SUMMARY AND REFLECTIONS ON

THE GNOSTIC JUNG AND THE SEVEN SERMONS TO THE DEAD

RUNNING HEAD: Jung and Seven Sermons to the Dead

David Johnston
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Jung and Seven Sermons to the Dead

ABSTRACT

In this paper I summarise then reflect on a book by Stephan Hoeller entitled The
Gnostic Jung and the Seven Sermons to the Dead. Hoeller's book is a Gnostic
interpretation of Jung's sermon-poem, Seven Sermons to the Dead, found at the
end of his autobiography, Memories, Dreams, Reflections. In my opinion the
author does a remarkable job in elucidating the meaning of the enigmatic
symbols found in the tract and the significance of Jung's message. His well
reasoned contention is that Jung's approach to psychology is based on the truths
of Gnosticism and is, in fact, a Gnostic psychology and a path of knowledge of
the heart. Although I appreciate Hoeller's presentation, I argue that Jung's
mature approach to psychology is based on alchemy even more than
Gnosticism. In fact perhaps his psychology is ultimately a synthesis of seeds
strewn by both alchemy and Gnosticism.
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Jung and Seven Sermons to the Dead
SUMMARY AND REFLECTIONS ON THE GNOSTIC JUNG AND THE SEVEN
SERMONS TO THE DEAD. by Dr. Stephan A. Hoeller. A Quest Book published
by the Theosophical Publishing House.

SUMMARY

Introduction

For lovers of Jung, and for those who have puzzled over the highly paradoxical

and mysterious treatise, VII Sermones Ad Mortuos [Seven Sermons to the Dead],

found at the end of his autobiography, Memories, Dreams, Reflections, I highly

recommend The Gnostic Jung and the Seven Sermons to the Dead. Stephan

Hoeller, the author, manages to penetrate to the depths of Jung’s psychology in

an unusually brilliant and knowledgeable manner. He gives us a picture of a

psychology that is, in truth, an all encompassing path of knowledge.

The author contends that Jung’s scientific work is based on visionary revelations

that he had had between the years 1912-1917 during his nekyia or descent into

the underworld, and during which time he wrote and painted his inner fantasies in

his famous Red Book. One part of this book that Jung had privately published

and distributed to a few selected people is the Seven Sermons to the Dead.

Jung wrote this tract, in the manner of the ancient Gnostics, under the

pseudonym of Basilides [AD 125-140], a Gnostic heretic from Alexandria, clearly

linking him to this tradition. He later said that he regretted having distributed the

pamphlet and that it was youthful folly to have done so. Yet the sermon-poem

itself is of great interest and Dr. Hoeller elucidates its depth of meaning in his

discussion of the Gnostic symbolism found in each of the seven sermons.

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Jung and Seven Sermons to the Dead
Coincidentally, the author describes the Gnostic path for the modern person; the

road of conscious individuation that requires one, albeit responsibly, to go

contrary to the world and to its notions of what is both reasonable and even

probable. Hoeller contends that it is no exaggeration to state that the impetus

behind the events and periods that significantly contribute to the differentiation of

the individuating psyche is based on freedom and the law of synchronicity and

not statistical probability.

What then does it mean to be a Gnostic? The following two lines of the sermon

give us a clue, while indicating the inner meaning and approach to be taken

towards Jung’s Gnostic psychology:

To name is not to know

To know, one must experience

The idea that knowledge is primarily gained through experience and reflection on

experience, along with spiritual aspiration, is similar to the central message found

in India's great scripture The Bhagavad Gita. Jung was a Gnostic, that is to say

a man of knowledge, and he has graced the world with a psychology and a

mystical path that rings true because it is genuinely based on phenomenological

experience, Jung’s own and then others. The goal of all Gnosticism, including

Jung’s psychology, is fullness of being and not moral perfection, a point that Jung

repeated on endless occasions. Undoubtedly he was obliged to do so in order to

get his position across, as it is so much at odds with conscious Western tradition

and practice.
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Jung and Seven Sermons to the Dead
The First Sermon:
The Empty Fullness

Jung addresses the sermon-poem to the dead. In Gnostic language, the dead

refers to the non-Gnostic, all of us who are spiritually dead and who identify with

the hylic [material and vital worlds] to the exclusion of the psychic [religious] and

pneumatic [spiritual] natures.

