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- Animomentum Newsletter - May 2024
Animomentum Newsletter - May 2024
Craig Chalquist
May 01, 2024
Animomentum
Monthly Updates, Events, and Reflections
It’s May Day! Do you plan on going out “maying”? (Look it up, it’s a wonderful word.)
Outwardly, things have been somewhat quiet on my end, which is good. It was a busy winter and early spring. But my dreams have been active and amazing. I’ve often dreamed about starships, but they have become aircraft carriers converted to peaceful uses. In one dream I carved a model of one. Still sitting with that.
I had a pleasant and far-ranging conversation with Dr. Deborah Lukuvich for her Dose of Depth Podcast. We talked about terrapsychology and the power of place, the importance of enchantment, and applied mythology as it shows up in current events.
I also wrote a blog on an important truth in the image of Apocalypse so often taken literally: namely, the decline of formal religion. Religion seems to be inescapable. All times, places, cultures have it. According to Jung, the human psyche spontaneously generates religious imagery, always. But when we try to look around for our prehistoric ancestors, beyond, say, ancient Egypt, we see no formal religion, just traces of ritual, song, religious art.
From this I take a question: What might informal religion - in simple terms, collective spirituality - look like today? Ecospirituality, perhaps? Lamplight, the religion of imagination and play found in my novel Soulmapper? My inquiry is ongoing.
Speaking of novels, I’m about halfway through the draft of Heartlander, the second book in what I plan as a trilogy. Soulmapper was the first, and Lamplighter will be the third. The questions asked above all find their dramatized form in my tales along with another wondering: How might the United States, now so disunited, come together on a higher and more inclusive level?
We’ve got about 25 people in Enchantvale, a new online network and platform for dreamers, visionaries, intuitives, and other creatives to gather and converse. They’ve been pretty quiet so far. I simplified the design into two tiers: 1 is free and gives access to all the Discussion Circles, and 2 is for people who want to study loreology with me. For this tier I also plan to do monthly (or more often) group consulting sessions.
I’ve also been listening to Mythic Mojo, a podcast by Catherine Svehla. I recommend it. She also did a bunch under the title Myth in the Mojave. Lots of good stories, plus commentary. I listen via Apple Podcast but both are on other platforms as well.
For those who have asked about my dissertation, it’s almost ready to go. I got it back from the school writing center a few weeks ago and recently finished making technical corrections. Once the school approves it I’ll post it somewhere and let you know in the next newsletter.
Speaking of podcasts, my most recent for The Lorecast, available for free at my website and through Apple Music, Spotify, and several other venues, is on the need for a new vocabulary for spiritual perceptions and insights. The vibes, frequencies, and energies feel increasingly worn. Email me if you have any ideas about a topic you'd like to hear covered in a podcast.
What I'm reading: Beyond Monotheism: A Theology of Multiplicity by Laurel Schneider and Dynamics of Faith by Paul Tillich.
Upcoming Events
The C. G. Jung group in Eugene, OR has asked me to visit in the fall to present on psyche and place. Details soon.
I'm dreaming up some leadership courses on voice, storytelling, and inspiration for the Teton Leadership Center. Details soon.
I've been speaking with the international United Human Foundation about a series of talks focusing on shifting collective narratives away from scarcity, conflict, and hyper-individualism and toward Earth-honoring dreamings of where we want to go together and how we want to live. More soon.
I will present "Inquiry with Earth in Mind" at the Twenty-second International Conference on New Directions in the Humanities, at Sapienza University of Rome. The conference is June 26-28, 2024, and I will be speaking about Terrapsychological Inquiry.
Ongoing Offerings
Free stuff first:
My book consists of 30 stories ("archetales") of speculative fiction and a number of fables, all of which trace the path of humanity's long adventure toward consciousness and maturity from early origins in prehistory up to Terrania, the Earth-honoring, ground-up world culture of inclusion, belonging, and delight awaiting us in the future.
The tales address the question: What might it look like, after all the chaos and conflict, if humanity finally gets it right? An annotated version is also available.
A man in his forties wakes in a park in San Diego with no memory of his name, his past, or how he got there. He finds a cowboy hat, black boots, an e-bike, and a gold medallion that talks. Who is he? Where did he come from?
Ride north, the medallion tells him. Visit the old missions one by one. At each, carry out a mysterious ritual. When you reach Sonoma, your memories will be restored, including those of a mysterious past. You will know who took them and why. Refuse, and I will stop your heart.
As he journeys, encountering a persistent assassin, meeting reanimated gods in his dreams, resisting being cast as a hero, and building new relationships across overheating California, he bears the potent biochemistries needed for collective survival. But his strongest medicine is hope.
My debut novel, set in the Assembling Terrania Cycle.
I created the following courses available at Jung Platform:
Journey into the World of Soul - This is a course on Jung's Black Books, which are his journals spanning 19 years of his life. An indispensable guided tour for understanding the man behind the work.
Codependence: How to Identify and Heal - Several videos drawing on my clinical experience of helping people understand and work with the chronic need to turn relationships into attempts at emotional rescue.
Your Personal Myth and Archetype - What is your deeper story, the mythic plot and basic pattern behind the details of your biography? What are you here to respond to?
Narcissism - Everyone talks about it, but few understand it. Why does it seem so prevalent? Where does it come from? What are its covert forms? How can we protect ourselves from being victimized by it?
I earn an ambassador’s fee when you purchase them. You can also view my instructor page at JP here.
These were fun to make. I packed a lot into each. Topics include
Introduction to Loreology - The craft of creating personal, social, and cultural change by examining our guiding stories and melting them down into new tales, practices, and possibilities.
Deep Teaching and Mentoring - This came from graduate students asking: How do we translate what we learn about consciousness, dreams, myth, the esoteric, etc. into terms other people can grasp?
Equalwise: The Art of Emotional Self-Defense - "The world is full of bullies," said Krishnamurti. Learn to recognize and avoid giving your power to them. Stop being taken off guard and learn the art of guarding your wellbeing.
Soft Skills for the Workplace: Being In Demand - According to Forbes, the Wall Street Journal, and other sources of business news, hiring managers like me are very interested in relational workplace skills. Learn more about these skills and how to cultivate and demonstrate them.
When the World Shows Up In Our Dreams: Decoding the Call - Not everything in our dreams is about us. Some of it reflects events around us showing up as symbols. Why do they? How do we work with such powerful beckonings?
Concentrate Your Life! A Course for the Super-Busy - This comes from two decades of teaching, administrating, publishing, and other time-intensive endeavors requiring excellent organizational skills. Take back your time.
These you’ll want to have a computer to download them onto. The prices vary.
When I finish teaching an online course, I often package it up, zip up all the audio lectures, rewrite the syllabus into a course outline, and make it available at my website.
Topics include: Healing and Nature, Archetypal Family Systems, Ecopsychology, Intro to Terrapsychology, Applied Hermeticism, Visibility for Introverts, Jung and Creativity, Depth Psychology, Alchemy and Vocation, Jung’s Red Book, Applied Mythology, Deep Storytelling, Writing with Soul, and others.
Thoughts for the Month:
Where is Aphrodite calling or teaching you? Where does Beauty land in you and stir your heart? And where in your life waits the energy and force of her partner Mars?
