Revelations of Spirit: Synchronicity as a Spiritual Path in a Secular Age

Abstract

Restricted by the dogma of many forms of Western religion and plagued by the spiritual emptiness of materialism pervading the current age, many seek direct, personal experience of the sacred. Following a hermeneutic methodology, this dissertation explores the relevance of the writings of Jung and others on synchronicity, as both phenomenon and principle, as a foundation for an alternative path promising an authentic spiritual life. Through an exploration of the principle of synchronicity, the study reveals the possibility of a cosmos permeated with meaning, of a path to the spiritualization of matter, and of a bridge between the disparate realms of the sacred and profane. The study finds that synchronicity as a spiritual path naturally leads to direct, authentic experience of the divine, supports the major tenets of the progressive spirituality movement, and reflects the synchronistic principles undergirding the Chinese tradition of Taoism. The principle of synchronicity is found to be a possible psychophysical law supporting the experience of consciousness as well as the process of individuation. The study concludes that Jung’s synchronistic model of his psychology of religion dispels the charge of psychologism levied against analytical psychology. In the theory of synchronicity Jung has given depth psychology the means to potentially unite all of humanity in a common purpose: the creation of consciousness. In particular, synchronicity as a spiritual path can draw attention to the value of depth psychology for offering a resolution to the spiritual vacuum in the West.