The Shadow of a Figure of Light
The Archetype of the Alcoholic and the Journey to Enlightenment.
The Shadow of a Figure of Light delves into the nature of modern psychospiritual transformation by examining the human thirst for wholeness through the lens of alcoholism and addiction. Establishing an unknown thread that ties renowned psychiatrist C.G. Jung to Alcoholics Anonymous co-founder Bill Wilson, Peterson shows how their methodologies each stemmed from an ancient shamanistic source constellated through what he has coined the archetype of the Alcoholic. Painting the Twelve Steps as a modern myth, the author presents the Alcoholic as a paradoxical image leading us towards enlightenment amid a deepening, culture-wide spiritual crisis.
Published by Chiron Publications · 2024
What scholars are saying
Selected reviews from analysts, historians, and Jungian scholars.
Cody Peterson has written a book whose extension is deep, wide, and high. It rests on the solid foundations of careful scholarship and personal experience, it broadens our understanding of alcoholism beyond the reductive neuro-physiological explanations, and it elevates the vision of Bill Wilson and the Twelve Steps using the psycho-spiritual wisdom of C.G. Jung. It's a very readable book and highly to be recommended to anyone with an interest in the practical use of analytical psychology for addiction to anything, including the ego.
Murray Stein, Ph.D. · author of The Mystery of Transformation
This groundbreaking philosophical exploration seamlessly intertwines the wisdom of Alcoholics Anonymous with the profound insights of Jungian scholars like Erich Neumann and the mystical teachings of Meister Eckhart. Cody Peterson's book shines new light on the intriguing connection between Jung's visit to New Mexico with his very eccentric companion, a Renaissance Berkeley philosopher, who evoked in Jung his ongoing search for a relationship with a 'Freudian' father figure. This thought-provoking book offers the reader a Jungian guide through the redemptive process of the 12 step program of AA which is at the core of the personal transformation of the alcoholic.
Ian McCabe, Ph.D., Psy.D. · author of Carl Jung and Alcoholics Anonymous
In this invigorating work, author Cody Peterson is able to infuse the C.G. Jung - Bill Wilson narrative with insights of indigenous spiritual investigations. The introduction of a Shamanic character, Jaime, allows the author to refract aspects of Jung's personal journey and relationships through a Carlos Castaneda like lens. Peterson's insightful reflections on Wilson's methodology may prove helpful to those seeking to comprehend the shadowland of alcoholism.
Jay Stinnett · AA Author and Historian
The quintessentially American approach to spirituality that has spread around the world was a vocation James and Jung both wrote out of, and they taught their new vision of what it means to live a spiritual or symbolic life through their collected writings. Wilson caught this wave of American spirituality in a way the culture was ready for when the Big Book was published in 1939. Today, eighty-five years later, with the scholarship in Jamesian pragmatism and Jungian analytical psychology Peterson has managed to master, readers will be glad to imbibe his own spiritual offering.
Steven Herrmann · author of William James and C.G. Jung: Doorways to the Self
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