Sunday, September 8, 2019

Myths and Religions Precede from Schizophrenic Delusions, Psychologist Concludes

religion, myths, delusions, Carl Jung

Why are there similarities among myths and religions? To answer this question, you must be familiar with Carl Jung’s concept, the collective unconscious, simply put; the collective unconscious is within a person’s unconscious. He claimed that it is collectively shared by mankind. Jung created the concept to explain why some symbols and motifs of religions are strikingly similar. The most famous examples of these motifs are reincarnation, messiahs or demigods, the cataclysmic war between gods, salvation and afterlife.

Carl Jung grew up with his schizophrenic mother, thus he grew up a God-fearing man. The increasingly delusional behavior of his mother foreshadowed his quest to unravel the nature of religion. Carl Jung studied the behavioral patterns of schizophrenics as well. He observed that the beliefs and ideas of his patients are too outlandish for the modern world, and have a resemblance to the mystical beliefs of ancient people. Jung also proposed that there is a creative level of the psyche, common to both individuals that experience delusions and those who did not. This means that there is a common mental substratum, shared by mankind and is the source of religious motifs.

Carl Jung travelled around the world and studied the cultures of many countries including their distinct mythologies, religions and literature. After studying a lot, he concluded that schizophrenic delusions are the precursors of myths and religion. The same patterns of visions of our ancestors are in fact delusions shared by mankind. He coined the term ‘collective unconscious’ to explain the similarities of the said motifs. Carl Jung believed that myths and religions gave significance and meaning to human existence. This would explain why religious people tend to be more optimistic and have a more positive outlook in life.

religion, myths, delusions, julian jaynes

Another psychologist named Julian Jaynes had a similar conclusion about the nature of religion. He claimed that our ancestors possess a different mode of thinking. They are more instinctive about the environment but rely on the voices in their heads emanated from the right side of the brain. He asserts that three thousand years ago people routinely hallucinated until the connections between two hemispheres evolved for rational thinking and introspection.

Published by Mark Lester, Lucis Philippines

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