Product Description

Aion, originally published in German in 1951, is one of the major works of Jung's later years. The central theme of the volume is the symbolic representation of the psychic totality through the concept of the Self, whose traditional historical equivalent is the figure of Christ. Jung demonstrates his thesis by an investigation of the Allegoria Christi, especially the fish symbol, but also of Gnostic and alchemical symbolism, which he treats as phenomena of cultural assimilation. The first four chapters, on the ego, the shadow, and the anima and animus, provide a valuable summation of these key concepts in Jung's system of psychology.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #46158 in Books
• Published on: 1979-06-01
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 353 pages

Review
Much of the material in this book and many of the conclusions are fascinating. There is a great deal here to illustrate the background of modern mysticism and much which the reader, of whatever orientation, will regard as insight.
(Psychiatric Quarterly )

Aion contains some of Jung's most advanced thinking on the integrative principles of the psyche, and on the relation of matter to the symbolic processes of the collective unconscious. This is difficult ground to explore, but those who attempt the journey will find that their horizons have been surprisingly widened.
(Psychosomatic Medicine )

Customer Reviews

Aion: Christ as model for perfection of consciousness
"Jung in a nutshell" does not do justice to this topic. It is a bowl of nuts.

But my very rudimentary understanding (to put forth one nut of many) is that consciousness, or the differentiation of self is a progression, which arises from a world of the unconscious. Anybody might say such a thing and get lucky, without having read Aion at all. But to read Aion and then say it is putting your money where your mouth is.

The template of self begins at the Anthropos (relying on the second-to-last chapter on the quaternario schema), and crystalizes in the lapis, where consciousness becomes fully realized.

Jung was not prosyletizing Christianity, but used Christ as an allegory of development of self. This is why he resorts to alchemy and Gnosticism, more than patristic forms of Christianity. He saw the philosophical underpinnings of Christianity as a workable model to explain how the higher human, who operates on his environment as well as on his own thinking, rises above his primal, animalist soma.

We began as a perfect template in the realm of the unconscious, we descended into the world of formation (borrowing from the Sephir Yetzirah here), or "Physis," as Jung called it, only to rise again through the quaternario ladder to become Anthropos once again.

By the way, the reader might note that in later chapters Jung seems to drop any mention about "Aion", a term better explained in the middle parts of the book (Ch. 5-11). I think Jung wanted us to apply his quaternario model on a meta-scale, not just as an explanation of the perfection of self and the emergence of consciousness.

As we know, we are nearing the end of the present Piscean Aion (the Jesus era), which was preceded by the war-like Arien Aion (the Greco/Roman conquest era), but which is to be followed by a more intellectual Aquarian Aion (whatever that will be).

The progression of the Aions, I think Jung hoped we would discern, correspond directly to his quaternario schema, and that human consciousness is tied to the meta-physical laws of the universe (in this case, astronomy) just like the ocean's tides correspond to the lunar phases.

A great book on many levels for many audiences
This is a must own book for any student of Carl Jung. It covers the basic concepts of his psychological topology in his own words in a brief space and goes into a much deeper dive on the Self. This exploration of Self goes deeply into Christian symbolism and the structure and dynamics of the Self.

Like much of Carl Jung's writing, some of this is very tough going for people new to Jung. It is not a bedside book and the average reader will need to look a lot of things up. However, it is indispensable in terms of the concepts.

There are many good books that can provide commentary on this book and you can find them easily. I would highly recommend that you pick up one of these books about Aion in addition to the text itself. This is a book that has many layers and one which you must be patient with.

If you are merely looking for an introduction to Jung, then I would go with Jung's Map of the Soul by Murray Stein. This is the BEST introduction I know of and quotes Aion a lot. Aspects of the Faminine is also very good for those who want to know more about the anima/animus and a more readable version of Jung's thoughts on marriage, the feminine, etc.

The Viking Portable Jung is also good to get a cross section of Jung's most important thought. However, you will eventually want to read Aion for its depth and extensive elaboration on the nature of the Self.

Follow up to Archetypes of the Collective Unc.
As usual, this is another discerning, but difficult to read Jung book. It focuses on Christian imagery as related to Jung's model of consciousness. This model includes 3 layers vs. Freud's 2-layered approach--by adding a meta-layer which Jung termed the Collective Unconscious. Part 1 of volume 9 of the collected works addressed this layer & its denizens, the archetypes. It is very useful to read that volume prior to this one. This one provides additional information on good vs. evil. The socialization process of each civilization or nation attempts to reify acceptable behavior into children. The down side of this is that parts of the child's psyche is split off--or repressed. The conglomeration of these split off parts form the individual's shadow complex. The initial step in individuation is to reclaim & integrate these parts back into consciousness. Such repressed parts, if not brought back to consciousness, slowly gain energy & can affect people negatively--"not being myself" or Freudian slips. Jung found that alchemy depicted much of his psychological discoveries--giving him a relieving confirmation of his views. In another work, he also mentions that the great Hasidic leader, the Great Maggid of Mezerich, described the bulk of Jungian psychology centuries before. Jung looks for image parallels throughout history & all over the planet (similar to Joseph Campbell's quest). The 2nd phase of individuation is recalling anima or animus projections from other people--a topic far too complex for this review--see Schwartz-Salant & Stein's "Gender & Soul in Psychotherapy."

However, Jung had issues with his Christian upbringing (see his autobiography "Memories, Dreams, Reflections), but he finds extensive parallels within Christianity, especially Catholicism herein. His analysis will probably have an upside & a downside for both Christians & non-Christians alike--though perhaps differently. One can find similar parallels in other religions as well. For a good overall exposition of Jungian principles by a Christian theologian, see Hans Schaer's "Religion & the Cure of Souls in Jung's Psychology" & read CW11, Jung's "Psychology of Religion..." I liked these better than "Aion" (& I'm more interested in Buddhism). Jung's split with long-time friend Father Victor White was over Jung's view of evil as an entity vs. White's Catholic view of the "privatio boni"--evil as the absence of good (per Jung's "Letters"). I suggest reading M. Scott Peck's "People of the Lie" for more on this issue.

As in all but one of his books (i.e. "Answer to Job"), Jung takes a Thinking, scientific stance, saying (~Vajrayana Buddhism), "Emotion incidentally is not an activity of the individual, but something that happens to him." This is not my favorite Jung book, but it's worth reading.