Basilides begins by describing the Gnostic Pleroma, which is both emptiness and

fullness, differentiated and undifferentiated, containing all the opposites in a state

of equilibrium. In fact the Pleroma has no qualities, and these are created by our

thinking. Not thinking but being is differentiation, and therefore the needful is to

strive after one’s true nature, not discrimination and differentiation as they are

known by the mind. The natural tendency of the incarnated soul is to differentiate

itself from the Pleroma and to learn discrimination and discernment.

Differentiation is the essence of the created world including man. Thus the

Prinicpium Individuationes, the Principle of Individuation, meaning differentiation

of being, is a fundamental motive-force in Jung’s system of psychology. The

danger confronting the human being is the seductive pull back into the abyss of

the Pleroma in that it is nothingness and dissolution, while giving up the light of

consciousness and the urge towards individuation.

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The Second Sermon:
Helios-Image of God and the Devil

God, says Philemon, in the second sermon is the created world in as much as

He is differentiated from the Pleorma. He is, as such, quality of the Pleorma. We

are then presented with the differentiation of the two great polar opposites,

Helios, that is to say God the Sun, the summum bonum (supreme good)

representing, fullness, generativity and Eros or relatedness, and the Devil, the

inifinum malum (endless evil) representing emptiness, destruction, dissolution

and Thanatos or death. In the created world, these two stand together as active

opposites, each with discernible effect. There is yet another God, differentiated

from the Pleroma, yet its closest approximation. He is difficult to know as man

does not perceive his power and he seems less effective than either Helios or the

devil. His name is Abraxas, and he represents the power of reconciliation of all

existential force and activity, transcending both the God Helios and the Devil.

The Third Sermon:

Part 1-Abraxas: The Heavenly Chanticleer

Abraxas is the supreme power of being in whom light and darkness are each

united and transcended. It contains all the opposites of creation in a state of

unconscious complementarity. Life is generated and regenerated by the power

of Abraxas, which is impersonal, amoral, non-discriminating and merciless. It is

both the instinctual depths of the erect phallus of Priapos, and the archetypal

heights of the spirit. Abraxas is the closest approximation to the active

manifestation of the Pleroma being force, duration and change. As universal,

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undifferentiated psychic energy Abraxas generates both truth and falsehood,

good and evil. It is the life of creation and both deceitful reality and powerful in

the world of unreality. Above all, counsels Philemon, this God is terrible,

demanding fear and admiration.

Part II-Jung’s unknown God

Jung’s unknown God, Abraxas, appeals to three principles of Jungian

psychology: [1] the concept of libido: [2] the union of opposites that require

differentiation through the individuation process and: [3] the natural urge towards

individuation that demands gradually assimilating aspects of the unconscious

Abraxas to consciousness. Life is generated and regenerated by the power of

Abraxas, which is impersonal, amoral, non-discriminating and merciless. He is

both the instinctual depths of the erect phallus of Priapos, and the archetypal

heights of the spirit.

At the beginning of a more consciously inclined life, traditional moral law and a

dogmatic spiritual discipline are helpful to accomplish a specific goal, namely the

strengthening of the power of the will against Abraxas, the naturalistic psyche.

Once that specific goal is met, normal dogmatic morality must be transcended to

allow for a higher ethic. In the process of individuation, the psyche is often

forced into situations where there is a real “conflict of duty” and an ethical

dilemma.
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Jung and Seven Sermons to the Dead
When faced with such “conflicts of duty,” the individual must appeal to the

transcendent function, a higher principle, which contains a wider view than either

of the two opposites in conflict. Not to do so, means falling over into one or the

other side of the conflicting opposites which, in Jung’s terms, is the cause of

neuroses. To be influenced by the transcendent function, on the other hand,

opens one to a deeper, more contemplative life and the assimilation of aspects of

the unconscious, the terrible Abraxas, into consciousness and life.

