Buy new:
-22% $38.75
FREE delivery Saturday, May 18
Ships from: Amazon.com
Sold by: Amazon.com
$38.75 with 22 percent savings
List Price: $49.95

The List Price is the suggested retail price of a new product as provided by a manufacturer, supplier, or seller. Except for books, Amazon will display a List Price if the product was purchased by customers on Amazon or offered by other retailers at or above the List Price in at least the past 90 days. List prices may not necessarily reflect the product's prevailing market price.
Learn more
FREE Returns
FREE delivery Saturday, May 18. Order within 4 hrs 19 mins
In Stock
$$38.75 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$38.75
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Ships from
Amazon.com
Ships from
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Sold by
Amazon.com
Returns
30-day easy returns
30-day easy returns
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Read full return policy
Returns
30-day easy returns
This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.
Read full return policy
Payment
Secure transaction
Your transaction is secure
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
Payment
Secure transaction
We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more
$33.00
A quality copy with minor wear. Ships same or next business day. A quality copy with minor wear. Ships same or next business day. See less
$4.43 delivery Monday, May 20. Details
Only 1 left in stock - order soon.
$$38.75 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details
Price
Subtotal
$$38.75
Subtotal
Initial payment breakdown
Shipping cost, delivery date, and order total (including tax) shown at checkout.
Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.
Ships from and sold by happycustomers.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Lionel Corbett
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Psyche and the Sacred: Spirituality Beyond Religion 1st Edition

by Lionel Corbett (Author)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 26 ratings
See all formats and editions
{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$38.75","priceAmount":38.75,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"38","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"75","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"wjO0jJcisEq9vVxU9LLgSgbYPU%2BOVQAj%2FBe2%2Bau6%2FPPGqD8rw3%2B6gWlAWjt1%2BjzDpafBfbi5moTHFjiPjgoW1wfPloL7V%2BYoILMjdM2b38W6unL%2FPkEs%2FbKC35a9u%2BXVIgH5r9qqKHBb478%2FOyStdQ%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$33.00","priceAmount":33.00,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"33","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"00","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"wjO0jJcisEq9vVxU9LLgSgbYPU%2BOVQAjBCAVie3rJqvhuzM9olkGxXK0p%2F7hp%2BODXeX%2F3t3Z7e%2FnkmbtKK7wFS9HbZ4gAg1Np52JGUT1fK66G7kqX4%2FVAXxmpFB%2FMglDT3GuHHCJiiHVPO979QeoEL%2BBPNRGNeW9shoHj2jQhuM%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

This book presents an approach to spirituality based on direct personal experience of the sacred. Using the language and insights of depth psychology, Corbett outlines the intimate relationship between spiritual experience and the psychology of the individual, unveiling the seamless continuity between the personal and transpersonal dimensions of the psyche. His discussion runs the gamut of spiritual concerns, from the problem of evil to the riddle of pain and suffering. Drawing upon his psychotherapeutic practice as well as on the experiences of characters from our religious heritage, Corbett explores the various portals through which the sacred presents itself to us: dreams, visions, nature, the body, relationships, psychopathology, and creative work. Referring extensively to Jung’s writings on religion, but also to contemporary psychoanalytic theory, Corbett gives form to the new spirituality that is emerging alongside the world’s great religious traditions. For those seeking alternative forms of spirituality beyond the Judeo-Christian tradition, this volume will be a useful guide on the journey.

Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. ISBN-10
    036782051X
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0367820510
  3. Edition
    1st
  4. Publication date
    November 4, 2019
  5. Language
    English
  6. Dimensions
    5.98 x 0.69 x 9.02 inches
  7. Print length
    302 pages
  8. See all details
Next page
Amazon First Reads | Editors' picks at exclusive prices

Frequently bought together

Psyche and the Sacred: Spirituality Beyond Religion
$38.75
Get it as soon as Saturday, May 18
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
The Sacred Cauldron: Psychotherapy as a Spiritual Practice
$22.95
Get it as soon as Saturday, May 18
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
+
Psychoanalytic Diagnosis: Understanding Personality Structure in the Clinical Process
$45.00
Get it as soon as Saturday, May 18
In Stock
Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.
Total price:
To see our price, add these items to your cart.
Details
Added to Cart
Choose items to buy together.

