Visiting Lecture Series: Reconsidering Individuation in the 21st Century, with Joe Cambray, Ph.D.
Date – November 7, 2026
Time- 12 pm – 2:30 pm EST
Cost- $75
On Zoom
As a central notion in Jungian psychology, individuation generally has been treated as a hard-won goal, following a model of heroic efforts to achieve a realization of the self. In this course we will look at how Jung developed this concept as a type of modern spirituality. Drawing upon ancient and medieval philosophical roots coupled with a prolonged confrontation with the unconscious, during his “Red Book” period (1913-1932), we will explore the path which led him to this vision of human potentiality.
This will be followed by an examination of potential extensions: synchronicity will be seen as a needed, fundamental conceptual bridge towards a fuller, more holistic conceptualization of individuation. An approach to a reenchantment of the mind, and of the world emerges from this extension. Further, consideration of contemporary complexity theory offers a path towards a broad revision of Jung’s opus. Consequently, the notion of individuation into to a more open-ended, dynamic process, which includes a critique of its classical “heroic” orientation. Collective, cultural dimensions to individuation can then be considered and better appreciated.
More controversially, we will look at the post-mortem potentiality of individuation, starting with Jung’s own beliefs. Exploration of unconscious imagery will be considered in terms of a recovery and reanimation of the forgotten gods/goddesses of the netherworlds in various cultures. Individuation in this way becomes a collective enterprise to restore and revitalize psychic verticality and open space for the reality of the imagination.
Joseph Cambray, Ph.D. is Past-President-CEO of Pacifica Graduate Institute; he is Past-President of the International Association for Analytical Psychology (IAAP); has served as the U.S. Editor for the Journal of Analytical Psychology (JAP.) He was a faculty member at Harvard Medical School, Center for Psychoanalytic Studies. Dr. Cambray lives in the Santa Barbara area of California. His numerous publications include the book based on his Fay Lectures: Synchronicity: Nature and Psyche in an Interconnected Universe. He has also published numerous paper and book chapters. He regularly lectures and gives workshops internationally.
DATE AND TIME
Saturday, November 7, 2026
12 pm – 2:30 pm EST on Zoom
Cost:
$75
2.5 MHC and SW CEUs available ($15 CEU fee)
Public Registration