The Fourth Sermon:

The Burning Bush and the Tree of Life

The further we go along, the more we are impressed with the depth and

complexity of Jung’s thought, as he attempts to give voice to his experience of

the mystery of existence. In the Fourth Sermon, which Hoeller sees as being

one of the most significant, we are again confronted with the paradoxical and

mysterious nature of the psyche. There is, in addition to Helios, that is to say

God the Sun as the highest good and Its opposite the Devil, a great many goods

and evils, a multiplicity of gods and devils, including two god-devils, the “Burning

one,” or Eros, and the “Growing one,” or The Tree of Life and Logos. As god-

devils, Eros and Logos are not only opposites but they each contain within

themselves oppositional powers. It is in the mutual co-existence and

interpenetration of these two great powers of being that the secret of wholeness

must be discovered.
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The “Growing one” represents the spirit of civilisation, the Logos of the zeitgeist.

It continually creates institutions, regulations, codes, laws and forms in order for

life to build and expand on stable and secure ground. In Western Christianity,

there is tradition, dogma and doctrine that can aid one’s religious growth, but also

stultify, limit and encourage conformity. In addition to essential cultural

expressions and the development of civilization, and the regularity of cyclic

patterns, there is the shadow of sclerotic conservatism, triviality and repression.

The “Burning one” or Eros, on the other hand, seeks life in creativity, change, the

lure of adventure, challenge and battle and, according to the witness of history,

conflict and violence. It rebels against the restrictions of civilization as well as

any ascetic life negating quest for high-culture, knowledge and task

specialization. Eros also represents the horizontal impetus towards knowledge

of and relationship with others. . Eros is also the horizontal impetus towards

knowledge of and relationship with others. The “Burning One” thus represents

the individual creative spirit and the impetus for individual truth, but also the

shadowy wildness below the veneer of civilization and culture, both the joy and

suffering of life.

The Fifth Sermon:

The Two Communities:
Mother City and Father Fortress

Although today many people are quick to criticize Jung on his appreciation of

women and the feminine principle, the fifth sermon points to a paradoxical dark
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mystery behind the intuitive concepts he refers to as Eros and Logos. Reversing

most contemporary understanding, yet following ancient myth, Jung understands

the feminine to be Mater Coelestis, the Heavenly Mother, who comes as a dove

and the masculine to be Phallos, manifesting as a serpent, the Earthly Father.

Thus the dove is ostensibly feminine and represents the spiritual power that

receives and most importantly comprehends, while the serpent ostensibly

represents the giving and generating male principle of procreation, which must

receive in order to give.

Thus, in addition to Logos, the masculine principle possesses all the

characteristics of Eros and the feminine principle, in addition to Eros, contains all

the characteristics of Logos. Logos or meaning governs the spiritual in men and

the sexual and instinctual connectedness in women, while Eros or relatedness

governs the spiritual in women and the sexual and instinctual in men. Each

gender is blessed with one Logos and one Eros principle but in an opposite

manner. This is the basis for the mutual attraction and unconscious projections

between men and women.

The conscious male consequently identifies with the mind, law and order, and is

directly connected to the feminine Mater Coelestis, the Goddess Logos. Since

his spirituality, according to the sermon, “moves in the direction of the greater and

is heavenly,” there is a tendency in a man’s thinking, therefore, towards

abstraction, spirit and the realm of ideas. The principle of Phallos and the god
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Eros, meanwhile, tends to act upon the masculine nature from the unconscious,

a reflection of the fact that a man's sexuality [and instinctuality], says the sermon,

"moves in the direction of the smaller and is earthly.” Being in touch with his

sexuality and instinctual nature, therefore, keeps a man related and connected to

earthly reality.

In contrast to the male psyche, where the Goddess Logos rules his conscious

life, the great carrier of meaning for the feminine psyche is the god Eros. This

allows women to be more conscious in relationship and relatedness. Her

sexuality [and instinctual relatedness], accordingly, “moves in the direction of the

greater and is heavenly." Thus a woman is more likely to find meaning in

sexuality and instinctual relatedness than a man, where these dynamics of life

lay in the unconscious and are blind.

For women, where Eros rules her conscious life, the Goddess Logos, on the

other hand, acts from the unconscious. This allows the feminine psyche to

function in the world, but without her perceiving meaning there as a man does.

