Throughout his book Steven B. Herrmann works with the conceptual construct of individuation from Jungian theory. Briefly stated, he contends that as individual persons experience the psychological process of individuation, they will awaken to the spirit of spiritual democracy as he outlines this spirit throughout his book.
Steven B. Herrmann draws on certain aspects of Jung's thought to construct an interpretation of Melville's novel MOBY-DICK. His interpretation makes sense within the framework of Jung's thought. His interpretation of Melville's novel is the most important part of his new book. (His discussion of MOBY-DICK is accessible, provided that you've read the novel.)
Basically, Steven B. Herrmann assumes that Melville's writings represent a psycho-spiritual autobiography of the author. So he sets himself the task of interpreting the significance of the author's writings as his psycho-spiritual autobiography.
I want to discuss one passage from his new book. Melville-as-Ishmael describes concentric circles of pods of whales. Steven B. Herrmann comments as follows:
"At the innermost heart of the concentric spheres were the cows and calves of the herd, the babes and 'nursing mothers.' Within the center of this shoal-mandala rests the feminine archetype: the feminine face of God, the Shekinah, or hidden divine presence, which, with her creativity, reflecting eyes, and loving kindness, brings calm to the anxious whalers in the midst of more frightening uncertainties of impending castration, death, and doom at the periphery. It's the bulls of the herd that bring terror to the men, and particularly the one ominous white bull spermaceti that awaits with rage, ultimate destruction, and doom. The motherly females, on the other hand, offer the men a nurturing and peaceful presence" (page 315).
More specifically, I want to dwell on the following words: "the feminine archetype: the feminine face of God, the Shekinah, or hidden divine presence, which, with her creativity, reflecting eyes, and loving kindness, brings calm." As I have extracted these words from the passage, I have focused on an extraordinary statement. But I am not trying to put words in Steven B. Herrmann's mouth, so to speak. Instead, I want to extract something that he wrote and make it into a general statement, not just a statement about one aspect of Mellville's MOBY-DICK.
In his book THE TWO-MILLION-YEAR-OLD SELF (1993), the Oxford-educated British psychiatrist Anthony Stevens claims that archetypal wounding requires archetypal healing. However, it is far from clear how the archetypal wounding of the feminine archetype that Steven B. Herrmann discusses may undergo archetypal healing. Nevertheless, it is of the utmost importance for the individuation process that the feminine archetype that he discusses to undergo archetypal healing. Indeed, it is necessary for the individuation process to proceed optimally.
In Dr. Jung's THE RED BOOK: LIBER NOVUS: A READER'S EDITION, edited and introduced by Sonu Shamdasani, translated by Mark Kyburz, John Pick, and Sonu Shamdasani (2009), the feminine archetype in Dr. Jung's psyche is quoted as saying the following words to him in his famous encounter with the unconscious:
"If I am not conjoined through the uniting of the Below [the unconscious] and the Above [the ego-consciousness], I break down into three parts: [1] the serpent, and in that or some other form I roam, living nature daimonically, arousing fear and longing. [2] The human soul, living forever within you. [3] The celestial soul, as such dwelling with the Gods, far from you and unknown to you, appearing in the form of a bird. Each of these three parts then is independent" (page 577).
A bit later, the feminine archetype says, "Whoever does not follow the principium individuationis to its end becomes no God, since he cannot bear individuality" (page 579).
In the Gospel According to John (10:34-35), the unknown author portrays Jesus as saying, "'Is it not written in your law, "I said: You are gods"? It is those to whom God's word came who are called gods -- and scripture cannot be set aside'" (REB).
He is alluding to Psalm 82:6. "'This is my sentence: Though you are gods, all sons of the Most High . . . " (REB).
In the patristic and medieval Christian tradition of thought, deification was a well-known doctrine. See Norman Russell's book THE DOCTRINE OF DEIFICATION IN THE GREEK PATRISTIC TRADITION (2004) and A. N. Williams' book THE GROUND OF UNION: DEIFICATION IN AQUINAS AND PALAMAS (1999).
Figuratively speaking, the archetypal healing of the archetypal wounding of the feminine archetype that Steven B. Herrmann discusses appears to be the key to the kingdom of God (or the reign of God) that the historical Jesus proclaimed -- and the key to the optimal individuation process.
Now, as individual persons experience the psychological process of individuation, they almost certainly will feel more expansive. Such expansiveness could work in favor of their developing a spirit of spiritual democracy as Steven B. Herrmann outlines it.
Next, in connection with Steven B. Herrmann's discussion of the feminine archetype, mentioned above, I want to go back in time a bit. In 1950, Pope Pius XII formally declared the dogma of the bodily Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven. At the time, many Protestant writers published vociferous critiques of the new dogma.
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