The Collected Works of Marie-Louise von Franz is a 28 volume Magnum Opus from one of the leading minds in Jungian Psychology. Volume 6 heralds translations of material never before available in English. It explores the profound visions of two ground-breaking saints in the Catholic church, Saint Niklaus von Fle and Saint Perpetua.
Saint Niklaus von Fle, the patron saint of Switzerland, was held in the highest esteem by both CG Jung and Marie-Louise von Franz. Jung even declared him the Patron Saint of Psychotherapy, due to the Saint's deep inward reflections and profound experiences. His visions reportedly began while still in his mother's womb and continued until his death. One of his later visions was a terrifying image of the face of God. Von Franz saw Niklaus as the shadow brother of Christ and wrote of him as the alchemical Anthropos, a universal man. His visions were an evolution of Christian mysticism.
Saint Perpetua was a young Christian woman put to death in 203 AD in the Roman arena at the age of 22. Her profound visions occurred days before her death. Von Franz penetrates these images, suggesting they were revelations of a new, Christian God-image breaking through from the collective unconscious into the animus of young Perpetua.
Marie-Louise von Franz is at her very best as she unravels the mysteries held within the visions of these two saints.
At the age of eighteen, while still in high school, Marie-Louise von Franz met Carl Jung at his Bolingen Tower. She later described this as the most decisive encounter of her life. She entered analysis with him months later, completed her doctorate in classical philology and began seeing her first analysands soon after. She was wholeheartedly dedicated to the unconscious, both in her own life and that of her analysands. She developed a far-reaching expertise in fairytales, alchemy, synchronicity and numbers. She is estimated to have personally analyzed over 65,000 dreams.
"She was a prolific writer and a highly sought-after teacher. Listening to von Franz lecture was a numinous experience. I thought God was speaking. She seemed to know everything. In an amazing fashion and without a text, she ranged over history West and East, mythology, philosophy, anthropology, and a host of other specialized areas. Never in my training had I heard such far-reaching and profound reflections." (Murray Stein, PhD)
Part 1: The Visions of Niklaus von Fle
The Time of Niklaus von Fle
The Prenatal Faces and the Baptismal Vision
The Vision of the Tower
The Time of Depression and Temptation
The Vision of the Lily That Was Eaten by a Horse
The Liestal Vision
Retreat to the Ranft
The Vision of the Three Visitors
The Vision of the Singing Berserker
The Vision of the Fountain
The Vision of the Heavenly Quaternio
The Vision of the Terrifying Face of God
Part 2: The Passion of Perpetua - A Psychological Interpretation of Her Visions
Introduction
The Text
The Problem of the Orthodoxy of the Martyrs
The Life of St. Perpetua
The Visions of St. Perpetua
Interpretation of the First Vision
Interpretation of the Second and Third Visions
Interpretation of the Fourth Vision