The Numinous Grail: Jung's Stages of Individuation with Jim Blalock (Three Sessions)

Sundays, April 7, 14 and 21 from 2 - 4 pm

(Program will be recorded and sent to registrants)

The myth of Parzival is a thought-provoking display of Jung’s Individuation Landscape. Like Parzival, during the initial stages of life we are inauthentic beings until we are called out to adventures and tasks that are unique to us and intended for us, thus allowing our true nature to emerge out of our Heart. Each life event carries Parzival towards his destiny that is psychologically his individuation journey, a Soul’s journey to be held by the Grail. Whereas existing in the Wasteland is as if conforming to social norms that no longer serve the World Soul. Myth is the primordial language natural to psychic processes, and no intellectual formulation comes anywhere near the richness and expressiveness of mythical imagery. The psyche is fundamentally poetic because it is always making a myth. Jung recognized that mythological images give us ways of understanding the archetypal dimension.

Over the course of three sessions, I will give a history of the various narrations of Parzival and how this medieval story is relevant today. Then we will journey into the vibrant imagery of Parzival, focusing on Wolfram Von Eschenbach’s telling, and unpack its rich metaphors that speak directly to our individual and collective Soul.

James Blalock was born and raised in Portsmouth, NH, where he owned and operated The Old Ferry Landing restaurant for 30 years. He received his BA and MBA from Rollins College in Florida. In 2014, Dr. Blalock earned his PhD in Depth Psychology from Pacifica Graduate Institute. Concurrent with his studies, James seized an opportunity to integrate his life-long passion for golf with the life enhancing values illuminated by The First Tee, an internationally recognized youth development organization. His roles range from coaching children and training coaches to spokesperson and visionary. James’s previous presentations for The Maine Jung Center include: The Individuation of Place and The Journey Home: Deepening Our Myth of Individuation Through Homer’s Odyssey. James currently lives in Kittery, ME.