Despite the fact that woman’s Logos functions unconsciously, she often does the

right thing through woman’s intuition. Moreover, In contrast to men, a woman's

spirituality "moves in the direction of the smaller and is earthly." This means that

a woman’s thinking tends to be practical and down to earth, even when it turns to

philosophy and psychology or yoga, or any other discipline requiring mental

competence.
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It becomes evident from this discussion that the dynamics of the psychic energy

lying in the male psyche differ from those which lay in the female psyche. The

requirements of individuation, which aim at wholeness, are therefore, typically,

quite different for men and for women, although the principium individuationis or

principle of individuation is identical. The goal of individuation is androgyny and

not a monotonous unisex, although, in either case, there is a need to come to

terms with both spirituality and sexuality. Spirituality and sexuality [and the

instinctual nature] are manifestations of the Gods and exist objectively in their

own right. Thus, the individuating psyche must learn to detach itself from these

daemons, yet not repress them, as the psyche is subject to their laws.

Men and women must become conscious of both the God Eros and the Goddess

Logos that lay in their respective unconscious, or else remain victimized by them.

In psychological terms, there is a need, in other words, for men to become

conscious of, first their personal shadow, and then their anima, the feminine

mediatrix and bridge to the deeper unconscious in men. There is, likewise, a

need for women to become conscious of their personal shadow and then the

animus, the masculine beacon and bridge to the collective unconscious in

women. In the measure that this is not done, one is possessed by unconscious

complexes.

Humankind requires both community as well as solitude, each ideally in harmony

with both Logos and Eros. Community gives "warmth and depth", while solitude
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"gives light and height." From a psychological perspective, community serves

the purpose of generating human warmth and depth through relationships and

work in the community, while solitude engenders the light of consciousness and

spiritual elevation. Jung reverses the normal view of life as he states that

community requires abstinence, while solitude, through such activities as active

imagination and the direct engagement of the multiple psyche, requires the

"squandering of abundance." In addition to the proper attitude towards both

solitude and community, the consciously individuating psyche needs to find a

judicious balance between the two. Too much or too little of either is evil, which

is to say psychologically unhealthy, while the just balance purifies. Jung’s

insights expressed here on the nature of intrapsychic dynamics and both the

interplay between men and women and community and solitude are invaluable to

the contemporary seeker for community in a New World.

Always cognitive of the opposites at all levels of being, according to the meaning

Jung attributes to the serpent, it is outwardly masculine and phallic, but inwardly

feminine and enkindles or is receptive to desire. In a similar way, the dove, which

is outwardly feminine, is inwardly masculine and represents conscious thought

and messages from the spirit and transcendence. The serpent and the dove,

therefore, each make up half the human psyche of which one must become

conscious for the sake of Gnosis [Knowledge]. Although it is normally accepted

that messages of transcendence and the spirit can be helpful to leading a

meaningful spiritual life, it is not so well understood that acceptance of one’s

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instinctual force and desire nature is also a sine qua non for coming in touch with

one’s wholeness.

Following the way of the serpent does not mean to do so blindly or unconsciously

and without discipline, which would only lead to further unconsciousness. In the

language of Indian psychology it would involve becoming further enmeshed in

the kleshas of existence. But it does mean that there is a need to consciously

follow the instinctual forces of desire, even, to allow oneself to be lead by them.

This inevitably involves conflict and the need to experience and hold in

consciousness a tension of opposites, even at times apparent chaos, in order to

gain consciousness of Eros or relatedness. Like Goethe’s Mephistopheles, the

serpent shows us the way in a manner one would never chose by one s own wit.

In Gnosticism, the serpent is both wild beast and holy counselor, the symbol of

supernal wisdom. Not repression, but loving regard for one's nature,

consciousness of one’s desires and creative imagination connects one to the

path of Knowledge.
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The Seventh Sermon:

Homeward Bound Among the Stars

There is a need not to mistake change, which is a movement of nature per se,

with transformation, which requires the opus contra naturam, the transformational

work against nature of the alchemists. In the alchemical view, individuals are the

unique link between the microcosm, which includes their personal experiences

and the world inside themselves, and the macrocosm, the world of

transcendental being and the world outside themselves. One is confronted here

with two aspects of the mystery of Existence that meet in the human psyche and,

consequently, relate directly to what Jung refers to as synchronicity or the

meaningful coincidence of outer and inner events. Jung understands

synchronicity to involve observable conscious experiences of general acausal

orderedness, which implies that the manifestation involves the unfolding of a

superior divine Will, the divine Shakti as manifestation of the Purusha. At times,

one can experience this reality through conscious archetypal experiences and

synchronicity, as light penetrates the darkness of the Shadow existence.

