Editorial

This September issue of the Journal offers a collection of papers which reflect both the traditional clinical lens that readers have come to expect from the Journal, as well as more theoretically oriented papers addressing evolutions of thought in analytical psychology. We believe such an array reflects a noteworthy trend we see in papers currently submitted to the Journal, which are increasingly theoretical in their nature. Clinical experience and theoretical understanding interpenetrate one another in analytic work, and as such, the editors are pleased to receive papers exploring both.

In our first paper “the question is posed whether the West's feverish pursuit of psychedelic medicines—from individual consumption to entheogenic tourism, from capitalist commodification of medicines and treatments to the increasing number of ethical scandals and abuse through clinicians and self-proclaimed shamans—is related to a Western cultural complex.” Helge Osterhold and Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold pursue this question in “Chasing the Numinous: Hungry Ghosts in the Shadow of the Psychedelic Renaissance.” They begin with the observation of increased interest in psychedelic drugs for medical use. While they acknowledge their potential therapeutic benefits, they also look at the shadow aspects, which include commercial exploitation, unethical practices and as yet unknown risks. Their main interest, however, is focused on the Western mentality of “consumerism, material acquisition, comfort, entertainment and success,” an attitude that they relate to Asian Hungry Ghost stories—tales of creatures who are forever starving. While not denying the potential of psychedelic medicines to open the gate to the inner world of the unconscious, they advise caution and advocate a re-connection with our own depth in a therapeutic relationship and in spiritual practice.

The theme of psychedelic drugs is picked up again by Misser Berg's review of the paper “Psychedelic Psychoanalysis: Transformations