Possession. Jung

I’d very much like to know what Jung had to say about possession cults and the deeper reasons behind such experiences. Especially since I’ve always wondered if the entities which supposedly possess the initiate could be regarded as aspects of one’s Self.

As far as I know, though, Jung spoke about possession in a very precise way, which is not necessarily related to possession trance, possession cults, and the like. As explained in the article quoted below, which highlights the dangers of possession, he mainly equates it with a phenomenon known as (psychological) inflation, “a psychological state in which the conscious personality comes to identify with a powerful archetypal idea or image, becoming inflated and dangerously out balance.” One of Jung’s own examples in this regard was Nietzsche, but you will find more instances of inflation in the article I mentioned.

As fascinatingly ambiguous and multifaceted as it is, in possession cults possession doesn’t have this connotation. Because it is conducted in a certain way, in the context of a ceremony and a certain logic (regardless of how illogical it seems to the rational mind), one doesn’t risk, for instance, to descend into madness. It could be regarded as a way of making peace between two extremes: a life devoid of spirituality, on the one hand, and psychological inflation, on the other. And a form of therapy, if you wish.

“The Miracle of Bali” (1969)

Until watching this documentary (“The Miracle of Bali,” 1969, narrated by David Attenborough), I hadn’t heard of a similar type of trance (except, maybe, the tarantella, in the case of which the dynamics of the ceremony and the reasons behind it are better researched) and I wondered what actually goes on here. And as much as I believe that such experiences cannot be (fully) comprehended through logic and intellectual reasoning, I do like to come up with my own speculations and associations.

Could this be a (predominantly) safe way of expressing various instincts and forces in our unconscious in a certain context, specially developed for this purpose, instincts and forces which are otherwise dangerous to give rein to? It is possible, but what struck me, days after watching this scene, was something else: even though it might have absolutely nothing to do with it, it made me think about a certain advanced yogic practice, the name of which I cannot recall at this moment (could be Samyama, but I’m really not sure), which is aimed at clearing karma in a very profound way. It reaches beyond genetic and personal karma, going at least as far as evolutionary karma. Since the memory of all the evolutionary steps leading up to human life is contained within us, albeit unconsciously, the process of clearing this karma involves some sort of temporary, controlled regression through these previous states. In this regard, Sadhguru was thus describing how people who do this practice crawl on the floor like snakes or act like other animals at some points during the process and this is the reason why I thought about it after watching the documentary on Bali. I wonder if there’s any connection, be it very remote, between this specific type of trance and the karmic clearing process I mentioned.

(Above: excerpt from “The Miracle of Bali,” 1969, narrated by David Attenborough)