Dreamquest: Native American Myth & the Recovery of Soul

by Morton T. Kelsey

The author retells tales of the Seneca tribes by integrating Jungian psychology, world mythology, and comparative religion.

160 pages, Paperback

First published May 1, 1992

Reviews

[Mark Matzeder]

Stories have a way of tapping into the collective unconscious and revealing universal truths about the human experience. Especially when those stories are retold by an Episcopal priest who happens to be a Jungian therapist. The stories in question are various Seneca tribal folklore, which Kelsey learned on his grandmother's knee. (Kelsey had some sort of family connection to the Seneca which is never made explicit.)
This is a book very much in the tradition of Robert A. Johnson's "He" or Robert L. Moore's "King, Warrior, Magician, Lover," exploring how a People's myths and legends reflect a deeper psychological component.
In reading, there seems to be a lot of repetition. Some of that is because Kelsey parses each story. I found myself intensely curious about what the names of the Seneca heroes meant. Character and place names often hold a wealth of meaning and Kelsey's transliteration of names so foreign to my Western European ears just whetted my appetite to know more.

[mae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read