Books I have read (part 2)

After a pretty intense period of reading Jung and Jung only, I have decided that I want to understand more about astrology and what it can offer. Jung’s Aion lit a sparkle and I told myself that maybe it is time to reach for something else, something beyond psychology. Jung once said that astrology is an older sister of psychology, which I believe is true. It is sort of a map of the human soul. Wider than psychology and of course, a much older discipline than her “younger sister”. It has a different approach and different tools but ultimately the same goal - to explain our personality and offer us wise advice on how we can use our potential in the best possible way. True astrology accepts that it hasn’t got all the answers. Wider, deeper and above all, it offers a freedom of thought, which is immensely important to someone like me.

Psychological Astrology, Karen Hamaker Zontag

This was the first book about astrology I have ever read. It is very structured and easy to read, therefore I think it is a very good starting point for anyone who is interested in this topic but has no previous knowledge about astrology whatsoever. In this book you shall find the explanation for division of time and how every season is connected to each sign. Every planet and every sign is briefly explained, which was useful to me. I did not want to be overwhelmed with a plethora of information that I simply could not digest back then.

Jung and Astrology, Maggie Hyde

Right after Psychological astrology, I found a book which explains Carl Jung’s life throughout the interpretation of his birth chart. Why did he have a disagreement with Sigmund Freud and why was this disagreement inevitable?

At universities we are learning that the true reason for their “going separate ways” was a disagreement over the function of Libido and the role of sexuality in the human psyche. This information is by no means false, but there was a far more important reason - their outlook on the transcendental function. Freud didn’t want to go that road, he didn’t want to incorporate something beyond our own existence into the human psyche and to prescribe that as a possible reason for human suffering. He was afraid that the reputation of a psychoanalysis would suffer if he somehow incorporated “the unknown”. Jung was always close to transcendental, paranormal and what science these days calls - pseudoscience. Pseudoscience is just a science’s way to dismiss all of those constructs which cannot be proven. It takes courage and a certain amount of a sophisticated spirit to draw beyond the lines. All of this information you can find within the book, as well as more profound insights into the personality of Jung and his life.

On Divination and Synchronicity, Marie-Louise von Franz

Marie-Louise was one of Jung's closest collaborators whose work was mainly focused on the archetypes, alchemy, but also on psychological underpinnings in fairytales. She knew Latin and Greek, so she helped Jung to translate a lot of old material in exchange for her education in analytical psychotherapy.

The book focuses mainly on the differences between Western and Eastern philosophical thought. We can describe Western way of thinking as mostly linear, e.g. cause X is leading to a consequence Y. All of you who are in any kind of science, know this pretty well. But the Eastern way of thinking is quite different, because it doesn't observe time as some kind of a linear line, they ask themselves a question: what has a tendency of appearing together at the same time? I am sure at least once you had a life situation when a lot of things go bad in a single day, and at some point you asked yourself: “Okay, is there more? If two shitty things happened in the morning, there must be a third? I am waiting!” Well, this way of thought has an Eastern roots. Because the question here is not about cause and consequence, it is about what seems to always appear together, hand by hand. Since there is a divination in the book title, I thought that von Franz would talk about tarot (mostly Western tradition of divination), but rather she took a dive into the Eastern, well known method - I Ching.

Structural forms of the Feminine Psyche, Toni Wolff

It is a wonderful thing when a woman writes about the woman’s psyche. It is healthier, in a way, and right before opening the book I said to myself: “Ah, finally!”. The same feeling I had while reading a book “Women who Run with the Wolves” which I can't recommend enough.

Toni Wolff divided the feminine psyche into four structural forms or types: The Mother, The Hetaira, The Amazon and The Medial Woman. She claims that each woman identifies predominantly with one form, and that this form is guiding her during her entire life. The first type is The Mother. She focuses mostly on her children and her husband and possesses a strong nurturing inner drive.

The Hetaira is a lover, companion, wife and a man’s friend, who promotes man’s inner life. Above all, she is his intelectual, but also a sexual companion (Toni Wolff considered herself as The Hetaira).

The Amazon is a woman who has a strong drive toward success and her own independence. She is that successful woman in the group of only men. When someone mentions The Amazon, woman Aries comes to my mind right away. Strong, independent and fiery.

The last but not least is The Medial Woman, who has a strong intuition and a connection with the Collective Unconscious. She can express herself through spirituality, healing, art, medicine,... I call this type of woman “a Crone”, “a Wise Woman”, or “a High Priestess”.

Saturn: A New Look at an Old Devil, Liz Greene

Liz Greene has played a big role in making Psychological Astrology alive. It was just a matter of time, when these two disciplines would be combined as one - older sister hand by hand with her younger sibling. Liz didn't just study astrology, but she also has a PhD in Psychology. Her knowledge and expertise in this book go really deep. So I highly recommend this book to anyone but especially to psychologists and students of psychology. It is worth diving into this topic and seeing how the archetypes come alive within every human being. Sometimes you will quietly laugh, because you will find yourself somewhere between lines of the book. Saturn is the biggest test for our personality. It shows us where we are weak and where the most inner work should be done. It is a neglected area of our psyche which Carls Jung calls - The Shadow. But the dark aspects only exist when they are not internalised and illuminated, when we ourselves are not aware of them because they were suppressed and forgotten by our Ego function. This book has showed me the beauty of combining psychology with astrology and, in a way, it showed me the path toward wholeness that each and every one of us desperately needs.

The Inner Sky, Steven Forrest

I have read in many places that this is the best starting book for any astrology beginner. Personally I enjoyed Steven's colourful descriptions of each planet, sign and the house. He has helped me to systematise and to make a distinction of certain symbols. I have known for some time that astrology is a lifelong discipline, just like any other worthy pursuit. You cannot master it in a few years, you are literally learning about it during your entire life. And I love that. I love the fact that there are no shortcuts, only a good ol’ long road. Because only through continuous, hard work, you will manage to “give birth” to something really valuable. After reading this book, I bought a notebook in which I have started to decipher my own birth chart. For sure it is very challenging, but Steven’s book has managed to motivate me to sink my teeth into this old symbolic language. Simple, brilliant and highly recommended!

Hopefully my English was decent enough and made you curious about the books :)

Stay strong dear fellas,

Judita Q