Editorial Reviews

Review

‘In this timely book, Lionel Corbett explores some of the unexpected ways in which the numinous can reach and transform us from within – often in the very depths of our suffering – provided that we know how to listen. This is a book that provides a depth-psychological language for the sacred and a sacred language for the psyche. It helps us to speak about the Unspeakable, and in so doing, it gives us hope that the great mystery at the core of life might once again become a valid part of our story in the modern age. I highly recommend this wise and inspiring book.’ – Donald E. Kalsched, Ph.D., author of The Inner World of Trauma: Archetypal Defences of the Personal Spirit

‘Corbett provides a clear and cogent path between the exhortations of fundamentalism and the shallow seductions of secularism to a personal recovery and immediacy of religious experience.’ – James Hollis, Ph.D., author of Finding Meaning in the Second Half of Life

‘For those who are interested in novel manifestations of the numinous, this book will be a valuable resource.’ – Marian Woodman, author of Bone: Dying into Life

About the Author

Lionel Corbett is a psychiatrist and Jungian analyst. He teaches depth psychology at Pacifica Graduate Institute, Santa Barbara, California.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Routledge; 1st edition (November 4, 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 302 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 036782051X
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0367820510
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 14.2 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.98 x 0.69 x 9.02 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 26 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Lionel Corbett

Lionel Corbett

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read author blogs and more

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
4.4 out of 5
26 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Broos963
5.0 out of 5 stars Great book
Reviewed in the United States on September 1, 2023
Verified Purchase
Really enjoyed reading this. Helped me to understand a Jungian approach to spirituality, and really helped bring together many ideas I've had over my own spiritual journey. There were times where I felt certain ideas were being pushed over others, despite advocating for an experiential approach, but I guess no book is perfect.

I personally loved this book. Very helpful for my own journey, and it may well be helpful for yours as well.
Helpful
 Report
Tim Lukeman
5.0 out of 5 stars Welcoming the Transcendent
Reviewed in the United States on November 14, 2018
Verified Purchase
I'm in full agreement with the previous reviewers: this is a rich, vital, utterly necessary book for anyone feeling the presence & pull of the Sacred, but unable to see or find it in any traditional, organized belief system. And before I say more, let me note that the author makes it clear that many can & many have found that connection with the Sacred in traditional, organized belief systems. If anything, he very firmly states that there is no one road to Truth; indeed, there's no one Truth, period. What he's talking about is a deeply personal, intimate encounter between the individual & the Infinite.

Yes, I'm using a number of capitals here … but in a book like this, they're warranted. While hardline fundamentalism is thriving, often violently, through the modern world, there seems less & less evidence of true spirituality. Much of what passes for it is the thinnest of New Age wooliness, devoid of spiritual struggle & striving, seemingly no more than self-deception, however comforting.

But one of the points that Corbett makes, and more than once, is that meeting with the Sacred can be a shattering experience. Certainly it's a humbling one for the Ego, as it confronts us with our own self-deceptions & lays them bare in an illuminating light that reveals their shallowness. In short, a genuinely spiritual life demands strength, courage, and a willingness to examine everything you once thought to be a firm & unyielding foundation.

While Corbett's approach is Jungian, it's not one of unquestioning adherence to psychological dogma. What he offers isn't a list of bullet points or X number of easy steps to enlightenment. He's assuming that the reader has real questions about engaging with that Something More, whatever name you might wish to give it, and developing a life with depth & meaning … a life that continues to develop & sometimes alter over the years. In other words, an ongoing process rather than a defined & definite finish line. He offers no guarantees, other than the belief that this process is worth striving for. And in that I concur -- most highly recommended!
3 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars A beautiful book, and an easy read
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2018
Verified Purchase
This is one of the most informative books on the psychology of human spirituality that has yet become available. A beautiful book, and an easy read!
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Sammie
5.0 out of 5 stars For those who have a "not quite" relationship to the ...
Reviewed in the United States on June 23, 2016
Verified Purchase
For those who have a "not quite" relationship to the church due to it not answering many of their questions regarding religion, this book offers a new and less rigid and more individualistic look at religious experiences.
2 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Ross James Browne
5.0 out of 5 stars Another great work by Lionel Corbett
Reviewed in the United States on March 23, 2011
Preface: This review is written by a theologian. I realize there are atheist and secular interpretations of this book. My goal is to point out some of Corbett's insights about the Spirit and the psyche which can be of much use to theologians - especially in terms of understanding what the Holy Spirit really is. A more secular interpretation of this book would likely emphasize the way in which religious ideas can stem naturally from the human psyche - thus casting doubt on the supernatural origins of religious energy. Both interpretations are valid. But the theologian would likely emphasize the similarity between the Holy Spirit and Corbett's large "Self", the supposed source of this natural human religious energy. I cannot emphasize enough how valuable Corbett's insights are for the theologian, even if his intent was to describe what he viewed as a secular or natural psychological phenomenon. I choose to use Corbett's insights to shed light on the inner workings of the Holy Spirt, while bearing in mind that this is a subjective interpretation of this book which goes off-label in terms of the author's intent.

