Descent into the Red Book

Course Description

A century ago, around Christmas 1913, Swiss psychiatrist Carl Gustav Jung lost his way and surrendered on purpose to the tumultuous embodied intelligence of the autonomous creative imagination. The outcome is a journey as perilous as The Lord of the Rings and as enlightening as The Divine Comedy. One hundred years later Jungian analyst Robert Bosnak gets lost in the timeless Deep together with Jung, and struggles his way back to the 21st century. This is a fascinating travelogue by two men in the same territory a century apart.

This is an in-depth course into The Red Book and an ideal companion if you have your own copy of The Red Book to follow along with. The course also includes a comprehensive study guide with a synopsis of each class, as well as several reflective questions to help you integrate what you learn.

Please be aware: The audio quality of these recordings are average (listen to a short sample here). The majority of Jung Platform course recordings are of a high quality. However, this particular course was recorded from a live Skype broadcast in 2010:

This course is ideal if

• You want to be guided in making sense of Jung’s The Red Book.
• You are interested in Bosnak’s approach to his technique of Embodied Imagination and the roots it has in Jungian Psychology.
• You want to spark, connect with and engage your own creative spirit.

Course Overview

Class 1: Introduction to The Red Book

Class 2: The Desert, Descent into Hell in the Future

Class 3: Mysterium Encounter, The Lysis of Book 1 (Liber Primus)

Class 4: Liber Secundus

Class 5: Liber Secundus, The Castle in the Forest, One of the Lowly

Class 6: The Anchorite, Dies II

Class 7: Death, The Remains of Earlier Temples

Class 8: First Day, Second Day

Class 9: Incantations, The Opening of the Egg

Class 10: The Opening of the Egg (a review), Hell, The Sacrificual Murder, The Images 79 – 97

Class 11: The Sacrificial Murder (continued), Devine Folly, Nox secunda

Class 12: Nox secunda (continued), Nox tertia, The Drawings

Class 13: Nox tertia (continued), Review of class 12

Class 14: Nox tertia (continued), Nox quarta, Parsifal

Class 15: Nox tertia (review), The Three Prophecies, The Gift of Magic, The Solitary

Class 16: Meeting Philemon, The Way of the Cross, The Magician

Class 17: The Magician, Explore the pictures of Philemon, Soul Sister, Spirit of the Deep, and the Serpent

Class 18: The meeting of the Cabiri

Class 19: The Magician (continued), Meeting Elijah and Some

Class 20: Final Reflections

By the end of this course, you will

• Have a strong grasp of Jung’s journey with The Red Book and how it led to Jungian Psychology as we know it today.
• Understand the importance of Active Imagination as a valuable tool for supporting your own inner journey.
• Have a better understanding of Bosnak’s Embodied Imagination work and how it was inspired by Jung’s own journey.

Study Guide by

Jill Fischer, MS, APRN, BC produced the study guide which accompanies this course. She is a Jungian psychotherapist, board certified advanced nurse practitioner and clinical specialist in psychiatric nursing. With over 45 years of clinical experience, Fisher has a private practice and teaches embodied dreamwork worldwide. In 1997, she became a founding member of www.cyberdreamwork.com. She coordinates group programs and trains embodiment therapists.