The alchemists claimed that they explained "the obscure by the more obscure, the unknown by the more unknown", and accordingly, the secrets of the alchemical work have remained largely a mystery to the public consciousness. While most think of alchemy as charlatanism, the promise to "turn lead into gold", this is far from the truth, and fails to grapple with the immense scientific, spiritual and cultural impact that alchemy has had on Western civilization. The psychologist Carl Jung was perhaps an unexpected figure to attempt to unriddle the symbols and imagery of the alchemical texts. Nevertheless, Carl Jung's volume, Psychology & Alchemy attempts to do just that, putting forward the idea that the alchemical texts are a treasure trove of psychic projection, and unconscious communication with the self. Join me for part one of our deep dive into the Jungian interpretation of alchemy, where we will learn the basic concepts of alchemy, the stages of the alchemical work, the alchemical correspondence thinking as regards the substances they worked with, and the psychological interpretation by which Jung makes sense of it all.

Episode art: Henry Waniek - Alchemy