According to Basildes, Individuals have the task of following their own inner star,

which is their God and Pleroma and the goal of individuation. The implication of

this statement is that God or the God-Image is an existential reality that can be

experienced in one’s psyche. Indeed, individuals need to attend to increasing

the light of this star, or God-Image, which is to say become more conscious of

the God-Image in their own soul through Tapas, or the application of will. As
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Jung argues in Answer to Job and elsewhere, not only does man need God but

God also needs man in order to fulfill His purpose and to effect His

transformation. Engaging the power of imagination through dynamic meditation

approaches such as Jung’s methods of Active Imagination can allow one to

become more aware of the indwelling Godhead and Its realization in life.

Humans can be turned away from their own God and conscious engagement in

the individuation process by the "fiery spectacle of Abraxas," which is to say by

the naturalistic psyche of worldliness, gross materialism, sensuality and even

false optimism and idealism, among other things. The great danger to spiritually

inclined people, however, is that they can too easily sacrifice Abraxas or life to

the star, which is to say spiritual ambition. Humankind is placed between life and

spiritual reality and one should not identify with either. The principium

Individuationes always insists on the continual refinement of individual

consciousness and not dissolution of being in the Pleroma or non-differentiation

of being swallowed up in Abraxas. Life in the material world, in Jung’s way of

thinking, is indispensable to spirit, for spiritual truths are irrelevant, he believes, if

they cannot be incarnated in life. Consciousness is not enough; individuation

means consciousness-life.

Epilogue

True gnosis is knowledge of the heart and not that of the head or ego. This is the

real goal of individuation and Jung’s Gnostic psychology. A Supreme example of

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this gnosis is Jung himself, about whom the author comments: "there is a

mysterious, indefinable greatness." He further states: "the ineffable greatness of

the Pleroma, the fullness of being may be seen clearly present in souls such as

Jung’s who to a considerable measure restored that fullness within themselves."

Hoeller’s view parallels that of Edward Edinger who, in his recent book, The

Creation of Consciousness, goes so far as to suggest that Jung may be the most

conscious person to have ever lived.

Reflections

The great merit of this book is that the author unequivocally and courageously

places Jung’s psychology on a genuine spiritual Gnostic foundation. With this

perspective one can only view with circumspection those who claim to have gone

beyond Jung, however brilliant they may be. Is it possible that they have not

really understood the profound mystery behind Jung’s psychology and, in their

frenzy to dethrone the king, are simply debating a modern version of how many

angels dance on a pin? Parenthetically, I will note here that I am fully

sympathetic to the view held by both Hoeller and Edinger on Jung's spiritual pre-

eminence, especially in the West. He was, in my opinion, one of the most

conscious individuals to have ever lived. To assert, along with Edinger, that he

was the most conscious, however, would be to ignore the reality of Sri Aurobindo

and the Mother and their realizations.

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At the very least, Hoeller’s attitude should remind us of the great debt we owe to

Jung, to whom we can now turn in a more humble spirit. The Gnostic Jung and

the Seven Sermons to the Dead rates in my mind with the very best of the books

on Jung and his psychology. Not only does the author himself write with a highly

developed intuitive intellect, but gratitude and warmth of feeling to the living Jung

breathe through every line.

There is still, in my opinion, a shortcoming to this fine book. Not enough

attention or even acknowledgement is paid to the fact that Jung eventually left

Gnosticism behind and spent most of his energy studying alchemy. Indeed, he

came to believe that it was in alchemy, even more than Gnosticism, where the

contemporary psyche can find the key to the deeper realms of inner

transformation. Here it is worthwhile noting that if Gnosticism has a certain

affinity with Hindu scriptures like The Bhagavad Gita, then alchemy is akin to

Tantra.

Briefly stated, the reason that Jung became increasingly involved with alchemy is

that, here, there is complete acceptance of the earthly feminine and

concretization of the spirit, which one does not find in Gnosticism. Not only is

there a Heavenly Mother who gives birth to the male Logos, but there is also a

Chthonic Mother, who gives birth to the filius phililosophorum or son of the

philosophers, that is to say the incarnation of Divine Will. Perhaps, in the final
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analysis, it is in the synthesis of Gnosticism and alchemy where one can find the

true seeds of Jung's mature psychology and not in either discipline alone.