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Confronting Evil: A Jungian Guide to Searching for Light In the Heart of Darkness
Jungian analyst Dr. Bud Harris writes poignantly about the dramatic and mysterious nature of evil. This book is a journey deep into the psychological dimensions of evil and how the shadow sides of our personalities are intertwined with it to shape our personal lives and culture.
The idea that evil exists in the world, in our lives, and in our thoughts, can bring on depression, sadness, and helplessness. We struggle with the concept. How do we find the courage to confront it, examine its nature, understand its origins, and, finally, embrace it as a difficult but important element in living a conscious life?
“Most evil is not done by evil people, but by good people who donʼt know what they are doing.”—Richard Niebuhr
Confronting Evil offers a guide for “good people” to recognize evil, explore it in the world and within themselves, and transform it into something meaningful and hopeful. Designed as a seeker’s guide and workbook, prompts for reflection are posed following each section. Blank pages allow you to make notes, reflect, or list personal assignments and challenges.
Quotes from religious texts, philosophers, and thinkers – including psychoanalyst Carl Jung – are plentiful. And Harris uses powerful examples from his own practice as a Jungian analyst. The subject of evil and how to approach it is examined from multiple points of view.
The benefits of doing this powerful innerwork are clear. This book is for you
You have experienced the effects of evil within yourself and in the world around you.You want to examine the nature of evil and learn to understand it.You seek to understand how each of us can be a source of evil in the world, as well as good. This short book began as a lecture Harris gave in 2014. That lecture has been expanded to explore additional thoughts dealing with the shadow of evil in current events, political realities, and what he sees as one of our culture’s greatest societal challenges.
The idea that evil exists in the world, in our lives, and in our thoughts, can bring on depression, sadness, and helplessness. We struggle with the concept. How do we find the courage to confront it, examine its nature, understand its origins, and, finally, embrace it as a difficult but important element in living a conscious life?
“Most evil is not done by evil people, but by good people who donʼt know what they are doing.”—Richard Niebuhr
Confronting Evil offers a guide for “good people” to recognize evil, explore it in the world and within themselves, and transform it into something meaningful and hopeful. Designed as a seeker’s guide and workbook, prompts for reflection are posed following each section. Blank pages allow you to make notes, reflect, or list personal assignments and challenges.
Quotes from religious texts, philosophers, and thinkers – including psychoanalyst Carl Jung – are plentiful. And Harris uses powerful examples from his own practice as a Jungian analyst. The subject of evil and how to approach it is examined from multiple points of view.
The benefits of doing this powerful innerwork are clear. This book is for you
You have experienced the effects of evil within yourself and in the world around you.You want to examine the nature of evil and learn to understand it.You seek to understand how each of us can be a source of evil in the world, as well as good. This short book began as a lecture Harris gave in 2014. That lecture has been expanded to explore additional thoughts dealing with the shadow of evil in current events, political realities, and what he sees as one of our culture’s greatest societal challenges.
96 pages, Kindle Edition
Published October 29, 2020
14 people are currently reading
17 people want to read
About the author
Bud Harris
28 books55 followers“Bud Harris is a lantern on the path—clear-eyed, big-hearted, and illuminating.”
– Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way
Bud Harris, PhD, is one of the most prolific Jungian authors of our time. He's authored and co-authored 15 books, and has been in the field of Jungian psychology for 30 years. At 82 years old, he has a long-standing practice in Asheville, North Carolina, which is still thriving.
Bud Harris defines himself as a husband, a father, grandfather, psychologist and Jungian analyst. Early in his life he earned a bachelor’s degree in management from Georgia Tech in Atlanta Georgia. After Tech, Bud became a businessman and then owned his own business which he operated successfully. However, in spite of his achievements, he found his life in the cul-de-sac that he explains in his book Sacred Selfishness.
Following a period of dissatisfaction and searching, he returned to school to change careers and eventually earned his Ph.D. in psychology.
After becoming a psychotherapist and psychologist, he experienced the call to further his growth by becoming a Jungian analyst. Bud moved to Zürich, Switzerland where he trained for over five years until he became a diplomate Jungian analyst. Bud explains that “In many ways my educational odyssey has been a reflection of the transformational pattern of my life.” Bud notes that writing Sacred Selfishness (his fourth book) was a labor of love. He says, “Jungian work becomes the path of a authentic life, a life that is fulfilling, passionate and full of love. And this journey is fueled by self-knowledge and awareness. This is the path that healed and
transformed my life.”
