We will venture into what von Franz found to be the goal for the second half of life, to grow the subtle body before we die. Teachings from alchemy and Sufism, and from the doorway between life and death will be used as springboards for active imagination and discussion. Applying alchemy, and working with dreams, myths, koans, images from film and the practice of active imagination, we will create an alchemical laboratory for growing one’s own experiences of the subtle body realms where spirit and matter together form a psychophysical unitary reality.

Related Friday Talk: Dreams, Life, Death, and the Alchemical Wedding

Monika Wikman, Ph.D., is a Jungian analyst and astrologer. Author of Pregnant Darkness: Alchemy and the Rebirth of Consciousness, she has also contributed chapters, articles and poems to various books and journals, and has co-authored an award winning screenplay Rites of Passage (Moondance film festival, 2010.) She enjoys guiding retreats locally and abroad and lectures on mythology, dreams, wellness, alchemy, and creativity. A graduate of the Jung-von Franz Center for Depth Psychology in Zurich, she is member of the Northern New Mexico Society of Jungian Analysts and the Inter-Regional Society. At shrinkrapradio.com and SpeakingofJung.com you can find seven depth psychology podcast interviews with Monika.