Rejected Religion Spotlight Ninian Nijhuis- Carl G. Jung: Fantasy, Madness, and the Exploration of Consciousness

Ninian Nijhuis, MA (res) University of Amsterdam Interview Highlights: Ninian begins by talking about the recently published Black Books and Red Book by Jung, and how the Black Books acted as journals to explore Jung's own consciousness. She then discusses the fantasy Jung had about a 'madhouse', who Jung 'met' in the fantasy, and what Jung was trying to 'sort out' in all of this. This leads to a discussion about pathological madness and divine madness, what distinguishes the two, and how Jung perceived religious experience. Ninian also touches on Jung's struggle to balance his professional life and his spiritual/religious life, his emphasis on an "attitude of openness" and his ideas of how a person can have a "self-regulating consciousness."