velvet board. Keywords for the image are fragile, trapped, and very sad.
I'm assuming that putrefaction is the correct operation but I'm having difficulty moving beyond my intellectual understanding and into a felt experience. Any suggestions?
Thanks Alyssa, and I'm hoping that the work you're doing on your own issue is bearing fruit.
Oh man, does this post light my nerdy alchemical fire!!!!!!!!!!! And I adore Doré. Let me know if you want me to pull some tarot cards for you around this (no charge!) to add another layer as you seek this inner knowledge. This is the kind of thing that blazes my tarot fire!!
I posted this comment elsewhere but it wasn't here Alyssa so sorry if I'm doubling up. I was pleasantly surprised by your references to Hillman's work. I am just finishing up "The Dream and the Underworld", which is a fantastic take on dreams and dreamwork. One that is a bit critical of Jung's approach, I might add.
This is a LOT so I have to revisit and chew on it for a bit but this is such a good framework! Really needed it today (thanks Synchronicities☺️)
Over the past year or so I've started to engage with active imagination and some alchemical thinking (although my knowledge on that front is still very limited), and I've felt the benefits of even the small amount of inner work I've done hugely. I'm so glad I found this Substack - it's exactly the kind of resource I need as I delve deeper!
Alyssa, this is such a helpful and condensed explanation of alchemical work. I've read many books on alchemical active imagination and this was the clearest I've encountered it. I'm going to explore this in my practice going forward and will report back. Thank you!
Just what I needed on the cusp of the New Year. Loved delving deep into this and have a lot of inner work to do but it feels so much more tangible. I had the image of being a calcified seed, left deep in earth that is both a home and a tomb. Lots of emotions and images came through but that one stuck with me. It feels like taking a step in the right direction like I finally have a map to follow.
Again, the timeliness of your post hits me between the eyes. I had a dream recently of being in a doctor's office, being told that I had putrefaction of the tongue. It was going to turn green, chunks would fall off it and eventually I would have no tongue. My reaction in the dream was one of resigned acceptance. Earthside, I'm very aware that prior to starting a Jungian analysis, I have been in a long nigredo, and I found your idea of locating a symbol that could accommodate its mood, emotion, weight, texture etc hugely helpful. Having found my symbol I'll be working with it over Yuletide. Thanks so much for this post.
Hi Alyssa,
This is a superb post and very timely. Can you help me sort out the correct operation? I'm doing some intensive work with the 3 of Swords and know that I need to suffer the pain of an earlier life experience.
The image that came today and that I've painted is an open black box, with a translucent and small pale pink heart in the jet black bottom of the box, making me think of a butterfly pinned to a black velvet board. Keywords for the image are fragile, trapped, and very sad.
I'm assuming that putrefaction is the correct operation but I'm having difficulty moving beyond my intellectual understanding and into a felt experience. Any suggestions?
Thanks Alyssa, and I'm hoping that the work you're doing on your own issue is bearing fruit.
Oh man, does this post light my nerdy alchemical fire!!!!!!!!!!! And I adore Doré. Let me know if you want me to pull some tarot cards for you around this (no charge!) to add another layer as you seek this inner knowledge. This is the kind of thing that blazes my tarot fire!!
I posted this comment elsewhere but it wasn't here Alyssa so sorry if I'm doubling up. I was pleasantly surprised by your references to Hillman's work. I am just finishing up "The Dream and the Underworld", which is a fantastic take on dreams and dreamwork. One that is a bit critical of Jung's approach, I might add.
I think my primary materia is something like the old fashioned tv snow, sort of a pixelated fog. Suggestions?