“I also wanted to write the book I wish someone had written when I was struggling in my early thirties or at midlife. By this I mean a book for everyone that isn’t loaded with professional jargon. While I love the books by Jung and other depth psychologists, I found them difficult until I became schooled in the field.”
– Julia Cameron, author of The Artist’s Way
Bud Harris, PhD, is one of the most prolific Jungian authors of our time. He's authored and co-authored 15 books, and has been in the field of Jungian psychology for 30 years. At 82 years old, he has a long-standing practice in Asheville, North Carolina, which is still thriving.
Bud Harris defines himself as a husband, a father, grandfather, psychologist and Jungian analyst. Early in his life he earned a bachelor’s degree in management from Georgia Tech in Atlanta Georgia. After Tech, Bud became a businessman and then owned his own business which he operated successfully. However, in spite of his achievements, he found his life in the cul-de-sac that he explains in his book Sacred Selfishness.
Following a period of dissatisfaction and searching, he returned to school to change careers and eventually earned his Ph.D. in psychology.
After becoming a psychotherapist and psychologist, he experienced the call to further his growth by becoming a Jungian analyst. Bud moved to Zürich, Switzerland where he trained for over five years until he became a diplomate Jungian analyst. Bud explains that “In many ways my educational odyssey has been a reflection of the transformational pattern of my life.” Bud notes that writing Sacred Selfishness (his fourth book) was a labor of love. He says, “Jungian work becomes the path of a authentic life, a life that is fulfilling, passionate and full of love. And this journey is fueled by self-knowledge and awareness. This is the path that healed and
transformed my life.”
“I also wanted to write the book I wish someone had written when I was struggling in my early thirties or at midlife. By this I mean a book for everyone that isn’t loaded with professional jargon. While I love the books by Jung and other depth psychologists, I found them difficult until I became schooled in the field.”
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July 29, 2022
Jung condensado, muito interessante.
"Nossas almas nacionais e individuais estão feridas. Muitos de nós estão com o coração partido e não estamos prestando atenção à nossa necessidade de nos unir em nossa tristeza e luto. Se não pudermos enfrentar a verdade de nossas perdas e nosso sofrimento, e encontrar um caminho de cura através deles que nos aproxime de completar nosso ciclo de transformação, nosso medo e dor continuarão a ser cada vez mais sublimados em raiva, agressão e projetar culpa sobre outras pessoas e grupos.
Há também outro problema hoje. Somos vítimas diárias de abusos emocionais e verbais de demagogos, grupos de mídia, internet e grupos de apoio que se encantam pelo poder e cultivam o medo para ofuscar nossa capacidade de amar. Eles nos batem diariamente com violência emocional contínua. Não podemos ignorá-los com mais sucesso do que uma criança pode encontrar segurança em seu quarto enquanto os pais estão gritando e batendo uns nos outros do outro lado da porta. Devemos encontrar uma voz para falar contra esse abuso, esse tipo de mal, e sermos capazes de lamentar nossa dor enquanto nossas feridas estão abertas e sangrando."
"Nossas almas nacionais e individuais estão feridas. Muitos de nós estão com o coração partido e não estamos prestando atenção à nossa necessidade de nos unir em nossa tristeza e luto. Se não pudermos enfrentar a verdade de nossas perdas e nosso sofrimento, e encontrar um caminho de cura através deles que nos aproxime de completar nosso ciclo de transformação, nosso medo e dor continuarão a ser cada vez mais sublimados em raiva, agressão e projetar culpa sobre outras pessoas e grupos.
Há também outro problema hoje. Somos vítimas diárias de abusos emocionais e verbais de demagogos, grupos de mídia, internet e grupos de apoio que se encantam pelo poder e cultivam o medo para ofuscar nossa capacidade de amar. Eles nos batem diariamente com violência emocional contínua. Não podemos ignorá-los com mais sucesso do que uma criança pode encontrar segurança em seu quarto enquanto os pais estão gritando e batendo uns nos outros do outro lado da porta. Devemos encontrar uma voz para falar contra esse abuso, esse tipo de mal, e sermos capazes de lamentar nossa dor enquanto nossas feridas estão abertas e sangrando."
Displaying 1 of 1 review