This work is a worthy follow up to Lionel Corbett's classic, "The Religious Function of the Psyche." Like his previous work, this book deals with the autonomous psyche or the large Self. Some refer to this phenomenon as the collective unconscious, but Corbett claims that this term has fallen out of use in favor of the autonomous Self. This thing - this Self - is precisely what theologians call the Holy Spirit. We have been trying to figure out what the Spirit is this whole time, and ironically it is the depth psychologists who finally figured out what the Holy Spirit really is. But they gave it a new name: the collective unconscious, the large Self, or the autonomous psyche. Even they are not sure what to call it, but the important thing is that we know what it is and how it works. This Spirit essentially orchestrates and coordinates archetypal experiences, which are the potent, life-changing experiences that propel us into higher consciousness through the search for meaning. The large Self gives us the experiences we need by acting as the hands of fate. The experiences create new psychological complexes that motivate us to live our lives with a greater degree of urgency. The Self or Spirit is responsible for creating the experiences that gave us consciousness and new motivations. The Spirit or Self is the force behind the forces behind our new motivations. You can call it whatever you want but it is and always was the Holy Spirit. Theologians owe the Jungian psychologists a debt of gratitude for defining this phenomenon. Too bad they called it by the wrong name.

But seriously, this book is very important for theologians because it does give us a clear idea as to how God and the Spirit can work in all aspects of human life, conscious and subconscious, even when we are seemingly immersed in the shadow. Corbett reminds us that even sin and addiction are really attempts to get closer to the divine; these chthonic, pleasure-principle motivations are motivated by the same complexes that stem from the archetypal experiences that were originally orc hestrated by the Spirit or large Self. This exploration into chthonic sin eventually leads us into a dead end, and we consciously decide to live our lives the right way in order to get out. This new compassionate life is still motivated by the pleasure principle - because now we realize that the most pleasurable thing is to live our lives the right way, as compassionate, evolved individuals. But all of this, according to Corbett (see page 83), is still being propelled by the complexes that were set in motion by the archetypes that were orchestrated by the Self/ Spirit (or whatever you want to call it). If these concepts sound interesting to you, I strongly recommend this book.

Also I would also like to strongly recommend the following books which are very relevant to Lionel Corbett, and go very well together with Corbett's books. These include: "The Psyche as Sacrament" by John Dourley, "Jung and the Religious Alternative: The Re-rooting" by John Dourley, "A Strategy for a Loss of Faith" by Dourley, and "The Illness That We Are," also by John Dourley. Of course all of this is influenced by Carl Jung. If you have not yet explored the writings of Jung, I suggest, "Aion", "Psychology and Religion", "Civilization in Transition", and "The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche".
33 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Vivian
5.0 out of 5 stars not just for psychologically minded
Reviewed in the United States on October 18, 2008
Lionel corbett is a leading voice in the field. acknowledging that our psychology is a totality of all that influences the human experience. consciously addresses the numinous, which has been the focus of man's experience, yet rarely acknowledged in our "scientifically minded" culture.
16 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Andrew G. Marshall
5.0 out of 5 stars Powerful and everything I wanted in a spiritual book
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 25, 2019
Verified Purchase
Is there life after death? Do I believe in God? What is the meaning of life? I always thought I'd get round to answering these questions when, I don't know, I was older, I had more time or I had more experience of the world. Perhaps it was just I wasn't brave enough. Around four and a half years ago, I decided to start trying to engage with these questions. I started reading books (reviewed on this site), attending workshops and retreats and trying to decide my beliefs.

If I'd had enough knowledge when I started out, I would have asked for a book that explained the difference between religion and spirituality. I would asked for something that linked psychology (my era of specialty) with spirituality - with special references to Jung. I would asked for someone who had studied long and thought deeply and been prepared to give his (or her opinions) without pushing one true path. I would have asked for some practical ideas - without recruiting for one school of thought. I found all those ingredients in this book. Thank you Lionel Corbett.

Even more amazingly, this book gave me the space to think about my own direct spiritual experiences - what Corbett calls the Numinosum - rather than discount them (because they don't fit the Judaeo-Christian orthodoxy. It even gave me some ideas for a book of my own.

The only problem is how will I find a book to follow this one. Perhaps I should read it again? After all, there is a lot to digest and I expect I will get different lessons the second time around.
4 people found this helpful
 Report